Edward Scissorhands

This may seem to be a rather odd place to read about Tim Burton's 1990 film Edward Scissorhands, but I recently screened the film for my children (ages 9 and 7) and (re-)discovered how the story can generate conversations about sameness and difference and the contradictory ways in which people who are perceived to be different from others may fare in social interaction.

For those who haven't seen the film, it is a darkly comedic fairy-tale. Edward (played by the actor Johnny Depp, pictured in character at left) is the creation of a genius inventor/mad scientist who drops dead of a heart attack before he can put the finishing touches on his invention. Consequently, instead of actual hands, Edward is left with sharp and unwieldy shears at the end of his arms (hence, his unusual if descriptive name). Despite his rather bizarre appearance, Edward is a sweet and gentle soul who is adopted by a stereotypical white suburban family who live in a stereotypical white suburban neighborhood (circa late 1950's, early 1960's). The busy-body neighbors of the adopting family (the Bogs) are curious about Edward at first, then charmed by him; ultimately, however, they find him frightening and a threat. At that point, a mob-mentality takes over and violence ensues...

A film such as Edward Scissorhands can be very useful where "Teaching for Inclusion" is concerned, because the characters in the film are complex enough that people can relate to them without necessarily identifying with them. In this way, the film affords the viewer critical distance: a relatively non-threatening space in which to confront questions of identity and difference--the stuff of which many contemporary difficult dialogues are made.