The Third Man/Brighton Rock/Fallen Idol/Heart Of The Matter

The Third Man: in 1949, an American writer of westerns, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton), arrives in post-war Vienna to visit his old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles). On arrival, he learns that his friend has been killed in a street accident, and when he meets Calloway, chief of the British Military Police in Vienna, he is informed that Lime was in fact a black marketeer wanted by the police. He decides to prove Harry's innocence, but is Harry really dead?

The Heart Of The Matter: In arguably his finest film performance, Trevor Howard (The Third Man, Brief Encounter) plays Harry Scobie, a sympathetic Catholic police officer in 1940s Sierra Leone who has more in common with the locals than he has with his fellow ex-pats. Trapped in a loveless marriage, he sends his wife back to England on holiday and then promptly falls in love with another woman (Maria Schell), leaving him prey to blackmailer Yusef (Gerard Oury).

Brighton Rock: In perhaps his most iconic onscreen role, Richard Attenborough plays Pinkie: a small time hoodlum running a protection racket at a Brighton racecourse. Following the murder of a visiting journalist, Pinkie becomes involved with Rose (Carol Marsh) a cafe waitress and potentially dangerous witness. Marrying her seems to ensure her silence, but a series of double-crossings cause Pinkie's plan to unravel with bloody consequences.

The Fallen Idol: A classic suspense-loaded thriller from some of British cinema's greatest talents, The Fallen Idol is a cry wolf story on the grandest scale. The film tells the story of Philippe (Bobby Henrey), the young son of a diplomat who, trying to understand the adult world as seen through the eyes of a child, lies to defend those close to him. When his butler friend Baines (Ralph Richardson) is suspected of murdering his wife, the vital information that Philippe holds falls on deaf ears...

Special Features:

• Featurette on Anton Karas.
• The Third Man radio broadcasts.