Upon doing research for Pumpkinhead, I discovered that the director created the special effects for a movie very close to my heart. It turns out that, when he isn't creating hillbilly monster mashes, Mr. Winston can give Johnny Depp some dangerous digits. From the realm of happy, semi-contrived accidents, today's romantic movie is the first feature length film of media golden boy, Tim Burton, and the film catalyst for the future Jack Sparrow. This is Edward Scissorhands, or "Leave it to Beaver meets Frankenstein."
Released in 1990, Scissorhands begins on a cold Christmas Eve. A grandmother tells her granddaughter the true tale behind the Gothic mansion on the hill that none one goes near. It belonged to an old inventor (Vincent Price) who, in his loneliness, decided to create a human man for companionship (insert your own Rocky Horror joke here.) The inventor dies before he can finish his invention, leaving an Unfinished Edward (Johnny Depp) to wallow in the mansion's attic…until Avon comes calling.
In a surprising twist, Peg Boggs, the local Avon spokeswoman (Diane West) discovers Edward in the attic and decides to take him back to her home in the suburbs, who's style closest resembles the 60's. The stereotypical housewife neighbors take Edward under their pink, acrylic wings, and he seems to thrive under their expectations. But a series of unfortunate events starts a slow spiral downward, and a curious fascination quickly becomes childish repulsion, and a monster-movie style mob of hair-curlers and bathrobes.
This duel style of curiosity/revulsion comes from Burton's own teenage years. In an interview for Hollywood Backstories, Burton mentions how Edward came out of his own thoughts while growing up in the suburbs of Burbank, California. He mentions being both enthralled by this lifestyle, but also disturbed by the cookie-cutter nature of it all. This carries over into the film, making the first half feel like we just discovered Narnia, while the latter half becomes oppressive and very bleak. In a way, it feels like a transition from child to adult, where all things that felt new and exciting quickly become paper thin.
This message of childish wonder and veneer is as subtle as a bright neon sign in a pitch-black room. This is par for the course, as nothing in this movie knows the meaning of the word subtle. All the people in the town, including the Boggs, are caricatures you could recognize in your sleep. Neighbor Joyce is the horny housewife who jumps the repairman's bones, Esmerelda is the religious nut, and every husband in this entire neighborhood is more clueless than Alicia Silvertsone's character, Cher. If you want deep storytelling and understated plot, turn back now. I won't blame you.
Lack of depth aside, this movie's charm comes squarely from our titular character, Edward. Co-writer Caroline Thompson said that she designed Edward's character off a dog she once had, and Depp took that direction to heart. Edward is overjoyed when happy, devastated when sad, and loyal to a fault when it comes to the Boggs. Edward reads less like a man and more like a golden retriever with scissor nails. Some, like me, will find this adorable and sympathetic. Some, however, will not be faulted for finding it annoying.
Though my sympathy can only stretch so far. The movie is also a comedy, and a genuinely funny one, but has one problem: it's all the same joke. The entirety of the levity in this movie is based on Edward vs. Modern appliances: Edward vs. Silverwear and peas, FIGHT! This is their funny concept, and while they have about a hundred different ways to express it, it amounts to the same thing. I have a limited amount of laughter for someone who's blundering around modern day things, and I used it up very quickly here.
There is one last note to touch on with this one, that being the romantic subplot.During his stay with the Boggs, Edward falls in love with Peg's youngest, Kim. Kim, played by Depp's then girlfriend Winona Ryder, is already dating the neighborhood Alpha-Jock (Anthony Michael Hall), who quickly turns into a villain by the end of the film. I have little issues with the romance itself, as these two of course have chemistry to exploit, but I do have issue with Hall's character. Alpha Jock's turn to the dark side baffled me as much as Hans's did in Frozen, mostly in the sudden nature of it. Both were wrong, and capable of making poor decisions, but both suddenly turned evil to provide a new hate target at the end of the film. To be clear, this is not a complaint, but it is a question: in a film like this, is an antagonist really necessary?
Just food for thought.
With running gags, plastic exteriors, and inner Gothic core, what exactly is Edward Scissorhands? It's a dark romantic fantasy that plays with the idea of a fish out of water. It's not a preachy diatribe about the exclusionary nature of the suburbs, but nor is it a surprising tale of acceptance and love. It is the personal story of someone who wanted to be accepted, and the movie that helped color my high school years. The movie's an acquired taste, and a great introduction to Tim Burton as a director and a writer. If you can handle the tragic tones at the end, consider this a rent.
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