Edward Scissorhands

There's something interesting about this movie "Edward Scissorhands" that I cannot seem to pinpoint. Is it a story about being different, weird or outright freakish? Is it about how people perceive the world through their own lenses and when presented with something or someone less than perfect in their view and not fitting into their idea of what is normal, they respond with fake acceptance, apprehension or rejection. How would you respond when you see someone whose hands are gigantic pairs of scissors? How would you respond when you meet someone like Edward Scisorhands?

Edward Scissorhands discovers by accident his talent for cutting (of course) starting with shaping shrubs in the neighbourhood to styling dog's fur and ultimatley to displaying artistic talent for hairstyling (women's hair). His talent escalates and soon people forget that he is 'different' and soon treat him like one of their kind. What happens if he were to trade his scissorhands for prosthetic hands? Would he then become nobody special and fade into oblivion? Will he still be special like a famous TV personality well-known for his styling feats or will he be special to those who don't really care if he is famous or not.

His innocence beomes his undoing as people take advantage of him from the lusty woman in the neighbourhood to a bunch of teenagers who need his assistance to stage a burglary in one of their homes. Not knowing what he is doing when he agrees to help, he is left behind when the burglary goes wrong and he is arrested. Soon, those who cannot not hurt him or take advantage of him completely begin to tell lies about him and he is shunned even by those who have benefitted from his talents before. But he never gives up. In his isolation from those who never see him beyond what they could get from him, Edward Scissorhands creates the best work that his heart could conjure up - an ice sculpture of an angel that looks like the girl he is in love with. Then as suddenly as he has found peace, evil in the form of the girl's jealous boyfriend taunts him and a series of unintended mishaps make him appear to be dangerous to the community. He is driven back to the castle where he came from alone and misunderstood.

The jealous boyfriend follows him and is killed by Edward trying to protect the girl from harm. The whole town arrives to conclude that Edward Scissorhands is who they have always thought him to be - a freak, a misfit - and they get him out of their lives.

Edward, returns to a world where he is happy but alone in his own castle with the beautiful memories of the family who have given him their love but were not able to sustain it because by and large, people who see beyond 'disabilities' or what they perceive as abnormal, are rare. It takes very special people to be able to stand up to those who ostracise them and equally special ones to stand by them.

Edward Scissorhands is a story about growing up and going through an important phase in your life where you come to realise who really loves you and who does not.