The Outer Edge

A physician is dragged down to the depths by the drug habit, losing position and wealth. After pawning every available possession except a revolver to satisfy his craving for the drug, he returns to his cheap lodging house to end his life. Half stupefied, he gets into the wrong room, where he finds a woman and daughter almost starved. He takes his revolver and pawns it to buy food for them. His own act of kindness gives him a new view of life and he struggles to break his habit. Many times he almost falls again, but is aided by a nurse whom he had known years before. Finally he throws off the yoke altogether and wins back to manhood and the love of a woman.

Directed by E.H. Calvert, The Outer Edge leans on a strong ensemble — Henry B. Walthall, Warda Howard, Sidney Ainsworth — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 1915.