"It sadly lacks the charm of a good noir and the kick of a great musical. It feels outdated and astonishingly boring."
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“While ‘The Third Man’ undoubtedly benefits from its strong direction and captivating staging, it’s difficult to escape the feeling that this story might have been better suited as a play. The songs, although not inherently bad, don’t contribute substantially to the narrative or character development. This disconnect leaves the audience longing for more cohesion between the music and the story, hindering the overall impact of the production.”
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“This musical version... is neither a showy director’s piece nor is George Fenton’s score show-stopping...Nunn’s version suffers from an uneven pace and sometimes narrative repetition. But for all the show’s flaws, Greene might approve of this attempt at a ‘writer’s version’.”
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“...the show gives off dogged, clunky determination in place of actual inspiration. This ‘Third Man,’ I’m afraid, feels like a spare part.”
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“This show has much more pointless running around and shouting in the half-dark. The songs are inserted into the story rather than growing organically out of it. You can’t blame anyone for trying. The creative team here have a record, together and separately, of turning unlikely subjects into musical gold. Not this time, though.”
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“In the end, Christopher Hampton, Trevor Nunn and co don’t provide a totally convincing answer to the obvious question: why bother trying to make a musical out of one of the most atmospheric films of all time? But give them some credit for creating a brooding, ambitious near-miss.”
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“There is nothing to justify its existence on stage. Pointless and boring, the best thing about ‘The Third Man’ is the fact that it won’t make the slightest bit of difference to the legacy of the film. And in case anyone thinks it’s harsh to judge the musical by the standards of the film, well it’s kinder than judging the show on its own terms.”
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“With a new war raging over the soul of Europe, this might have been a powerful dispatch from history. Instead, it desecrates an artistic great, unnecessarily vocalising a tale in which the silence was sacred.”
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