The Third Man - Sewer Chase

I am going to analyse the mise-en-scene of the sewer chase on The Third Man

Analyse from 3:23 to 11:00



Sound



The scene uses a mixture of Diagetic and Non-Diagetic sounds. The use of the War Sirens (heard from the clip above) shows as if there is a rush to get things done, which in this case would be the Higher authority figure trying to catch Harry Lime. It also uses other sounds such as footsteps and water flowing through, it shows as if Harry Lime is trapped and that no matter what he does, the police would still be able to catch him.

Lighting


The scene uses Non-Ambient lighting throughout this scene. It uses Chiaroscuro lighting, to increase suspense throughout the scene. The use of non-ambient lighting shows fear, especially on harry because it exposes what type of a criminal he is and that this time he's not going to get away for what he has done.

Vanishing Point 


Carol Reed has used Vanishing Point in the sewer chase to show what type of person Harry is. He just comes and goes. One police office finds him and then he runs off and disappear.

Claustrophobic Spaces


Carol Reed has used Claustrophobic spaces to portray as if the world is creeping back in to Harry Lime and that his time is up and that wherever he goes, he is not going to get away and that sooner or later he would be seen by the police and that his days in hiding are over.

Generic conventions used


The sewer chase uses generic conventions found in Thriller Films. Harry Lime is seen as this criminal, as the police is chasing him for what he has done, and the scene also uses Underground sewers with wet narrow alleyways, which is a generic location for a Thriller Film, especially for a Film Noir.