Classic Comforts: Edward Scissorhands And Babes In Toyland

Snow without Santa, sleighs without carols, and heart without the hard sell—that’s the sweet spot we land on as we pair Edward Scissorhands with Disney’s Babes in Toyland for a compact, cozy double feature. We open late at night with fresh eyes on Burton’s pastel suburbia, where Johnny Depp’s tender, childlike Edward turns snowfall into a memory machine. The performances hold up—Winona Ryder’s quiet warmth, Vincent Price’s poignant farewell—and even as a few elements show their age, the film’s emotional core gleams. We talk about what makes it feel “holiday” even when the calendar isn’t the point, landing at a four out of five overall and a three out of five on the Christmas-o-meter.

Then we swing into Toyland, where the music spills early, the colors pop, and Ed Wynn’s toy maker practically grins through the screen. It’s classic Disney cheese in the best way: big, silly, wholesome, and safe for kids, with a villain who’s more rubbery than chilling and henchmen that echo Laurel and Hardy. The surprise is how the Christmas vibe sneaks up in the back half—suddenly toys, sleighs, and sparkle give it that warm seasonal lift. We share the laughs, admit the nostalgia, and close with another four out of five overall and three out of five for Christmas feel.

If you’re craving comfort cinema that plays well with families and stirs a softer kind of winter mood, this pairing delivers. We also tease our upcoming Cinema Sunday look at Zootopia 2, with possible guest voices and plenty to unpack about world-building and box office buzz. Hit play, settle in, and tell us your favorite almost-Christmas movie. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs a cozy watch, and drop a review to help more listeners find the couch.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Opening And Double Feature Setup
• 0:51 Edward Scissorhands Takes The Spotlight
• 2:36 Is It Really A Christmas Movie
• 3:07 Final Thoughts And Ratings For Edward
• 3:07 Babes In Toyland Enters The Chat
• 3:28 Ed Wynn, Nursery Rhymes, And Disney Cheese
• 4:33 Christmas Connections And Family Appeal
• 6:06 Toyland Ratings And Cozy Afterglow
• 6:39 Teasing Zootopia 2 And Season Plans
• 7:35 Sign-off And Ongoing Journey

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

On the couch we laugh and cry and feeling it all Breaking down the big screen, the hits and the flaw. Have your seat, let's play, let's take the pic. Lights, camera, action. It's the couch critics.

