The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) User Reviews

Wonderfully imaginative animation, fun & intelligent songs make for a great family film for all but the youngest children

[bob the moo · 2 November 2004]

Jack Skellington is the Pumpkin King – the creative genius behind the holiday of Halloween, designing each year to be scarier and more horrible than the one before. However deep inside he longs for more than the horror and scares of Halloween Town, a longing he cannot understand until he stumbles into Christmas Town and sees happiness and cheer the likes of which has evaded him all these years. Having finally worked out what Christmas is all about, Jack decides to kidnap Santa and make himself the new king of Christmas Town so that he can have the happiness of Christmas all the time. But the others in the towns realize the significant consequences that this disruption of the norm will have as Jack's evil nature proves harder to overcome than he thought.

With Pixar currently dominating the world of 'animations that please both children and adults' it is easy to forget that over a decade ago Tim Burton delivered this delightful family film to the cinema using a much more traditional animation and a huge amount of imagination. The basic plot is a great little fantasy fairytale with a very dark heart to it that make it much more enjoyable for having that edge. Too often kids films (especially at the time and animated) are soaked in a sweet sentiment that simply forgets that kids are not stupid and indeed often prefer a bit of darkness in the story. The only downside of this darkness is that younger children might not 'get it' and just end up being scared by the Halloween images and imaginative images. Despite this the material will play equally well to adults and children because it neither panders to nor excludes one group over the other at any time. Regardless of the material, the film still manages to come off as charming and enjoyable thanks to a well-written script that never plays for the basic laugh or easy sentiment. Some viewers may come to this with Pixar in their minds and bemoan it for not being hilariously funny from start to finish, but they are missing the point and

The songs reflect this approach and are very clever throughout; whether it is the sorrowful longing of Jack at the start or the Cab Calloway-inspired song from Oogie Boogie Man, generally they are inventive and fun. The same praise can be laid at the door of the stop-motion animation, which is inventive and fun to look at from start to finish. All the characters have a great deal of effort put in and they add to the dark feel of the film. The voice cast may not feature a load of well-known voices in the same way as Pixar films generally do, but they still do a great job. Sarandon and Elfman combine to do a good job with Jack; Page is fun as Oogie Boogie; O'Hara is good as Sally despite not having as fun a character to work with but for my money it is Hickey (as Dr Finklestein) and Shadix (Mayor) that make the biggest impression, mainly due to having the most enjoyable characters.

Overall this is a very short but very enjoyable film that will please both children and adults at the same time (with the same material) and never ignores or panders to one side of the audience over the other. Both groups will appreciate the dark fairytale, the clever songs, the darkly imaginative animation and the comic sense of humour, making this a family film that deserves to be remembered even as kids movie get smarter and fancier.

One of the best films of 1993, highly re-watchable

[Quinoa1984 · 10/10 · 14 December 2003]

I was a kid when I first saw Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, but I wasn't scared by it in the slightest - this world is one entirely of the imagination, and in a sense saying that the film is scary for younger children is something of a compliment. 'Nightmare' is both a horror film and a musical, and fantasy and a suspense film, and like most Burton effort, comedy is thrown in at just the right moments.

With Henry Selick as director and Michael McDowell & Caroline Thompson as the screenwriters, Burton has fashioned the worlds of Halloween-town and Christmas-town as real originals, working on the cliches that are in each holiday and surrounding the worlds with a host of terrific and terrifying characters. While Halloween-town has a mayor (appropriately with two faces, one smiling one distressed), the real leader is Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon voices with a great Danny Elfman as the singing Jack) who orchestrates Halloween every year for its citizens. But he's grown weary over the years, and after stumbling upon Christmas-town, loaded with good will towards men and a large man in a red suit, he gets his town riled up to overtake the joyous holiday. Despite one protest by Sally (an amazing Catherine O'Hara), the doll-girl who loves him, the town goes on creating Jack's vision. The results are hilarious and, indeed, spellbinding.

