Movie Review: The Razor's Edge (1946)

The Razor's Edge has a philosophical look at life. The movie opens up shortly after World War I has ended. America is filled with excitement. There is an understanding that we will become the greatest nation in the world. And, of course, since this movie was made in 1946, the outcome was already known to the audience watching this film. Larry Darrell (Tyrone Power) is a World War I veteran and is engaged to marry Isabel Bradley (Gene Tierney). Isabel's uncle, Elliott Templeton (Clifton Webb), is concerned about the future marriage, because Larry doesn't appear to have any motivation to take part in helping the United States fulfill it's destiny. Instead he wishes to "loaf" around for a period of time on his inheritance of $3,000 a year. Now $3,000 in today's terms is close to $47,000. I suppose depending on where one lives in the United States now this would be considered lower middle class or higher end poverty. We learn that this is also a concern of Isabel's. Larry and Isabel decide to postpone the marriage for a year, which will allow Larry to spend a year in Paris. 

There are some interesting dynamics here. Larry's life was saved by a friend. The friend sacrificed his life for Larry's during the war. This causes Larry to want to examine the meaning of one's life versus striving to make America a dominant country. He is willing to live a simplified life, perhaps eventually taking a low paid job to help better support his family. This clashes with Isabel and Elliot who are wealthy and can't imagine not living with such wealth. Another interesting point is that even though Isabel and Elliot are snobbish about money, it doesn't necessarily prevent them from associated with other classes of society. Somehow Larry and Isabel did meet and fall in love. Isabel also is friends with the Sophie and Bob MacDonald (Anne Baxter and Frank Latimore) who appear to have a middle class lifestyle. 

Larry spends his year in Paris, enjoying life largely living what I'd call a long-term tourist lifestyle. It is simple, but enjoyable for him. Isabel comes to visit and realizes that Larry still isn't interested in pursuing a career that would support her lifestyle. They decide to end the engagement. At the last minute, Isabel considers seducing Larry so that she can later claim that she has gotten pregnant, but backs down.

The years pass. Larry travels to India for a period of time. Isabel marries Gray Maturin (John Payne) who is in her social bracket. Sophie suffers heartbreak when a drunk driver kills her husband and child. 

The various individuals meet back up in Paris post-1929 Wall Street crash. Gray has suffered a mental breakdown due to the crash and the loss of all his wealth. Elliot who happened to short the stock market has come out just fine and much wealthier. He has put Isabel and Gray up in one of his homes. Larry has returned from India. The group runs into Sophie who made her way to Paris and has descended into being a drunk and prostitute. 

The movie explores second chances in life at this point and the lack of appreciation for such chances. Using some wisdom he has gained in India, Larry adjusts Gray's frame of mind and gets him out of his funk. He also helps out Sophie and eventually they become engaged to be married. It just so happens that Isabel still carries a flame for Larry. She calls Sophie's transformation out of prostitution and alcoholism as meaningless. Isabel considers Sophie's emotional descent after the death of her husband and child to be her true nature and not the current state where Larry has nurtured her back to her prior self. Now her attitude is partially driven by the fact that she still loves Larry, but at the same time she totally ignores the fact that her own husband had a mental breakdown. She also ignores the fact that if it wasn't for her wealthy uncle that she might very well be living under very different circumstances. 

As the movie heads to its close, Isabel's jealousy over Sophie's relationship with Larry causes her to take dire action. She entices Sophie back into drinking, which eventually leads to Sophie getting murdered. Elliot also dies from old age, leaving his wealth to Isabel and Gray. Larry decides to head back to America, thinking he'll work the rest of his life as a mechanic or other type career, turning his back on living a life that would provide him with greater comforts in life.

As the movie comes to a close, I wonder if the movie is attempting to make a commentary about the wealthy and their lack of compassion. As Elliot is on his death bed, he laments the fact that he hasn't been invited to a party put on by a wealthy friend. At the same time, he is surrounded by family (Isabel and Gray) and friends who are not part of that wealthy class. I don't think the movie is making a commentary about Elliot dying along with his wealth as he does have friends and family with him, just perhaps not others he thought were also his friends. True, throughout the movie, Elliot is portrayed as a bit of a snob, but I'd say a snob with a heart. 

On the other hand, do I agree with Larry's decision that the philosophy of life is to live a simple life that excludes aspirations of wealth? I think it helps that Larry has a backstop of an inheritance (assuming it was part of a trust fund). It doesn't exactly take a large salary to push him into a middle class lifestyle. It perhaps also helps that Larry isn't married with children -- though not without wanting to be married. I've got to say I think the movie makes his choice far more romanticized than it is in reality, especially if taking into context the time we live in now.