Was this X-Files episode influenced by Edward Scissorhands
As I watched Edward Scissorhands this last week I caught this image early on. Notice the house with the fumigation tent. At first I wondered what it was doing there, I mean there must be a reason to have taken the time to cover one of the set homes with a fumigation tent right? But that is not my question.
After I saw this I remembered the episode of The X-Files The Post-Modern Prometheus which is about a "father" who creates a son and is trying to find him a mate by inseminating various people in town. He subdues these victims by gassing them out while their house is covered in a fumigation tent.
There are a lot of similarities in the stories of Edward Scissorhands and The Post-Modern Prometheus and so I'm curious if the use of the fumigation tent in the episode is meant to be a nod to the movie.
Best Answer
After quite a bit of research, I've decided to answer this myself. I believe that this was indeed meant to be a nod to the Edward Scissorhands movie and I will tell you why.
To begin I had to look into the title of the episode, The Post-Modern Prometheus. Why postmodern? What does post modern even mean? It is a relatively complex idea and there are a lot of definitions out there depending on the context but I think the best definition I could give it here to back up what I'm about to say is that post modernism is a form of using classical styles to present a style beyond modernism. Take the form of the episode. It is filmed in black and white with cliched lightning strikes similar to the style of an old Frankenstein movie. This is the key of what makes the episode "post modern" is that it brings in other styles and references to make an ironic self reference to the style of story being told. The age old tale of man creating what is perceived to be a monster when the monster only wishes to fit in.
Some examples of post modern references in the episode:
- The title of the episode is a play on Mary Shelley's "Frankenstien" subtitled The Modern Prometheus
- The black and white style is a reference to the old Boris Karloff Frankenstein movie from 1931. This was also done by Mel Brooks in creating Young Frankenstein
- The mutato's favorite movie is "Mask" from 1985 about a severely deformed kid becoming friends with the high school crowd. It also stars Cher whose music is used prominently in the episode's soundtrack.
- The original score by Mark Snow is strongly influenced by John Morris's theme from The Elephant Man, another movie about a deformed man rejected by society, and also filmed in black and white even though it was made in 1980
As you can see the episode draws heavily on the styles of other similar movies in a post modern fashion which brings me to Edward Scissorhands. I can't help but think it is more than a coincidence that both have the fumigation tent which looks very much like a circus tent and calls up thoughts of the freak show in Elephant Man. It is my opinion that Chris Carter likely had all these films in mind when making the episode and drew items like this from all of them into making The Post-Modern Prometheus.
Pictures about "Was this X-Files episode influenced by Edward Scissorhands"
Is Edward Scissorhands and Sweeney Todd connected?
Sweeney Todd is largely a retelling of a Sondheim musical (itself based on a fictional character from a "penny dreadful") whereas Edward Scissorhands was largely based on Burton's own experiences as a child and his feelings of isolation.Why did Edward have scissor hands?
The genesis of Edward Scissorhands came from a drawing by then-teenaged director Tim Burton, which reflected his feelings of isolation and being unable to communicate to people around him in suburban Burbank. The drawing depicted a thin, solemn man with long, sharp blades for fingers.Does Edward Scissorhands get real hands?
The Inventor homeschools Edward, but suffers a heart attack and dies before giving Edward real hands, leaving him permanently "unfinished". Many years later, Peg Boggs, a local door-to-door Avon saleswoman, tries to sell at the decrepit Gothic mansion where Edward lives.Is there a Edward Scissorhands 2?
'Edward Scissorhands Volume 2: Whole Again' by Kate Leth and art by Drew Rausch continues the adventure of Megs and Edward. Megs is the grandaughter of Kim from the movie. After the events of the last volume, the townspeople have come together to help spruce up Edward's castle.Anniversario dei 20 anni di \
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Images: Justyna Grochowska, Yan Krukov, Gustavo Fring, Gustavo Fring