Edward (Johnny Depp) isn’t your usual man, not only has he been invented by a renowned inventor who has since died but because of the premature death of his inventor Edward wasn’t finished. He has been left with scissors for hands and after his inventor and only friend passed away Edward has been living in a creepy looking mansion all by himself.
That’s until local Avon representative Peg Boggs (Dianne Wiest) makes her way into the mansion for the first time after her business is turned down by the local community. When she reaches the top floor of the mansion she is greeted by a scared and shy Edward. She takes pity on Edward and brings him to stay with her and her family consisting of her husband, son and her teenage daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Edward quickly shows a flare and rare creative talent, he is able to use his scissor hands to his advantage, first by shaping bushes then eventually moving onto human hair. However when one of the neighbour’s attempts to seduce Edward go awry the neighbourhood turn against him, it seems everyone is out to get him apart from the Boggs family. Can Edward convince people that he’s merely a normal human being who wants to be accepted?
Edward Scissorhands has always been one of my all-time favourite films, I first saw it when I was young and have since seen it numerous times, each time finding something new to enjoy about it. I’m not really a fan of Tim Burton movies, there are a few exceptions to this rule (Sleepy Hollow) but most of Tim Burton’s films don’t seem to appeal to me which is another reason that Edward Scissorhands really sticks out in my mind.
Although I’m not a huge fan of Tim Burton’s movies I do however think it’s admirable to make films that don’t conform to the usual Hollywood
stereotype, making normal films isn’t something that comes into Tm Burton’s minds which is what makes him one of the most unique directors in Hollywood. He has done a fantastic job with Edward Scissorhands especially as it is one of his earliest films. If I had just switched over to watch Edward Scissorhands and had to hazard a guess at who directed it, my first guess would no doubt be Tim Burton as he has such a rare and distinctive directing ability coupled with inimitable and exclusive films make him a very interesting director.
Another aspect of his career that Tim Burton is famed for are his numerous collaborations with Johnny Depp, these two are the ultimate pairing, they may not be up there with the likes of Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro or Tony Scott and Denzel Washington but to me these two are a fantastic pairing. Johnny Depp seems to be able to encapsulate anything that Tim Burton creates and has been the perfect choice for all the films in which he’s starred. Johnny Depp has such a rare quality about him and is definitely one of, if not the most versatile actors in Hollywood today, giving off such an vibrant and animated charisma that no other actor manages to do. Johnny Depp can play serious or comedy roles with and recently he’s tried his hand at musicals in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street which was nominated for two Oscars. Johnny Depp is fantastic in Edward Scissorhands and I know that if asked, the majority of people would say that their favourite Johnny Depp character was Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates Of The Caribbean movies however I’m not really a fan of those films so my answer would undoubtedly be Edward Scissorhands. I can’t think of one single actor who could have portrayed Edward with such an innocent, naïve and likeable quality about him and without Johnny Depp I think the movie wouldn’t have become the cult hit that it is today.
His co-star is played by Winona Ryder, she’s not as unique as Johnny Depp and her role probably could have been played by lots of different actresses however I think she played the part of Kim beautifully and the relationship build up really rests on her shoulders. For Edward, it’s love at first sight when he sees a picture of Kim however Kim simply sees Edward as a misfit and casts him aside in favour of her boyfriend Jim. It was brilliant to see the feelings grow from Kim towards Edward. The two actors shared great chemistry together and as they were a real-life couple at the time it’s easy to see why.
The story of the film is fantastic, I was expecting it to be a light-hearted comedy film about how Edward adjusts to life living in the suburbs with his newfound family however invariably, being a Tim Burton film it has a dark side to it which is what makes it so outstanding. This film changes pace and tone very quickly and becomes a film highly centred about prejudice and intolerance. The prejudice that is shown against gentlemen Edward is very harsh and unnecessary which is what makes the audience take Edward into their hearts. This is a very relatable film for a lot of people who have experienced bullying, racism, sexism or any other form of intolerance in their lives. Edward encapsulates all those stereotypes simply because he’s different and it shows how even in these modern times how society is still reluctant to accept anybody who may be even slightly different from themselves. The film harbours a strong hidden message which is what makes it so much more than a comedy film with a twist.
The comedy in the film is excellent, it’s more of an understated and subtle comedy because it’s not one which uses outrageous jokes or silly gags to purposely make people laugh. Tim Burton uses Edward and his awkwardness for comedy value, what’s great about this film is that it doesn’t make fun of Edward, he makes the audience laugh at the situations that he gets himself into not at the character himself. I always find the film very funny everytime I watch it, whether it be at Edward Piercing the water bed or him falling backwards off a chair after electrocuting himself. This is a charming and extremely subtlety funny film that the whole family can enjoy.
The film starts off a bit slow and if you’re planning on watching this for the first time you need to stick with it for around 15-20 minutes before it really hits it’s stride. The film then moves along at a swift pace with a running time of approximately 105 minutes.
That’s my only fault regarding this film, I simply can’t think of anything else worth mentioning to downgrade this film, it’s as near to perfect as a film can possibly get. This, to this day remains one of my all-time favourite films after first seeing it when I was about 7 or 8 years old and not fully understanding it’s underlining message. If you haven’t yet seen this film then you simply must, it doesn’t matter if you’re not a Tim Burton fan because I’m not and I absolutely adore this film, it’s not his usual style of film and for me this his standout film. Johnny Depp is also superb and this is the film that sparked so many pairings between the two of them.
The DVD is available from play.com for £3.99.
The special features include: Commentaries From Tim Burton And Danny Elfman (Composer) Theatrical Trailers Stills Gallery Featurette Interview Clips
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Edward Scissorhandsachieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavour ... more
of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Once upon a time an a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was ... more
named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventors sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp spears of metal hands...
Edward Scissorhandsachieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavour ... more
of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
An Avon lady discovers the half-made creation of a mad scientist living in the ... more
neighborhood's old abandoned castle. The scientist died leaving the shy boy with scissors for hands. When she attempts to bring him into suburbia his hands a metaphor for a...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: A magical film with a wonderful story. Disadvantages: None.
Morning_Becomes_Electra 01.05.2008 (02.05.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Edward Scissorhands (DVD)
Advantages: A magical film with a wonderful story. Disadvantages: None.
Morning_Becomes_Electra 01.05.2008 (02.05.2008)
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Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Edward Scissorhands (DVD)
![Edward Scissorhands [1991] [DVD]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78550871.jpg "Edward Scissorhands [1991] [DVD]")
Aug 8th, 2009
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