Classic noir thriller The Third Man

IF you were confronted with the words sewer, penicillin and Ferris wheel, what response would spring to mind?

Orson Welles in Carol Reed's classic 1949 film The Third Man.

IF you were submitting to one of those free-association language tests practised by psychologists and were confronted with the words sewer, penicillin and Ferris wheel, what response would spring to mind?

Movie buffs, of course, would answer at once: The Third Man (Saturday, 2.10am, Gem), and immediately start humming the Harry Lime theme.

Carol Reed's masterpiece -- on everyone's list of the greatest films of all time -- is the story of an American pulp novelist (Joseph Cotten) who arrives in bleak post-war Vienna in search of his friend Harry (Orson Welles), only to discover that he's a deeply cynical and dangerous racketeer. Everything about this classic noir thriller is unforgettable -- the moody settings, the performances, that scene on the ferris wheel, the black-and-white camerawork by Australian Robert Krasker, that long final shot with Alida Valli -- and yes, that blessed tune.

Like James Bond, the Beatles and Agatha Christie, Harry Potter is a revered British institution, and with gross earnings from the films alone about $8 billion at last count, a sizeable contributor to Britain's economy. Daniel Radcliffe and the gang can be seen in the sixth film, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Friday, 7.30pm, Nine), the longest of the series at 2 1/2 hours and the second for director David Yates. Harry discovers that his Potions textbook is inscribed with the name of its previous owner, the Half-Blood Prince. Will the clues left in the book help crack the mystery of Voldemort's immortality? It's one of the darker Potter films. Alan Rickman is excellent again as the venomously silky Snape and Ralph Fiennes makes a memorably scary Voldemort.

A tour de force from German writer-director Tom Tykwer, Run Lola Run (Saturday, 11.55pm, SBS Two) was an international hit in 1998, an off-beat thriller with a load of cinematic tricks that went with an unlikely tale of crime and retribution. Lola (Franka Potente) is the girlfriend of a small-time crim who has to repay a debt in a hurry. Lola, too, is in a hurry -- she spends most of the film running, dashing through streets and alleys. I haven't room to explain why, but see the film.

And see Murder by Death (Saturday,1.28pm, ABC1), a tongue-in-cheek crime spoof in which some of the world's most famous detectives -- Miss Marple, Charlie Chan, Sam Spade -- are brought together to tackle a baffling whodunnit. Screenplay by Neil Simon with a stellar cast.

The Third Man (M)
5 stars
Saturday, 2.10am, Gem

Run Lola Run (M)
4 stars
Saturday , 11.55pm, SBS Two

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (PG)
3 stars
Friday, 7.30pm, Nine