Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray Movie Review

What a cutup.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 16, 2015

There have been some wonderful pairings of director and male star through the years, cinematic marriages as celebrated as John Ford and John Wayne, or Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, or John Huston and Humphrey Bogart, or Alfred Hitchcock and Jimmy Stewart, or Billy Wilder and Jack Lemmon, or Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks. But nowhere in the annals of film has there been an odder collaboration than that between Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. A mere recounting of the films in which they worked together is a veritable smörgåsbord of weirdness: Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and Alice in Wonderland. But in all the cinematic hyperbole that that list entails, it’s at least arguable that the most bizarre entry in the shared filmographies of Burton and Depp is the film that started their long history together: 1990’s completely peculiar Edward Scissorhands. It’s perhaps hard to remember now that, at the time of Edward Scissorhands’ release, Burton was still a relatively new kid on the block, having helmed Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice and the film that had really established Burton as an A-list force to be reckoned with, 1989’s Batman. While Edward Scissorhands certainly built on certain formulations that were already apparent in abundance in the previous Burton films, including outrageous production design, the film was nonetheless something of a surprise to audiences in terms of both the whimsy of its story and the flourishes of its presentation.

Framed as a bedtime story of sorts (a kind of “dark side” parallel to a similar gambit fostered by The Princess Bride), Edward Scissorhands is a not especially subtle allegory detailing what it’s like to be an outsider, while also offering a similarly none too subtle suggestion that those the public at large considers “normal” can well be more monstrous than supposed “monsters”. Avon saleswoman Peg Boggs (Dianne Wiest, all pastels and overdone makeup) wanders into a Gothic mansion where she’s perplexed by an odd collage on the wall. She’s even more perplexed when she spies Edward (Johnny Depp) hiding in the corner. Edward is some kind of created being, a pale, leather clad proto-Goth who not so coincidentally is graced with huge shears in the place of his hands.

Peg’s maternal instincts kick in, and she brings Edward back to the “paradise” of suburbia, a neighborhood of colors that mirror Peg’s own proclivities toward pastel tones. Peg’s family is surprisingly sanguine about Edward’s arrival, at least after an initial moment of shock. There are evident sparks between Edward and Peg’s daughter Kim (a blonde Winona Ryder), and Peg’s husband Bill (Alan Arkin) is one of the first people in the area to appreciate Edward’s topiary acumen. Edward’s unusual appearance and mechanical hands make him something of a sensation throughout the neighborhood, especially with a number of the neighborhood women, including the machinating Joyce (Kathy Baker).

Burton is an expert (in fact, maybe he’s the expert) in presenting completely idiosyncratic elements as almost mundane givens, and that’s certainly the case with regard to Edward Scissorhands. Of all the inimitable and often unforgettable characters Burton has had Depp create, Edward remains a singular vision, a timid but resilient naif whose innocence manages to emanate a force field of sorts keeping him immune from the schemes of “normals” running rampant in the candy colored streets of suburbia. Vincent Price has a wonderful cameo as Edward’s creator, and Wiest is often charmingly clueless if well intentioned as Peg. The film is another riot of outrageous production design, and the visual allure of Edward Scissorhands can’t be overstated.

Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Edward Scissorhands is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Reportedly culled from a new 4K scan and restoration, this 25th Anniversary edition of Edward Scissorhands is something of a mixed bag in terms of presentation, though my personal opinion is the positives probably far outweigh the negatives. Do you want to know how old the first Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray release is? Well, aside from the fact it utilized an MPEG-2 codec, simply go to our original Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray review and you'll notice this title came so early in the history of the format and this particular website that we didn't even feature screencaptures yet! Luckily, I still had my original version of Edward Scissorhands and have included a handful of screenshots from that version in positions 21-25, which roughly mimic screenshots 1-5 from the new 25th Anniversary version. That way, those curious can open two tabs (of the same page), and then toggle between screenshots as appropriate to draw their own conclusions. Right off the bat most will be able to see a color temperature difference, and if simply taking screenshot 1 and 21 into consideration, it does seem like elements such as green are more accurate looking in the new version. However, the color temperature of this new version fluctuates throughout the presentation, with some parts looking warmer than the first Blu-ray, and other parts looking cooler. Detail is improved on this new version, offering better looks at fine patterns like the tufts of fabric on Peg's fussy outfits, or the knicks and scratches that adorn Edward from time to time. There's a slight framing difference between the two versions as well. This has lately been something hotly debated on a number of recent reissues, probably most notably Bram Stoker's Dracula. It's probably wise to keep in mind that many folks judge "new" releases based on the previous versions, sometimes without pausing to consider whether or not those first versions were themselves "accurate". I've had knock down, drag out fights with people who insist image quality and color timing on old DVDs is "more accurate" than a newly minted Blu-ray of the same title (in some instances sourced from 4K scans off the original negative), something I find at least questionable if not downright dismissable. I'm frankly not in a position to state which version is "more accurate", but nothing in this new version struck me as overly awkwardly framed. Finally, there are slight but noticeable compression artifacts that creep into this presentation, much as they did in the first version. Those with smaller screens will probably notice them very little if at all, but those with larger screens or projection systems may find them more problematic.

Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Edward Scissorhands' DTS-HD Master Audio 4.0 track offers some wonderfully immersive moments, and some great placement of discrete sound effects, with some of the most evocative being the metal on metal sonic "glint" of Edward's hands doing their thing. Danny Elfman's great score spreads comfortably through the surrounds and sounds bright and effective. Dialogue is cleanly and clearly rendered and is always well prioritized on this problem free track.

Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Featurette (1080p; 4:39) is a vintage EPK with behind the scenes footage and interviews.


• Commentaries:

  Audio Commentary with Tim Burton

  Audio Commentary by Danny Elfman

• Theatrical Trailers (1080p; 4:17)

Edward Scissorhands Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Edward Scissorhands is unabashedly gonzo, but it's also unexpectedly sweet. Burton has a firm command on this film's rather ephemeral tone, and a game cast offer superb if sometimes demented performances. The production design is simply a marvel of invention and provides plenty to keep the eye enchanted. This new 25th Anniversary Edition may not be perfect, and in fact is kind of curmudgeonly in the supplements department, but taken as a whole comes Highly recommended.