Hey, I loved it!

artzau

The remarks of the detractor in this array of reviews is confusing and confused.  Look.  I read Maugham's book in the late 40s and saw the Tyrone Power, Gene Tierney, Clifton Webb film.  So what?  This film was neither one but that's beauty of art, dudes.  It doesn't have to.  The Razor's Edge is an odyssey of a man in search of himself.  The transit nature of life and the brutality of war turn him into a "superfluous" man, who goes off on a quest to find himself.  We can inundate this issue with metaphors until the cows come home, but that's Maugham's story.  Old Somerset, a closet homosexual who was a volunteer in the horrorific WW1 went through a similar transformation and in a way, this novel, which he began back in the 20s, reflects that journey.  Murray takes the character of Larry Darrell into a new domain.  Why shouldn't he?  He's not Tyrone Power.  He's a comedian who plays a tragic role straight.  There is much in this film that makes it superior to the 40s version.  A stronger statement of the tragedy of the entanglement of the two women and a more intense presentation of the character of Larry. I saw this film when it first aired and recalled a young high school kid remarking to a friend upon exiting, "Man, this is a totally awesome movie."  I agree.  Alas, the critics and comedy-addicted Murray fa ns didn't and it flopped.  Pity.  It is a totally awesome movie.

score 9/10

artzau 10 May 2001

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw0214272/