Much credit is given to Burton and Selick for their work on the film, but a lot should also be attributed to Denise Di Novi (co-producer and co-designer), Rick Heinrichs (visual consultant), Pete Kozachik (D.P.), and of course Danny Elfman for his perfectly fitting score and song creations. Along with the talented voice actors, Nightmare Before Christmas ends up a triumph of artistic ingenuity. Some could construe it as too weird or too stylish, but for the cult audience it has garnered over the past ten years it remains of of Burton's finest accomplishments. A+

Burton's "Nightmare" is a dream come true

[dee.reid · 10/10 · 10 December 2004]

By 1993, director Tim Burton was such a successful filmmaker in Hollywood that he was able to return to one of his most beloved early projects, "The Nightmare Before Christmas." It's certainly an inspired movie, as it is also very weird, and when I say "weird," I mean it's distinctly Burton.

Even though it was directed with enough competency by Henry Selick, this groundbreaking stop-motion animation film is Burton all the way, as it contains ample "esque" qualities that make this "Nightmare" uniquely his vision.

As the film opens in the twisted, "Burton"-esque village of "Halloweentown," Jack Skellington, who is dually voiced by Chris Sarandon and longtime Burton collaborator Danny Elfman, is celebrating another "horrible" Halloween. You'll be shocked and amazed at some of the town's inhabitants, who include jazz-playing zombies, Four Tenor-like vampires, a wolf man, and a wheelchair-bound scientist who occasionally opens up his cranium to (literally) scratch his brain; his creation, a Frankenstein-like scarecrow named Sally (Catherine O'Hara), yearns for contact with others and is quite fond of Jack Skellington.

But Jack's quickly growing tired of the same old routine year after year, and because he's so downtrodden with boredom, he ventures into the dark forest outside the town's borders, and accidentally stumbles onto the wondrous, jolly world of "Christmastown." Enticed by its splendor, he decides to bring back his discovery to the residents of Halloweentown, who of which are just as shocked by Christmas as he is. Jack gets the brilliant idea to pose as Santa Claus but hires three mischief-makers to kidnap the real Santa so he can share his own, misguided vision of Christmas with an unprepared world.

Painstakingly and meticulously crafted, "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a beautiful and wonderful film from start to finish. The most famous image of this film is the cover art, which features Skellington eerily silhouetted against a full moon while he stands atop a coiled hill that overlooks a desolate graveyard.

Burton is such a wonderful director, who had already brought us one unique "esque" vision after the other, especially with the first two "Batman" films and "Edward Scissorhands" behind him as of '93 when "Nightmare" was made.

10/10

Textbook example proving the old adage, "The grass is always greener in someone else's yard."

[llltdesq · 10/10 · 15 November 2000]

This film, while far from Burton's masterpiece, is a delightful musical that in the end shows that, sometimes, we have things far better than we think we do and the other side of the fence sometimes looks better just because it's different, but that doesn't make necessarily wise to pursue someone else's dream because we mistakenly think we may like it more. Tim Burton's fingerprints are all over this film. Excellent casting of vocal talent, the score is great and the animation is marvelous. A very good film and worth watching more than once. Recommended.

Finally Decided to Watch It

[Hitchcoc · 9/10 · 7 September 2017]

This is certainly a pleasant surprise. Tim Burton, purveyor of the wacko, has created, along with his amazing team, a real classic work. Seldom does a film bank on so much originality, from the incredible creation of Halloween Town, with its denizens, marvelous in their diversity and variety, to a really interesting plot. The character of Jack Skellington is a scene-stealer. Considering he pretty much a stick with a round, skeletal head, he has amazing expression and energy. He is an artist and a rebel, dissatisfied with the continuing shortsightedness of his frightening peers. When his world opens up through an accidental fall into another town, paralleling his own, he tries to bring Christmas back with him. The problem is that he really doesn't understand the concept well enough. He mixes his own social foundation with an alien one and the results are hilarious. Wonderful to look at with some of the finest animation you will ever see, each moment carefully scripted and produced.

An animated classic? I think so!

