Edward Scissorhands

There is absolutely no way I can view this film in even a remotely objective manner, so I won't even try. Like eveything I've seen by Tim Burton, this film is at one and the same time, warm and frightening, tender and heart-wrenchingly evil, uplifting and dark. The good and bad in humanity are shown in stark relief quite clearly for everyone to see. But in the final analysis, the most important message the film has to offer is this: Love truly does make the world go 'round and redemption and just living to see another day is a kind of victory. There will always be bullies, just as there will always be kind souls who actively try to make things better (and who sometimes make things worse through their efforts). The most important thing is to be true to yourself, treat others as you wish to be treated and that if the bad guys win, we all lose-including the bad guys. Excellent cast, fine script and just overall a worthy effort not to be missed. One of Vincent Price's last performances, if not the last. I love this film! Most highly recommended.

A man created by an inventor is taken from the solitude of his home to live with a suburban family.

The plot uses elements of Frankenstein and Beauty and the Beast to great effect in a story that very much about the human condition. Tim Burton may not have intended to satirise suburban types as much as he did, but ridiculed they feel with the gossipy, trouble making housewives and bored gardening, golf playing husbands. Cars all leave for work at the same time, great pride is taken in gardens and most (save a few) ultimately see Edward as either a 'freak' or a 'cripple'. We see the real freak show does not lie in the decaying old Gothic mansion on the hill, but in the normal residential neighbourhood below.

Edward Scissorhands has a style that shows Burton at his quirky, gothic best. The colour of everything in the suburbia is some variant of pastel, and is contrasts brilliantly with Edward's black suit and ghostly white face. This fits perfectly with the themes of acceptance, isolation and fitting into social structures when you are quite different.

The protagonist family are all sympathetic, played likably by Dianne Wiest, Alan Arkin, Robert Oliveri and in particular Winona Ryder. Edward's interaction with them is both hilariously funny and beautifully moving in a number of scenes.

There are also some strong supporting characters. Joyce, the lustful neighbour who talks in perpetual innuendo. Her scene of orgasmic joy on receipt of a new haircut is wonderfully funny. Jim the spoilt jock boyfriend sneers and lashes out every line with utter contempt. Vincent Price in a heart breaking cameo as the inventor is an excellent touch.

As the title character, Johnny Depp's performance is modern take on Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. He says very little, but his eyes and facial expressions tell us everything we need to know. When he does speak it is the voice of a frightened and confused child. I feel so much sympathy that it pains me to watch.

It has a haunting soundtrack that stays with you after the final credits. Every time I think of falling snow, particularly when melancholy I think of that music.

What prompted me to give this one a higher rating than I had originally planned was watching it with my three and a half year old daughter. It held her from start to finish, which is a rare thing for a non-animated feature length movie.

For me it's an 8.5/10, but I round upwards.

I would have to say that Edward Scissorhands is by far one of the best films done by Tim Burton. It is a very beautiful story. They couldn't have chosen a better cast for this movie. Johnny Depp is phenomenal as Edward. He brings the characters in his movies to life so well that it is hard to believe that he is acting. It seems as if when he learns about the movie and goes over the scripts that he transforms in the character. This film is definitely one of them. This movie is nothing short of enchanting. This movie was the reason that I fell in love with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. If you like movies that leave you bug eyed, make you think, and leave you wanting more then this is the film for you. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who loves a good fairy tale.

I really cannot add too much more to the wealth of praise directed toward this film...much of it very deserved. Tim Burton really shows us his ability to transcend mere comedic situations(Pee Wee and Beetlejuice) and tell a story of humour love, pity, conformity, and so on in an eerie and entertaining way. The way this film is constructed is amazing...the sets are wonderful as they depict something so real and yet so far away. Burton takes us into a kind of fairy land of Suburbia...with a haunting, empty castle at the end of the block that just happens to house a man with scissors for hands. The music in this film helps create a great deal of atmosphere and really lends to character development; I particularly enjoyed his use of the music of Tom Jones. The acting in the film is superb on all accounts. Burton got a subtle and effective performance from Johhny Depp, whose talents cease to amaze me. A nice Burton touch was the use of Vincent Price in one of his final roles. Although only in three scenes, seeing Vincent again was a real joy.

I have watched Edward Scissorhands ever since I was a little girl, this movie has always held a very special place in my heart. I think because I could relate to Edward… no, I don't have scissors for hands, but what I mean is that this is a fairytale story, but this is a simple story of a man who just wants to fit into a society of "norms". This is completely Tim Burton's creation and story, he's a very criticized director, he's either loved or hated. Some consider his stories to be too dark and strange, but when you get inside his head, you realize this is a man who is pure genius. He thinks completely outside the box and doesn't just resort to what Hollywood wants, he knows his audience and doesn't insult their intelligence, he brings us a charming story about Edward Scissorhands.

An elderly woman tells a story to her granddaughter of a man with scissors for hands named Edward, the creation of an inventor. He raised Edward as his son and tutored him in various subjects, but died while in the act of offering a pair of hands to Edward. Many years later, local Avon saleswoman Peg Boggs, after failing to make profits in her suburban neighborhood, visits a Gothic mansion on a hill. There, she finds Edward, and convinces him to have her take him in. Edward befriends Peg's young son, Kevin and her teenage daughter Kim. Peg's neighbors become curious and thrilled at Edward's masterful skills at hedge clipping and haircutting. However Kim's jock boyfriend Jim dislikes Edward immediately. Edward's innocence becomes an easy target for everyone to take advantage of him as often as they can. Wither it's destroying his reputation or putting him in danger, Edward was never prepared for this harsh world when he was given the kindest heart.

From the acting, Johnny Depp's first real leading role in a movie, he's so young and so incredibly talented. He plays Edward with perfect sympathy not over or under acting it, to be honest I'm a little surprised he wasn't nominated for an Oscar, but it's such a bizarre role, I think it was very over looked. He makes Edward into a charming beautiful character that you fall in love with. Dianne Wiest, one of my favorite actress as the Avon lady, Peg, who takes Edward home with her, the reason I love her so much is she brings so much class into whatever role she is playing. She seems like the most lovely woman you could meet and makes Peg into a delightful woman who just wanted to help this man and didn't realize the world she brought him into. Winona Ryder, who was dating Depp at the time, had great chemistry and was absolutely beautiful. To the sets, which this world was just bizarre and stands out against so many other movies, like a strange Leave it to Beaver nightmare, all the houses in the suburbia are different pastel colors to this one hill with a dark castle. To the outstanding make up effects, can only imagine the pain it took to get in and out of that costume for Edward. Edward Scissorhands is truly a masterpiece and in my opinion will always remain a treasured classic, because all in all this is one of the most beautiful movies of all time.

10/10