‎Edward Scissorhands (1990) directed by Tim Burton • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

Edward Scissorhands

1990 Directed by Tim Burton

His scars run deep.

A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.

Johnny Depp Winona Ryder Dianne Wiest Alan Arkin Anthony Michael Hall Vincent Price Kathy Baker Robert Oliveri Conchata Ferrell Caroline Aaron Dick Anthony Williams O-Lan Jones Susan Blommaert Linda Perri John Davidson Biff Yeager Donna Pieroni Alan Fudge Brett Rice Marc Macaulay Stuart Lancaster Steven Brill Gina Gallagher Aaron Lustig Peter Palmer Kathy Lockwood Nick Carter Tim Rerucha

105 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Naughty ★★★★ 10

A modern day FRANKENSTEINesque flick by Tim Burton featuring one of my favorite actors Johnny Depp! Normally I can't stomach romance films but when you season it with a smidgeon of goth here and a pinch of fantasy there and a dash of sci-fi horror there it's a lot easier to swallow!

A real visual feast for the eyes! Breast milk for the melancholy!
Review by yes i'm a harry styles stan ★★★★★ 2

why did vincent price think it was okay to give this man scissors for hands
Review by Dragonknight ★★★★ 10

Film #5 of Project 90

”Before he came down here, it never snowed. And afterwards, it did.”

Tim Burton is at his most creative and his fantasy is at its most pleasant here, a nice and poetically glorious film with an innocent character whose only wish in life is to be loved and accepted as a member of the society. A smart and quite precise observation of how people deal with individuals who are special in one way or another (artists?), a dark fairytale and a bitter yet incredibly romantic love story, Edward Scissorhands’ main strength is that it mixes all these stories together, adds a bit of Gothic exaggeration (which is a part of Burton’s fantasies) and presents something…
Review by DirkH ★★★★★ 11

Part of Dastardly Difficult December: film nr.18

Sometimes in a film every aspect of all talents involved seem to merge and peak together to reach a hitherto untapped potential for greatness. In this, Burton’s masterpiece, this potential is fulfilled completely, making this a unique and off beat film that has no equal in his repertoire.

So, a confession I probably have to make is that I somehow never managed to watch this film in its entirety, always only catching bits and bobs, but never the entire thing. I even own the film, but it was just never a film I grabbed when deciding what to watch. Up until now that is.

I’ve always had a bit of a love/hate relationship…
Review by Sally Jane Black 6

CW: rape, violence

An awkward teenage Frankenstein just-so story sculpted out of suburban ennui and Gothic romance, Edward Scissorhands draws as much from German child's tales as from Burton's vividly cold imagination. This is Euro-fairytale transposed to American pastiche. Is it the 80s with the fire-sprayed van? Is it the 70s with those garish carpets? Is it the 50s with the neat little cookie cutter lawns? It's some never been decade, a cross-section of historical dreams meant to represent the eternal essence of Everywhere, USA. It's a facade.

The film is Burton's visual masterpiece. Contrast of color and tone (town and castle), of bumbling comedy and fumbling tenderness, of genuine family affection and insincere community feeling, of nice and good,…
Review by Josh Larsen ★★★★★ 2

The gentlest middle finger in the history of FU, outsider cinema.

Recent reviews

Review by may ★★★★★

the color palette of this movie is a full course meal. didnt expect it to be this heartwarming. five stars i guess since i have no idea how to rate things and i'm no film critic. [inset scissoring joke to end this film review in a witty way]
Review by Madison Harris-Weiner ★★★★½

Hands down some of THE BEST production design I have ever seen - it's whimsy and dreamy but it still feels enough like a livable, workable world. Tim Burton is a master at balancing dreams and reality, humor and gloom, romance and sorrow. What's most heartbreaking about it is that for the first chunk of the movie Edward is loved so much by everyone even when you think he's going to be reviled so you start actually having faith in Burton's little world but then everything goes south, veering well away from any happy ending. God I love Tim Burton.
Review by Azari ★★★★★

I can’t believe I can't belive it took me this long to watch this movie. Danny Elfman’s score is perfect as always, the cast was amazing, and Tim Burton’s directing is brilliant. It’s so beautifully tragic, and I could honestly say that it has become one of my favorites of all time.
Review by Gabe Leibowitz ★★★★

First time in years, and I echo what a friend said about it: this epitomizes everything Burton's wanted to do in his career, and would easily be his best film if not for the existence of Ed Wood.
Review by bocsis ★★★★

Haircut anyone?
Review by MovieMeditation ★★★★½

He slices and dices his way through everything on his path...
but he is the nicest and most gentle person around...

Tim Burton brings the purest Christmas spirit back to life, in the most peculiar way, by shaping a chilling horror story into a warm family drama; filled with quirky characters and a crazy sense of quasi-realism throughout. Burton brings out his inner demons and dresses them up as amplified and highly animated personalities, living together in a very small town, who both in look and feel comes off as psychologically twisted but welcoming maniacs. Once again, we are invited inside an insane, nightmarish world like no other before Christmas, which can only come from the razor-sharp mind of someone…
Review by Ayuni ★★★½

It is weird and fictional but it's make a good 90s movie memory that Depp nailed the kind of-Frankenstein role.
Review by meh_its_ok

I'd say this is easily the most compelling character Johnny Depp's ever played. Though I wouldn't say this is Tim Burton's best. That title would probably go to Beetlejuice. My favorite Burton movie though...Pee-Wee's Big Adventure. Fuck you, it's good.
Review by Marvin123 ★★★★

Edward Scissorhands is a really creative clever Tim Burton that always leaves a smile on my face I'm die hard fan of Tim Burton and his movies well not all of them I hate Alice in Wonderland and Planet in the Apes so not every movie he does is perfect
But that's not the point haha Edward Scissorhands is such a classic Tim Burton fingerprints are all over it you have production designer Bo Welch who makes this world so beautiful it deserves an Oscar nomination I'm not sure if it did or not but it's amazing
The cast is all brilliant
The score by Danny Elfman is perfect once again
The direction is great
Edward Scissorhands is a great movie that will last forever it's heart warming and also really fun