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 20 December 2009]

I admit it, I really like Tim Burton. I know his films are very oddball, but he has a wide imagination and his films are visually amazing. And I like a vast majority of his films, Edward Scissorhands being my personal favourite, and I love Batman and Batman Returns too. Henry Sellick is also promising, from the likes of James and the Giant Peach and Coraline. The Nightmare Before Christmas is a brilliant film. Is it an animated classic. Yes I think it is! It is wonderfully weird yet lots of fun as well. Visually and technically, the film looks absolutely amazing, with wonderful Gothic backgrounds and detailed colouring. Skellington silhouetted against the moonlight is quite possibly the film's most haunting image. The story is great, about Jack Skellington discovering ChristmasTown but doesn't understand the concept so he kidnaps Santa Claus. And the characters are endearing and weird, ranging from jazz playing zombies, Four-tenor like vampires to a wolf man. Then we have the title characters, Jack Skellington is a wonderful protagonist, really interesting to say the least. And Sally for an inventor's creation is very beautiful. The songs from Danny Elfman(the fact that he didn't get an award for his score for Edward Scissorhands is the biggest music snubs ever) are great fun, haunting, funny, clever and intelligent. The voice acting is top notch, Chris Sarandon does a great job as the speaking voice of Skellington, and Danny Elfman himself provides the singing voice superbly. Catherine O'Hara is sweet and innocent, and Ken Page(the voice of King Gator in All Dogs Go To Heaven) is a hoot as Oogie Boogie. All in all, weird, but visually stunning, funny and intelligent animated movie. A definite classic! 10/10 Bethany Cox

One of the most memorable holiday classics of all time. A visual masterpiece. ***1/2 out of ****.

[Movie-12 · 9/10 · 14 March 2000]

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS / (1993) ***1/2

Starring the voices of: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, Ken Page, Ed Ivory, and William Hickey Directed by Henry Celiac. Written by Michael McDowell. Running time: 76 minutes. Rated PG (for horrific images and some animated violence).

Tim Burton seems like the only being on the planet who could come with characters such as the ones found in "The Nightmare Before Christmas." The feature is literally a tale likely to be found in a child's dreams. It creates a world of its own, inhabiting unforgettable characters and events that should be shared with generations. This film is a visual masterpiece; a movie that deserves to be a holiday favorite for some time to come.

The atmosphere director Henry Celiac captures in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is truly breathtaking. The cities and setting in which these characters live are visually perplexing, yet descriptive and develop the production's mood perfectly. We, as audiences starving for originality and imagination, are able to enter a scope so believable and unrelentingly convincing we lust for every last minute of it.

The movie's protagonist is Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of the holiday town of Halloween. Jack is the role model for much of the cities population. The only problem is that Jack has been around for ages, parked in a town where every single year builds up for a conventional holiday, Halloween. This character has grown depressed and saddened by the routine living style he inhabits. We learn of his passion for new events and a and new life through a musical number that is both effective and engaging.

Later on that vary night, Jack wonders off into a nearby woods and stumbles upon an area surrounded with magical doors leading to specific holiday worlds. Jack, blooming with curiosity, enters Christmas town: a joyful, happy place with snow, glitter, children singing, and colorful lights decorating the village in its entirety. Jack is mystified by the glamorous atmosphere, and rushes home to tell the Town of Halloween about his adventures.

We realize the internalconflict is Jack's boredom of routine. This becomes more complex when he tries to figure out the meaning of Christmas. The external problem comes later in the plot, where we predict an uneasy disaster upcoming due to his intentions of recreating Christmas in Halloween style.

Other key characters are Sally, the puppet-like creation of an angry professor, the city's Mayor who has a head for both his good and bad personality, the Oggie Boogie, the film's villain who is everything we ever dreamed of regarding a diabolical animated bad guy, and the inevitable character of Santa Clause.

