Film Review: The Razor's Edge (1984)

Bill Murray has built his stellar reputation by appearing in comedies. Like many of his colleagues, he wanted to evade being typecast and one of the ideas was to star in serious dramatic roles. One such opportunity was provided by The Razor’s Edge, celebrated 1944 novel by British author W. Somerset Maugham. Four decades after its release, Murray starred in and co-wrote 1984 film adaptation, directed by his friend John Byrum.

The plot begins during First World War and Murray plays the protagonist, young Illinois high society member Larry Darrell. Although USA is still neutral, Darrell and his friend Gray Maturin (played by James Keach) decide to participate by volunteering as Red Cross ambulance drivers at Western Front. Both men survive the war, but the experiences in the trenches have profoundly changed Larry who abandons plans to take well-paid job of a stock broker and cancels wedding with his long-time girlfriend Isabel Bradley (played by Catherine Hicks) who, infuriated, marries Gray instead. Larry decides to take a long journey over the world during which he would support himself with menial jobs and try to “find himself”. His journey ultimately leads to India where he goes to Himalayan Buddhist monastery in order to find spiritual enlightenment. After some time he returns to Paris where he would meet Sophie MacDonald (played by Theresa Russell), old childhood friend who, following tragic death of a child and husband, took self-destructive path of alcohol, drugs and promiscuity. Larry falls in love with her and tries to set her on the proper path, but his effort fail due to Isabel’s jealousy and manipulations.

Unlike 1946 Classic Hollywood adaptation starring Tyrone Power and Gene Tirney, its remake failed both at the box-office and among the critics. This is mostly due to some questionable creative decisions by Murray. While he tries to play serious dramatic character, he somehow can’t escape giving it somewhat humorous component, which actually makes him passive, immature and actually unsympathetic. The other mistake was keeping the authentic period setting of the novel, although its plot, one of the first to espouse ideas that would be popularised by hippies and counterculture, could have worked better if set in modern period or 1960s (which is something that Murray himself admitted many years later). The need for as much authenticity as possible resulted in The Razor’s Edge being shot on authentic locations, including India. This resulted in many breath-taking shots of Northern Indian scenery, but this, just like the grand epic score of Jack Nitzsche, fails to connect with the more intimate story. The Razor’s Edge proves to be overlong and inconsistent in tone, and further problem is inconsistent quality of acting. While Theresa Russell is formidable as traditional woman who transforms into self-destructive bohemian, Denholm Elliott is great in small but entertaining role of Isabel’s rich and snobbish expatriate uncle. Catherine Hicks is, on the other hand, terribly bland and unsympathetic as Isabel. The Razor’s Edge fails even at the end, which is utterly non-cathartic and that would make many in the audience disappointed. But, not everything was in vain. Murray, in order to secure funding for this film, agreed to star in Ghostbusters, resulting in one of the biggest hits of its time. So, The Razor’s Edge, in a way, served certain purpose.

RATING: 4/10 (++)

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