Every Tim Burton Movie Ranked From Worst to Best

Edward Scissorhands is Tim Burton’s crowning achievement, a significant departure from his more comedic or action-oriented films that lends the eccentric aesthetic for which he is known a deep emotional gravitas. It also marks the first time that Tim Burton worked with Johnny Depp, who would go on to star in seven more of his films.

Depp plays a young man with scissors for hands who is taken in by a kind-hearted Avon lady. With minimal dialogue and an unassuming presence, his performance is that of a silent film actor. In frequent close-ups, Johnny Depp communicates so much through his sad brown eyes: confusion, childlike innocence, a broken soul. Winona Ryder plays the blonde cheerleader Edward falls for, and their unspoken, empathetic connection draws you into the classic tale of an outcast “beast” falling for a beauty.

Unlike Tim Burton’s other films, which often emphasize the comedic elements of his fantasy settings, this one juxtaposes the monotonous rows of pastel-colored houses with the pitch-black Gothic castle where Edward lives to make thoughtful observations about society’s rejection of outsiders and people with differences. There are so many moments that feel straight out of a storybook, like when Kim spins around in the “snow” of Edward’s creation, accompanied by Danny Elfman’s mesmerizing choral score.

Edward Scissorhands is not only Tim Burton’s best film, but also one of the most beautiful modern fairy tales ever told.