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" is not necessarily a children's movie, it might be too strange or fanatical for the very young. It is certainly a musical production, and at times, I felt that the songs replaced essential development. However, the musical numbers are challenging and memorable, containing passion and emotion. The picture is a walk into the mind of some of the most wildly imaginative filmmakers of our time. "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is titled wonderfully, although the film is truly not a nightmare, but a dream--a dream brought to life on the big screen.

Brought to you by Touchstone Pictures.

Artfully combines two very different holidays

[AlsExGal · 9/10 · 19 October 2010]

Who would ever think that a musical about the overlap between Halloween and Christmas would work? However, it does work with the songs not exactly being Christmas - or Halloween - classics, but fitting the dark mood of this film perfectly.

The movie opens with Jack Skellington, AKA the Pumpkin King, facing an identity crisis of sorts. Halloween has just ended in his hometown of Halloween Town, and he has been receiving kudos from everyone in town for making this year's Halloween the scariest ever. But Jack is seeking purpose in his life, and scaring people to death once a year just isn't doing it for him anymore. He takes a walk in the woods and he discovers a group of trees each with doors and different symbols on each door. He opens the door with the tree symbol on it, and finds himself in Christmas Town. While there, he is fascinated by the contrast of Christmas Town with his own world. Jack returns home, along with a sampling of trinkets from Christmas Town, to contemplate the meaning of what he has found there. Ultimately he decides that this year, Halloween Town is going to take charge of Christmas. Jack has also decided that he will replace "Sandy Claws" on his yearly sleigh ride, delivering presents to all of the children of the world. All of the citizens of Halloween Town are enthused by the idea except Sally, a creation of Halloween Town's mad scientist, who coincidentally is also looking for something new in her life. She alone sees the danger of Halloween Town hijacking the Christmas holiday.

While the Grinch tried to destroy Christmas and came away with a true understanding of the meaning of the holiday, Jack Skellington, with the best of intentions, is on the road to ruin Christmas. In preparation for the big event, he enlists the townspeople to help make toys, and they just can't get the hang of making or doing anything that is not designed to terrify. In fact, when Jack makes his Christmas ride and the town hears on the radio of the terror Jack is causing, they actually see this as a sign of success. To them, horror equals happiness.

Like most good films designed for all age groups, the movie is actually weaving a tale on two levels. The story itself is very straightforward so that children can easily follow it. On a second level, there is deft humor and one-liners that are obviously aimed at adults, such as the mayor's plea to Jack -"I'm only an elected official here! I can't make decisions!" Or when the scientist who created Sally gets tired of her running away and builds a new creation to replace her. This one turns out to be just a female version of the mad scientist himself to which he has endowed half of his own brain. His conclusion is "You will be a decided improvement over that treacherous Sally. We'll have conversations worth having." You'll see quite a bit of similarity between the style of art design here and that done in some of Tim Burton's other films, such as "Beetlejuice". You'll also probably recognize Danny Elfman's style of score that has come to decorate so many of Burton's other films. I highly recommend this film as great entertainment for the whole family.

A true must see for all Halloween fans

[CheshireCatsGrin · 10/10 · 12 December 2004]

I am not a big Tim Burton fan, but this movie is in my top 3 of all time. Perhaps the fact that Halloween is my favorite holiday influenced my opinion, but I doubt it. The more I hear and read about this movie, the more I love it.

Based on a parody of the famous "Night before Christmas" poem by Moore that Burton wrote and illustrated while employed at Disney, this idea was stagnant for many years prior to filming. In many ways this was a good thing, technology was able to catch up to Burton's ideas.

In NBC, we see our hero Jack Skellington, aka The Pumpkin King, depressed as another Halloween passes. In the background we hear the residents of Halloween Town celebrate another wonderful holiday. But Jack is sad. The only one who notices is the Rag Doll-style woman Sally.

Other characters, including many town-monsters, are introduced. We meet the wonderful mayor with two faces, the evil scientist and his assistant, three local children and our evil boogie-man.

After an accident, Jack develops a plan to kidnap "Sandy Claws" and give presents out for Christmas in place of Christmas Town. You will have to view this movie to discover the rest.

