Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Before Basic Instinct, July 19, 2004
Before Basic Instinct, there was "Scissors". Released in 1991, this obscure thriller stars Sharon Stone as the victimized patient of a crazed therapist who drives her to murder. Slight similarities to "Basic Instinct" which was not too far off have been detected. The choice of weapon in Instinct was an icepick, in this film it is a pair of scissors as the title suggests. Sharon Stone delivers a good performance, eventhough she is in a bad film with very little popularity. Everyone's heard of Basic Instinct but who's ever heard of Scissors ? Sharon plays a weak, traumatized woman whose past was painful. Her father abused her sexually and her mother killed him with a pair of scissors right in front of her eyes. The hard-up young woman seeks counseling with a therapist who turns out to be the real murderer in a vein similar to Hannibal Lecter only without the cannibalism. The mood is intense and dark and Sharon Stone has several "Mad Scenes" including one in which after murder, a black bird reminds her vocally of the deed. Sometimes, the film is hard to follow as several characters act as if they are the real brains behind the evil. In the end, Sharon Stone finally gets the guts to confront the therapist and locks him up in a building for good. As the movie ends, a variation on the duet from the opera Lakme plays and Sharon Stone rides off in a cab with the only man who truly cared for her. Ok. So this no Basic Instinct. This movie falls short on a lot of things. Basic Instinct launched Sharon Stone's career and made her famous. This movie was experimental and Sharon Stone had not yet achieved the status of star. In its own way it's still a good thriller. It can be said that this movie is for specialized interests. It's a film for fans of Miss Stone who don't mind what character she plays and in what kind of movie. For thriller fans, however bad the thriller can be or however hackneyed. An early 90's film, it really attests to its time. At one point, Stone looks like Madonna. The eerie and shocking feel of the movie was very typical of the 90's. The 90's would see other such thrillers involving crazed murderers such as Silence Of The Lambs, Misery, The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, and Sleeping With The Enemy. Add this lesser known film to the rest and you have yourself a collection of good thrillers from the 90's.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Oddly sincere and touching--especially for its genre, August 15, 2005
Often in film when the main character has a troubled, painful past she is either portrayed as an "unattractive" cat lover or a raving psychotic man-hater--or both. This (thankfully) is not the case in the surprisingly sympathetic "Scissors."
While the plot is certainly not that original, the characterization just reached out and grabbed me. Sharon Stone, a victim of her own beauty since she seems to be valued more for her looks than her talent, is perfectly suited for the role she takes on here as a 26-year-old virgin desperate to feel normal and be happy.
I can definitely see why people might pan this film. On the surface, it is a pale imitation of one of Brian DePalma's better films ("Dressed to Kill," "Sisters"). Being a firm believer that everyone brings his or her own bias along for the ride, I can't help but put my own spin on this emotionally charged film and defend its garish color.
"Scissors" uses its gaudiness to effect. The very aspects that cheapen it (bright reds that scream at you, loud music and "Dress to Kill" moments in elevators) also help it cause. Angela Anderson is a virgin largely because she is a victim of sexual abuse; her senses are frightened by anything too vivid or suggestive, she can never relax or enjoy a moment. While director Frank De Felitta suggests that adult virginity itself is rather gauche and out of touch with reality, he never really mocks that state of being nor the cause of it. Instead he shows the viewer what it's like to be an attractive adult woman trying to shelter her inner child.
So many times, Hollywood appears to get a thrill out of exposing its female characters to psychological and sexual torment. It's refreshing and comforting to see that absent from "Scissors" as the film snips away at preconceived notions about the sexually repressed woman.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Low budget but well acted by Sharon Stone, October 23, 2004
Caught this late night on TV. Very good "B" movie. Early Sharon Stone flick shows that she can act very well. For another good early Stone film check out The Year Of The Gun. Worth watching.
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