W. Somerset Maugham published the novel The Razor’s Edge in 1944 to critical and commercial acclaim. That novel details a story, narrated by the author himself, who plays a part in the actions therein. This makes for a somewhat unique take on fiction and allows the author to explore such deep topics as the meaning of life. While the novel is fictional, it is based on real people and events, though the main protagonist is an amalgamation of many people. It was published as a “true story” in order to insert an artificial memoir feel to the prose while at the same time Maugham freely admitted he did not have enough of the true story to fully dramatize it; therefore, much of what was written was invented to fill in those gaps.
Two years after the publication of the novel, a film adaptation hit the screens. This would not be the only time an adaptation would be made; it would be re-adapted in the 1980s starring Bill Murray, who was trying to flex his dramatic chops at this time. The 1946 adaptation stars Tyrone Power in the leading role of Larry Darrell, a recently returned soldier from the war. Larry comes across as a man with no ambitions, willing to live a life of poverty rather than strive to acquire wealth. This mentality saves him when, shortly after the Great War ends, the world falls into the Great Depression and many with lots of wealth found their fortunes gone virtually overnight. Because Larry has no wealth to speak of, and because he is perfectly content to live off the sweat off his back, the depression doesn’t affect him as much as others around him. Before all of that happens, though, his mentality becomes a stumbling block for Isabel (Gene Tierney), the woman he loves and has proposed to. Isabel has no interest in living a life of poverty and instead marries a millionaire she doesn’t love, Gray Maturin (John Payne), while Larry lives off a meager inheritance and lives the life of a student.
Meanwhile, Sophie MacDonald (Anne Baxter), childhood friend of Larrys, loses her husband and infant child in a vehicular accident. This causes her to turn to alcohol and drugs to deal with her emotional depression. Larry, who has returned to Paris after seeking spiritual enlightenment in India, finds her and tries to rehabilitate her, even proposing marriage. Isabel, whose own marriage is struggling since her husband’s fortune was lost in the Great Depression, sees an opportunity to interfere with Larry and Sophie’s romance. She deliberately pushes Sophie back to her old ways, an act that eventually gets Sophie murdered in the streets. It doesn’t take Larry long to realize what has really happened and who is ultimately responsible for her relapse.
Gene Tierney is billed as the lead actress, but she is overshadowed almost from the first by Anne Baxter, who is simply magnetic. Almost immediately, your eyes are drawn to Anne, and they never really leave her. This story covers the destruction of her character, but we won’t know that for a while. When we are first seeing her, she is young and full of life, happy and radiant. Later, we will see her recovering in the hospital and receiving the news that she is the only survivor in a stupid auto accident, and we see her face crumple with despair. This really is a tour de force performance by Anne Baxter, and it was singled out by the Academy. Her acting when we are reintroduced to her after the alcohol and drugs have taken over is harrowing. It’s not played subtly, but it is also not overplayed either. Anne hits it on the head so that when we see her looking longingly at a glass of wine, we can see just how strong that temptation is for her.
Addiction is an ugly thing to witness. Couple that with a tragedy that all of us can empathize with, and it is almost overpowering just how much we feel for Sophie. Isabel’s rationalizing of why she pushes Sophie to relapse is just that, a rationalization. The reality is that Isabel, still in love with Larry, doesn’t want him to be with Sophie. It’s ugly and awful and cements our opinions on her from earlier after she left Larry over money. She is a woman who we are to love at first and then slowly gain an understanding of who she really is over the course of the film. By the end of the movie, we are to despise her just as Larry does.
Where this film struggles is with the character of Larry. Tyrone Power is doing a credible job at portraying this character going through his own emotional journey, but that journey is a bit vague and more on the emotional side than the intellectual. We see him taking labor work and living off a rather small inheritance. He gives us a rather unenlightening answer as to why, and that’s all we get on the subject. It’s a weakness that can be traced back to the source material that screenwriter Lamar Trotti (with an uncredited rewrite by Darryl F. Zanuck himself) failed to correct.
This is a story with a lot of potential, and most of it works well on screen. But what doesn’t work really doesn’t work. Because of that, it becomes difficult at times to maintain interest for such a long runtime. There are a lot of interesting ideas being presented here, and Sophie’s story will never fail to move me emotionally, but too much time is dedicated to Larry’s attempts at a spiritual awakening, and the resolution of that is not particularly satisfying. This is a film that would have benefited from a tighter script and some judicious editing. It was never boring, but it was often less than engaging. Still, it’s worth watching just for Anne Baxter alone.
Academy Award Nominations:
Best Motion Picture: Darryl F. Zanuck
Best Supporting Actor: Clifton Webb
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Baxter (won)
Best Art Direction - Black-and-White: Richard Day, Nathan Juran, Thomas Little, and Paul S. Fox
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Release Date: December 25, 1946
Running Time: 145 minutes
Not Rated
Starring: Tyrone Power, Gene Tierney, John Payne, Herbert Marshall, Anne Baxter, and Clifton Webb
Directed By: Edmund Goulding
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