A Dull Razor
“This is a 50 foot film of an ordinary scene of every day life, and its mirth provoking merits have never been surpassed.”
About A Dull Razor
An old man sits at his shaving table. The razor will not cut. He grabs the brush, slaps foam on, and tries again. Each stroke looks worse. His mouth twists a different way every time the blade crosses his face.
Cast & crew
More about A Dull Razor
Thomas A. Edison copyrighted it on 28 February 1900 (D4732). A paper print was deposited that day. Edison catalog no. 105, July 1901, calls it 50 feet. A sales note also says 45 feet at $6.75. The Library of Congress times a viewing copy at 44 seconds at 16 frames a second. Charles Musser’s Edison filmography says that, although Edison copyrighted it, it does not appear to have been made at the Edison studio or by Edison filmmakers. Some catalogs still name Edwin S. Porter.
Themes
Making
The whole film is one man, one razor, and the faces he pulls. There is no second setup in the catalog description.
Look
One table and one face. The joke is the change of expression between strokes, not a trick cut.
Music
Silent.
Preservation
The Library of Congress holds the 1900 paper print and a 35mm reference positive.
Notes
- The paper print in the Library of Congress is the survival copy (LC 878), with a 35mm reference positive.
- Musser dates the photography, tentatively, to February 1900.
- Catalog 105 is the source of the shaving-table description.
- It is in the public domain in the United States.
Scenes
- He soaps in a hurry and the next stroke hurts more than the last.
Also available
- Library of Congress
- Wikimedia Commons (A dull razor (1900).webm)
