Edward Scissorhands

Rarely do I devote a whole section of thoughts on something like a movie or book I am experiencing, but this one is worth ticking out some comments on.

For at least the last four months, people have been recommending left and right that I see this movie. Before this year I had always assumed that it was a horror flick - something about the pictures I saw as a child when it came out with Depp's crazy black hair, pale face, and scissory-hands may have something to do with that assumption. Needless to say, when I found out that it's a love story and tragic drama, I was somewhat befuddled. How could a movie about such an "awful" creature be tragically beautiful?

In watching it tonight, though, I was constantly forced to realize how quick I was to "judge the book by its cover." Depp's character, Edward, isn't at all a cruel monster - he's a human with a heart, a person who has had far more than his share of difficulties in life. In being designed by "The Inventor," he was trained to be courteous and good. Upon the death of his creator, Edward was left missing only two things: hands. He was left to compensate with a set of razor sharp scissors and knives where each hand should be... what cruel twist of fate would let this be so?

Rather than summarize the rest of the move, I recommend that you see it so the following ideas will make more sense. For those of you that have seen it, I was faced with the realization that I, just like the folks in Suburbia, all too often make assumptions about people by how they look, how they act, and "what's in it for me" in the friendship. And do I ever play the part of the woman who ostracized Edward from the start? - the woman who spent so much time glorying in playing her church music on her organ that she didn't learn to really love? - the woman who labeled him as cursed because he wasn't just like everyone else? Lord, I hope not. I think not... but I hope not.

I may take pride in keeping myself from the last page of a book until I've read everything that comes before... but sometimes I don't even read more than the first page of something that could be overwhelmingly filled with truth and beauty. What a fool I am to judge.