Third Man on the Mountain is a 1959 American family adventure film by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Ken Annakin and starring Michael Rennie, James MacArthur and Janet Munro.

Set during the golden age of alpinism, its plot concerns a young Swiss man who conquers the mountain that killed his father.

While working in a hotel kitchen in the small town of Kurtal in the Swiss Alps, Rudi Matt daydreams of reaching the summit of the Citadel.

Up on the glacier, Rudi hears a cry for help and rescues British mountaineer Captain Winter, who has fallen into a crevasse.

The next day, Winter prepares to leave Kurtal for a time and tells Franz he would like to climb the Citadel with him and asks him not to be too hard on Rudi.

Back at the kitchen, Rudi discovers that Captain Winter has left Kurtal for good after his plans with Franz didn't work out.

During the choral festival the next night, Rudi overhears the men of the village talking about seeing a climbing party camped on the slopes of the Citadel.

In the storm, he sees a lightning flash through a chimney in the rocks and determines that that is his father's route past the Fortress formation where the fatal climbing accident occurred, but the weather is too severe for him to continue.

Winter and Saxo return to the base camp and meet Franz, who reveals that Rudi did not have his permission to climb.

Early the next morning, Saxo leaves alone, while Rudi, having overheard the conversation the previous night, sneaks out of camp to follow him.

[5] It was his fifth film shot in Britain, following Treasure Island, Robin Hood, The Sword and the Rose and Rob Roy.

[8] Annakin wrote that "Jim was stocky, muscular, good-humoured — the adopted son of Helen Hayes — well educated and with an excellent sense of humour".

[1] James Donald fell eighteen feet off a crag shooting a scene but escaped with minor injuries.

[1] The extraordinary difficulty of making this film on the Matterhorn was chronicled in the "Perilous Assignments" episode of Walt Disney Presents.

[17] Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote that "it is open to question whether the techniques of climbing pictured here, and some of the desperate deeds of mountaineering, were used almost a hundred years ago.

"[20] Richard L. Coe of The Washington Post declared it "a fine example of a Disney Fiction Film, well photographed and welcomely wholesome.

However, it is difficult to present a logical argument against a successful formula, and there seems to be no reason to deviate businesswise from the recent Disney pattern.

But Ken Annakin seems happier selecting camera angles and arranging foolhardy action sequences than directing dialogue.

Everyone but Michael Rennie and James MacArthur overacts vigorously, possibly in an effort to prevent the valley scenes seeming too elementary for schoolboy audiences.

"[23] Annakin wrote the film became Walt Disney's "favourite real-life movie and still has not been equalled for its climbing shots combined with a good story and romance.

Climbing buffs have no time for the sentimental scenes between Jim and Janet, and Walt's Swiss choirs and alpenhorns, which undoubtedly soften the impact of the movie.