Space Oddities - Edward Scissorhands

Would you share your home with a spider that wanders the hallways alone in torment, Tim Burton’s “Edward Scissorhands” (1990) depicts the psychological barrier between societies need of acceptance in todays  culture, even though everyone thinks they are individual with their own choices and thoughts.

Edward Scissorhands is set in a fashionable 1950’s suburbia, in the brink of modernism, everything is clean, uncluttered and rather lifeless. All the residence having the same material objects but with the ability to pick their own unique “individualism” but in reality they are all living the same artificial world,  trying to find the latest gossip to add any kind of excitement to their average lives.
“a goofy sitcom neighborhood where all of the houses are shades of pastels and all of the inhabitants seem to be emotional clones of each other”.

Juxtaposing the “Goofy Suburbia” is a haunting Gothic castle set high above the suburb on a mysterious dishevelled hill. (Fig. 01) creating a strong visual boundary between Edwards world and the society beyond.

(fig.01)

Edward lives in sollitude, creating his own unique asthetic, creating magical sculptures and thoughtful collages of newspaper clippings. Though himself a creation, Edward seems to have a childish naiveness, and plaintive expressions that contrast to his fright hairdo, abundant scars and potentially lethal hands. When he is integrated into the pop culture of the suburbia below, there is a sense of sorrow to his awkwardness with his adapt ion to the new lifestyle and  tries to express himself through sculpture and the arts “the ability for all to connect with Edward for acceptance in the real world the ability for all to connect with Edward for acceptance in the real world, maybe through creativity” (Fig. 02)

(Fig. 02)

Through the film Edward is classed as a misfit and a outcast, alienated to the world through his difference, but as the film unfolds his character shows how he is gentle and sincere and that the everyday civilisations has the power to corrupt the innocence he has within. What started out as curious fascination and false friendships towards the novelty act of Edward, then when the suburbians did not get what they wanted the nasty nature of pop suburbia came out, making up stories and gossip to alienate him once more. “that it is the freak who seems real,and all the human denizens of the comical flatland suburbia below who seem false and grotesque” 

Bibliography:

Books:
•  Page, E. (2007) Gothic Fantasy: The films of TimBurton. London: Marion Boyars Publisher

Websites:
•  http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9C0CE2D81338F934A35751C1A966958260
•  http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/edward-scissorhands-1990

Illustration List:
•  Fig. 1. http://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/movie-locations-then-now-edward-scissorhands-suburb-pictures-voodrew-1.jpg

•  Fig. 2. http://www.alltopmovies.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Edward-Scissorhands10.jpg