SPEAKER_01: 0:30

Hello everyone, and welcome to a brand new episode of The Couch Critics. I'm your host, Nathan, and on today's episode, it's gonna be a short but sweet one, but it is a double feature. By the time I'm recording this, it is late at night, the night before my school's winter production. So, like I said, it's gonna be a short but sweet episode. So I missed the Edward Scissor Hands episode. So that is the first movie I'm gonna be talking about. I'm gonna skip the synopsis. I'm gonna skip the cast because if you've never seen this movie before, you should watch it. It's classic Tim Burton. Tim Burton is a very interesting director, and this has his name written all over this. Classic Johnny Depp, classic Winona writer, classic Vincent Price. Vincent Price, this is his last movie role before he passed away. And then you got Anthony Michael Hall, which he's like the buff version of himself. So this movie is just overall classic. I I hadn't watched it in a while, so I was really excited to watch it. Even though this again is one of those movies that has like hints of Christmas in it. And I know there might be people listening and they might be like, What are you talking about? This movie has Christmas all over. Because the whole premise is that it starts snowing again because Edward Scissorhands is alive and it's around Christmas time. But other than that, this movie is a really good watch. The the acting in it is sincere. You actually feel for Edward Scissorhands the entire movie. You he he comes off as very like childlike, and I think Johnny Depp does a really good performance as Edward Scissorhands, of course. And then just overall, every single person in this movie, there is no weak link in this film. And so if you've never seen it before, I would highly recommend it. Even if you don't consider it a Christmas movie, which I really don't, but I I do think it's uh worth your time to watch it. So I would give Edward Scissorhands a four out of five because I thought it was a really, really good film. Obviously, there are some things that you know aren't haven't aged well and that kind of stuff. So that's why I don't give it a five. But for Christmas, I'm gonna give it a three out of five because you know, the innocence of childhood around Christmas time, that's what Edward Scissor Hands represents to me. And yes, there are sections of the movie that take place specifically at Christmas time. So those are my short but sweet thoughts on Edward Scissorhands. Now moving on to my second movie in the double feature episode, and that is Babes and Toyland, the classic Disney version live action with Annette Funichello and the actor who played the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. And it also has probably one of my favorite comedic actors, Ed Wynne, who played Uncle Albert and Mary Poppins. He is in this, he is the toy maker, and he just makes me smile. You know, his voice, his mannerisms, his his just overall acting just makes me smile. No matter if I hear his voice or if I see his face, it just it's always a good time. This movie is classic Disney cheese, it's very cheesy, very over the top, very musical. There's a lot of songs, especially at the beginning. It's you know, it takes place in kind of a nursery rhyme land. So there's a lot of nursery rhymes being sung, but it's still a fun time. And I I hadn't remembered that I had seen this before, and so there were certain moments in the film that cracked me up because I was, oh my gosh, I remember this movie now. I remember I had watched it before, and there's some really, really random, funny moments in this film, even though it's made back, back, back, back in the old days. But it it's still a wholesome, family-friendly something I could watch with my kids if I wanted to watch it with my kids. It's it's just it it harkens back to a time where Disney just made wholesome movies that were, yes, very cheesy, but also still very, you know, you didn't have to be afraid to watch it with your kids, and you weren't afraid of the content in the in the movie. Now, the villain, who's the villain, has moments where he's kind of creepy, but he's supposed to be creepy because he's the villain. But at the same time, he comes off as very silly. His facial expressions are very animated and very over the top and funny. And so I think that kind of balances the creepiness of the character. And then you have his two henchmen who kind of remind me of a Laurel and Hardy kind of situation. Those characters are lots of fun. So the movie is a lot of fun. I highly recommend it for families. You don't realize how connected it is to Christmas until like over halfway through the movie. And so for a Christmas film, again, I wouldn't consider it a 100% Christmas movie, but it does have Christmas in it. They're making toys for kids at Christmas, so there is that element to it. And at the end of the movie, spoiler alert, they do fly away on like kind of some kind of Christmas sleigh. So it's very heavy on Christmas, the second half of the movie. So very short but sweet thoughts. If go watch it with your kids, I'm pretty sure it's on Disney Plus. I we don't have Disney Plus anymore, so I actually had to buy it on Amazon for$4.99. So that's pretty cheap.$4.99 on Amazon Prime right now. Go watch it. It's it's it's just a fun family film. I'm gonna give Babes in Toyland with Annette Funichello a four out of five. I think it's it's a very wholesome movie, even though it's very cheesy. And for Christmas, just like with the first film, I'm gonna give it a three out of five because it does make you feel all warm and cozy. And anytime I see Ed Wynn in a movie, it just makes me smile. So those are my short but sweet thoughts on Edward Scissor Hands and Babes in Toyland on my double feature episode. This cinema Sunday, we're taking on Zootopia 2. It's been blowing off the box office like crazy. And so I'm gonna give my thoughts on that movie. I may be joined by my wife, I may be joined by Thomas because I know he went to go see it with his wife. Who knows who will join me on this cinema Sunday? And I can't believe it's already December. And I don't know if you remember this. I said that this season is gonna be a two-parter because there's so many movies. So this season will not end until October of next year. October 2026. So keep on trucking with us on this journey of Christmas movies and cinema Sundays on the couch critics. Where every movie gets its close-up.

SPEAKER_00: 7:38

It's not just a movie, it's a way of life. We'll watch it together. They are not closed, and don't miss it. This is the moment of it.