Edward Scissorhands Film Review

Space Oddities Film Review

Edward Scissorhands

(1990)

By Kimberley Davis

Coming towards the end of the 1980’s, many huge political and psycho-social achievements had been reached. Supposedly gone was the derogatory slanders of racism and sexism, but a newfound sense of self-identity and utopian following the "free love" attitude of the 60's and 70's. However, the increasing population in large cities created a new boundary, a self imposed class barrier between the poor and wealthy. “White Flight” became a phenomenon where caucasian Americans with money started to remove themselves from metropolis's, and settling into suburbs where the houses that was almost identical. The increase in poverty (repercussion from sky rocketed unemployment) meant that many could not pay taxes, causing greater stresses on amenities such as transport and hospitals, therefore creating cheaper properties due to neglect. The middle class populus become frightful of the increased violence in these poorer provinces,  meaning the "picture perfect" suburbia settlements became overwhelmingly popular. Being able to purchase one of these identically cloned homes gave a sense of ownership, community  and most of all superiority. Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands reflects these false havens, and the priah like attitudes that came with being "differnet".

Opening with a grandmother telling her granddaughter a story on a snowy night, a local Avon rep called Peg trapes her local boulevard for sales. Feeling deflated, she ventures to the ominous, twisted house on the hill. Here she encounters Edward, a young man with scissors for hands (hence the name Edward Scissorhands). Enticing him into her car, she drags him home and tries to incorporate him into the neighbourhood. Being the commotion of the local gossiping housewives, he becomes accepted though his creative flare in gardening, hair cutting and dog grooming. Edwards starts to fall for Peg’s Daughter, Kim, who in turn is in love with the local bullying jock called Jim. Things begin to take a sister turn when Edward rejects Joyce’s advances, and being enthralled with Kim, he follows her and Jim with the plan to rob Jim’s dad to gain money for a van. However, Edward is set up, becoming the fall guy for Jim’s plan. Though this and Joyce’s lies, the local neighbourhood begin to exile him socially. Anger begins to take over Edward persona inflicted by Kim’s rejections, lashing out at the people who took him in thier home. When creating an ice angel for Peg’s Christmas party, which all the locals have lied about being too busy to attend, he accidently slashes Kim’s hand while she is dancing. Jim witnessing it, taking his own perception of the event and attacks Edward, causing him to flee. Filled with rage, Edward destroys neighbouring properties as he goes thought he residence. With the police in pursuit, he returns to the inventor’s house, with the locals and Kim chasing him. The pair become re-united but not before Jim attacks Edward again with killing intent. However, ends up in being killed himself and falls from the building. As the locals descend on the twisted house, they come across Jim’s fallen body with horror.  Kim takes a false Scissorhands from the inventor’s workshop and informing the mob of their supposed joint death, misleading them and returning to their perfectly dull lives. The end scene returns to our storyteller, enlightening us that she is in fact Kim, and still dances in the snow that comes from the twisted house.

Tim Burton, a fan of brutalism and German gothic film culture, reflects this style in his films, Edward Scissorhands being no exception. Told like a surreal fairy tale, there are many relationships between Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and this feature. We have a man who was created rather then born, with deformities that made him stan out.  Our homunculus longs for acceptance, however in trying to achieve this they become feared and demonised. Though this the harshness of human interaction, the creations becomes angry, backlashing against these cruelties. Eventually becoming chased, they reach their demise. However, the difference between these tales is that for a short while, Edward becomes this local celebrity. He reaches though being used and their personal curiosities, not because he is accepted.  With internal influences, this once idolised wonder becomes exorcized, hunted and hated. This sudden change in perception shows how quickly people can turn with the right hearsay, blindly following rather than creating their own opinions.

“Burton shows how the townspeople’s curiosity about Edward turns to suspicion and hostility (not unlike Hollywood’s reaction to an innovative mind). Edward is denounced as a freak, a fake, a demon.”

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone, 1990

Edward is portrayed as a quiet, gentle soul who has long been isolated from society. Jumpy and skittish, he has this constantly overwhelmed stare with being thrusted into the local’s spotlight, who is then take advance of him on many levels. We gain this impression that he is naïve and child-like, curious of everything. Although he is educated by the professor, he can be easily led with the premise of love and acceptance will come. But there is also a more sinister a darker side to his personality, easily becoming enraged when his affections are not retuned, even killing without showing any guilt. Unlike the rest of shallow suburban residents, Edward’s appearance is dark and drawn.  Wrapped in representations of BDSM, his face is covered in scars and dark make-up, the collar around his neck giving a sub-human status. He appearance is very similar to those of early German cinema, much like Cesare in Dr Caligari with his long drawn pale features and fully clad in black PVC.

