southdavid It's tough now, to look back and imagine a time when Tim Burton was a gothic indie darling and Johnny Depp an enigmatic underexposed young actor, but indeed once they were - and Edward Scissorhands is probably the apex of that time in both their careers. Having not seen it for quite a while, a recent one night cinema showing gave me the opportunity to reappraise it as the jaded adult that I am now. Peggy Boggs (Dianne Wiest) decides to visit the grim dilapidated mansion that towers over the American suburban estate where she resides, as part of her Avon cosmetics round. There she discovers Edward (Depp), a creation of the inventor who previously owned the mansion, who passed away before he could provide Edward with the human hands to replace the scissors that make up his current appendages. Though Edward is initially popular in the suburbs, misunderstanding and prejudice soon start to raise their heads, particularly around Peggy's teenage daughter (Winona Ryder). The film really in unmistakably Tim Burton. The decision to use practical sets and models rather than CGI was a good choice, as the film still looks great. Maybe the aging prosthetics on Ryder in the opening and closing wrap around scenes doesn't look that impressive, given what CG can do there - but that's the exception rather than the rule. There's an unreal fantasy aspect to the town and its looming impossibly stylised mountain range that is beautiful and memorable. The costume and hair design is brilliant too. Danny Elfman's score too is another iconic collaboration with Burton, though he chooses a more orchestral and sweeping pieces here, over the "Plinky Plonky" themes he was often providing at the time. The story is a little undercooked, a variation on both "Frankenstein" and "Beauty and the Beast" it could have done with another couple of moments to heighten the believability of the love story, and the way that the town turns on Edward, once he rejects the advances of Kathy Baker's bored housewife. The script though is good and often laugh out loud funny. Alan Arkin steals a lot of the film as Peg's husband, entirely nonplussed about the events going on around him. Vincent Price too, with his glorious cadence is great in his scenes. Sad both in terms of the actual plot and when viewed against the triumvirate of misfires Burton would direct, the lost years of Winona Ryder's career and the eventual overexposure of Depp; "Edward Scissorhands" is imperfect but beautiful. Timeless but evocative of that period in Burton's career. Artificial yet genuine and you should definitely see it.

despina_co JUST PERFECT! Johnny Depp is an amazing actor and I believe that this movie is one of his best. A very touching movie. Tim Burton shows for one more time how great producer and writer is!

Eric Stevenson 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. ****

zkonedog The best thing that "Edward Scissorhands" has going for it is that it was directed by Tim Burton, perhaps the only man who could make this story move us. Unfortunately, Burton is also this film's biggest downfall by intermixing his cinematic and stereotype gobbledegook into the overall plot.For a basic plot summary, this film sees a boy named Edward (Johnny Depp), who has scissors instead of normal hands, brought down from his lonely, deserted castle to live in suburbia. After all the appropriate hijinks such a situation perpetuates, Edward falls in love with his new family's daughter Kim (played by Winona Ryder), which only further complicates matters.The reason this isn't an "instant classic" despite the never-before-seen concept and compelling visuals? For almost three quarters of the movie, director Burton (as is his style) mishmashes all sorts of stereotypical human themes and doesn't make sense of any of them. It is all just a jumble & mess. It's kind of like "Being John Malkovich", in a sense, where the concepts and visuals are the movie, not the actual plot itself.How can I enjoy this movie, then? Because, in the end, it truly is about love and having a big heart. For me, when everything else falls aside and the focus is squarely on Edward & Kim is where this film will move you. Ryder is able to perfectly capture the essence of youthful beauty, while Edward is a character for whom sympathy is a must. Their moments on screen together (combined with a wonderful score from Danny Elfman) are spectacular and worth the viewing time alone.Overall, this is a decent film that will always be remember for its unique concept and title character. Don't try to understand all its message, but instead focus on the human elements: love, family, & hope. If you can do that, you will care about what happens in the end.