The Razor's Edge produced two movie versions (1946, 1984), each with stellar casts featuring first Tyrone Power and Anne Baxter, then Bill Murray and Theresa Russell. The earler version emphasized Power as hero seeking the true meaning of life, while the 1984 version diffuses the focus from Power to his friends, who undergo a personal crisis of their own. Both versions are reasonably faithfu l to Maugham's text, except that the cinematic possibilities of the narrative are exploited and developed. In the novel Larry narrates to "Mr. Maugham" his experiences in India, which took him up the Ganges to Benares and farther upriver to the Himalayas. The movies, particularly the 1984 version, exploit this breathtaking scenery to the fullest extent.

(Please see the entries on Of Human Bondage and "Rain" for further details on adaptations of Maugham's works.)