“Then there's Edward himself, one of the most memorable figures in modern cinema: strapped to the throat in S&M black leather, deathly pale, sad-eyed and eyebrowless – and blessed with a terrifying array of razor-sharp blades instead of hands.”

Marc Lee, The Telegraph, 2014.

In the premise of Kim (Pegs Daughter), she becomes the infatuation of Edward affections. However, she uses this to coerce Edward in to doing Jim’s dirty Bidding. Like Edward himself, she is used and downtrodden, only standing up to Jim towards the end when she realises she has fallen for our leading humongous. She has the typical tear-away teenage persona, rebelling against this boring society of gaggling hens and smugness. Like many of Gothic films, she wears a dress of flowing white when dancing in the snow, representing purity and feminism. The many women of this suburban plane follow the typical bored housewife stereotype. Noisy, gossiping and all following one ringleader, in this case the amorous red head Joyce. Joyce’s is the initiator in Edwards downfall, spiteful over his rejection she tells made up stories of the supposed “rape”, planting doubt in her peers. Jim is the typical embodiment of the alpha-male school bully. Cruel, uncaring and selfish, he uses his cronies do his bidding, even when they don’t want to (in the case of the robbery and the van driving when drunk). He is the antagonist that fuels the fires of the residents dis-contempt.

When analysing Tim Burton’s suburbia, it a tongue in cheek version of American middle-class populous. Everything is the same, each house is identical in not only in build but in style. The only attempts in making an identity is the difference in colours, which oddly reflect its neighbour’s car. It almost like everything is a carbon copy, even down to the times the husbands come home, and their gaggling wives rush off to cook dinner. It’s all very overly smug and fake.

The twisted mansion of the inventor looms perilously over the toy-like cul de sac Dark, gloomy and full of odd angles, it’s a stark contrast to the overly sweet houses of the street. Its full of haunting statues, showing years of neglect, but a notable deep tenderness and care taken in the creation of the tree monuments. Looking at an array of films in the 90’s, you can see similar designs like inventors house, such as Casper, House hunt, and Matilda.

“The movie takes place in an entirely artificial world, where a haunting gothic castle crouches on a mountaintop high above a storybook suburb, a goofy sitcom neighbourhood where all of the houses are shades of pastels and all of the inhabitants seem to be emotional clones of the Jetsons. “

Roger Ebert, Rogereburt.com. 1990

Twisted, haunting and carrying a step ford wives’ vibe, Edward Scissorhands is a tale about need for love and acceptance in a false world. Reflecting the American psycho-social environment of the late 80’s, where beginnings over built metropolises teardown starts, and in reflection the desperation for identity in perfectly cloned suburbia’s. Edward Scissorhands plays on the feeling of being used and manipulated for personal gain, being idolised one minute only to be ostracised the next.

Bibliography

- Travers, P. and Travers, P. (1990). Edward Scissorhands. [online] Rolling Stone. Available at: https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/edward-scissorhands-113628/ [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].

- Lee, M. (2014). Edward Scissorhands, review: 'a true fairytale'. [online] Telegraph.co.uk. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/11298442/Edward-Scissorhands-review-a-true-fairytale.html [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].

- Ebert, R. (1990). Edward Scissorhands movie review (1990) | Roger Ebert. [online] Rogerebert.com. Available at: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/edward-scissorhands-1990 [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].

Image Bibliography

- Poster, E. (n.d.). Edward Scissorhands Movie Poster. [online] geekyface. Available at: https://geekyface.co.uk/products/edward-scissorhands-movie-poster [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].

- Normaltheater.com. (n.d.). [online] Available at: https://normaltheater.com/ImageRepository/Document?documentID=1264 [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].

- Filmpostergallery.co.nz. (n.d.). Edward Scissorhands : The Film Poster Gallery. [online] Available at: https://www.filmpostergallery.co.nz/product/edward-scissorhands/ [Accessed 12 Nov. 2019].