Edward Scissorhands (1990)

"Edward Scissorhands" tells the story of a young man, created by a scientist, whose creator died before he could give him real hands. Now he lives on a dark castle with scissors as hands, until a friendly lady from the neighboring town invites him to live with her family. Newly invited into the conservative community, problems begin to arise.You can clearly see that this film is supposed to serve as a parabola rather than a realistic plot. It succeedsin creating great emotions towards the main character and his fateful love for the daughter of the family. Personally, I didn't like the set design all too much, but that's just a question of preferences and you can clearly see the typical Tim Burton style shimmering through. The story is not really creative or innovative but it is told nicely and the acting is great.All in all this is not a must-see but it can serve as an example what exclusion can cause in people and how we are all responsible for creating a society that is worth living in.

Tim Burton crafted a wondrous and fantastical character in Edward (Johnny Depp) that directly contrasts and exposes the flaws in the mundanity and repetitiveness of suburbia. This contrast is first noticed, quite humorously, in the looming, dilapidated, haunted house on a hill lurking just at the end of the neighborhood's cul-de-sac. Peg (Dianne Wiest), a loving Avon saleslady, approaches and enters the mansion in hopes for a sale, and comes across the frightening Edward sitting in a corner with blades for fingers - a result of the inventor's (Vincent Price) sudden death. What sounds to be a cheap horror slasher movie ends up being a heartwarming tale as the town accepts (mostly) Edward for his unique hedge trimming and haircutting talents. It's not until Edward is unintentionally framed in a misdemeanor that people begin to doubt that the scissors are for good. Peg's daughter, Kim (Winona Ryder), is the only one to see through to Edward's good intentions, but that does not stop the town from going on a rampage, driving Edward to accidentally kill someone and supposedly commit suicide as well. It displays an interesting commentary on society as a whole. Unique traits will be heralded when they are used to promote the well-being of everyone, but if the trait is misinterpreted, they will be cast away just as quickly. It's well intended that Edwards hands are made of blades, an instrument that is firstly seen as a dangerous tool and secondly as an artist's paintbrush. And it's well intended it is Edward's hands that are the affected area because hands are the most human of all body parts and he cannot physically embrace or connect with someone, representing the distance between him and everyone else. People wish to use Edward for their own gains first rather than to spend time with his as a fellow human being. But in a very beautiful twist of fate, Kim hugs him tightly and kisses him, showing that there is hope for those who are born differently. A lot of care obviously went into set design and costume design, especially for Edward and his hands. I often wondered during the movie how they crafted the prosthetics to have moving fingers and the scissors to still be operable. Most characters were well written, except for Jim (Anthony Michael Hall) I think because his motivations felt a little underwhelming or confusing at times. Sometimes it felt as if he was needed more as a plot point to drive the story forward, especially at the end. I think if the story shifted the main antagonist to the society as a whole in which they lived, it could have ended on a more satisfying and introspective note. But either way, that's still a minor gripe. I also saw the ending monologue coming from a mile away. Overall, I really enjoyed it and it made me tear up a little, and that is always a plus.

Of all the horrendous "Silent Night, Deadly Night" films I've had to watch this December, I'm so glad to be back to a truly wonderful film. I admit it is kind of a stretch to call this a Christmas movie. It is featured, but it's not very relevant to the plot. Still, it's in there and I wanted to see something good and boy was I rewarded! It's a great film for any occasion. What I was impressed by this movie was how it really wasn't that dark. Tim Burton was known for being dark in his movies but this one wasn't really that sinister.Okay, it gets worse near the end and it's not really a feel good movie, but I truly found myself rooting for the characters in this. Most of the people in this movie are in fact quite nice. The story is that a scientist created a human but died before he could give him hands leaving him with literal scissor hands. The flashback where it shows him dying is probably the best part of the movie. He was just about to give him normal hands but died at the last minute. For a good portion of the movie, people are rather accepting of Edward.The ending's pretty bittersweet but it doesn't have a hopeless atmosphere and for the most part, Edward learns how to use his scissor hands to adjust to society. I admit that the romance wasn't that well written. It's still great because honestly, everyone really does work hard to act realistic in this movie. As realistic as a movie about a guy with scissors for hands could be. It's not really far on the fantasy scale and often just tries to paint a picture of common American suburbia. It's a rather quaint movie with great performances by Johnny Depp and everyone else. ****

No other film accomplish such perfect metaphor of the human condition, from its greatness to its evilness. The true and hard portrait of our society at its best and its worse... Marvelous screenplay, beautiful photography, astonishing acting from Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder and Dianne Wiest, and a superb soundtrack from Danny Elfman... I've seen this movie about 5 times now, and it always feels like the first time... and each time I see it, the more I know that this is, definitely, the movie of my life...