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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Among titles that have been
included in Fox's Studio Line classic DVD series,
Edmund Goulding's "The Razor's Edge" is a
leviathan of powerhouse entertainment. At 146
minutes it's certainly one of the longest films
Fox ever made -- especially during its golden
period. Based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham,
the film stars then reigning heartthrob, Tyrone
Power as wealthy Chicago playboy Larry Darrell.
Without much cause, except that he's bored with
life in general, Larry breaks his engagement to
Isabel Bradley (Gene Tierney) in favor of becoming
a world traveler. Eventually, his trips abroad
lead to India, to the very seat of spiritual
enlightenment under the tutelage of a guru.
Meanwhile, back in Chicago, the impatient Isabel
decides to marry Gray Maturin (John Payne). After
the stock market crashes, Isabel leaves Gray to go
continent tripping with her social climbing,
egotistical Uncle Elliot Templeton (Clifton Webb
-- at his usual acerbic best). Eventually, all
this intercontinental head bumping leads straight
to a reunion of sorts for all concerned; one that
is made bittersweet when it is discovered that an
old family friend, Sophie Macdonald (Ann Baxter),
after having lost both her husband and child in a
terrible accident, has succumbed to a life of
spousal abuse and drug use. Having awakened his
moral center, Larry makes a vein attempt to reform
Sophie. But Isobel's jealous need to have Larry
all to herself -- even though his interest in her
has never been rekindled -- leads to a bitter and
tragic end.
Goulding's direction on this magnum opus of a
motion picture is slick, stylish and polished.
Around every turn he imbues the staging of events
with an overall sense of foreboding tragedy that,
like the final flowering of the old south in Gone
With The Wind, simply reeks of a time far removed
from the currency of life in which his characters
ultimately find themselves living. Only the
central, world-weary performance of Tyrone Power
seems to hit the high notes acting wise. For the
rest, but especially with Gene Tierney, the cast
seems to be going through the motions -- albeit
with considerable flair and panache as is
befitting classically trained actors from
Hollywood's golden age. There is also something to
be said for Herbert Marshall's characterization of
the author, Somerset Maugham. Though probably
inaccurate to history, it is nevertheless one of
the great bits of character acting ever put on
film.
Fox's DVD is a mixed blessing. Though the picture
can appear sharp and nicely balanced at times,
many of the scenes exhibit a less than clean look.
This is primarily due to the fact that Fox was not
particularly clairvoyant during the intervening
years, and their lack of preservation of original
film elements shows now. The grayscale is, at
times muddy, with a definite note of flickering
throughout. Blacks are often more deep gray, than
solid black. Whites are rarely clean. Occasionally
there are exceptions to this rule, but for the
most part, the picture elements on "The Razor's
Edge" are just above average and nothing to
recommend. Fine details are often lost in darker
scenes. A distinct background hiss is denoted
during quiescent moments in the film. An audio
commentary is all one gets to augment the
experience. |