The claymation is not what I expected, it was of a high quality and the movements are not jerky like the old Christmas Specials. Danny Elfman's music has little resemblance to his work with Ongo Bongo and "What's this?" (which Jack sings when he discovers the colorful world of Christmas Town) is closer to a tune mixed from Cabaret and The Music Man. The voices match the mouth movements nearly perfectly. This was a project from the heart and all the little touches to make it 'just' right show this fact.

Beautiful and weird

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 24 October 2005]

Artistically speaking, this is a beautiful film with incredible stop motion camera-work AND a really stylish atmosphere. The characters are really captivating and just plain "cool". Halloween Town is also a visual delight. In almost every way I consider this a wonderful film. However, for people like me who are not particularly enamored with musicals, the music is definitely the low-point. It's not that the songs are bad, but that there are so many of them. The dialog is mostly sung and I found it detracted, slightly, from my viewing experience. However, considering that almost all the high school students I teach LOVE this movie, I certainly seem to have the minority opinion. So, for those who are not into musicals, still watch it--you'll enjoy it. But, like me you may also wish they'd done a few less numbers! PS--On the DVD, you also get FRANKENWEENIE (a half hour short) and VINCENT (also a short and the seeming inspiration for NBC). They make this a MUST-HAVE DVD.

Many peoples favourite movie, and many peoples go-to Christmas movie. A classic in every sense.

[mickman91-1 · 10/10 · 26 November 2021]

This is one of those movies that transcends ratings. Actually this is currently at 8.0 which is quite high, but the influence that this film has had on so many people, the friendships and bonds that it has forged, the emotional lessons it has taught, makes the ratings for it pretty useless. I can't imagine what watching it for the first time in 2021 would be like. I imagine you would still get a sense of how totally unique and beautiful this film is. It is a gothic christmas/halloween musical stop-motion love story like no other. There are huge pockets of people around the globe for whom this is their favourite film and I know many make a point of watching it annually at christmas time and consider it the quintessential christmas eve movie also. I think for this reason, if possible it is best to watch it with a fan of the film, so you can get a true sense of how much this film means and the context around it.

fun original imaginative

[SnoopyStyle · 9/10 · 3 June 2015]

Jack Skellington is the pumpkin king of Halloween Town. After another successful Halloween, he has grown tired of the monotonous constant sameness. He stumbles into a tree with a magical door which sends him to Christmas Town. He is so taken with Christmas that he tries explain it to his people. Only nobody really understands and he only has limited knowledge himself. Rag doll Sally loves Jack but fears his obsession will turn disastrous when he tries to take over Christmas. It is a wild world of imagination. It is a visual delight of macabre wonderfulness. It is childlike for the kids. It's outlandish for the adults. Jack is a charming character. This is fun and original.

Visually superb, although it's style over substance

[MovieAddict2016 · 8/10 · 12 July 2005]

Jack is a skeleton living in a scary faraway dimension where bizarre creatures reside and embark to scare children on Halloween every year. But Jack longs for a different life outside the restraints of horror - he doesn't like who he is. One day he wanders outside the limits of the haunted city and through a snowy forest, finding Santa Claus and his Elves' workshop.

Inspired, Jack decides to kidnap Santa Claus and turn Christmas into Halloween.

The ads for this movie were always very grim. It used to boast, "From producer Tim Burton!" and his influence is very clear - extremely Gothic visuals. And, for a children's tale, some pretty scary stuff! Overall this is style over substance, as are most films associated with Burton. He rarely delivers great stories and instead relies on fairytale clichés (Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, etc.).

There's nothing wrong with this. It works because his films are so nice to look at.

This is a fun movie with good visuals and an interesting twist on a familiar tale. I recommend it, as long as you don't expect something emotionally involving or brilliant story-wise.

Technical elements aside, the film is able to please the whole family, saying that people are what they are born for

[fernandoschiavi · 8/10 · 3 June 2021]

The Halloween City has its customs greatly exalted by its residents, peculiar individuals who hum in all corners. All spread the spooky spirit through their shapes and features: the rolling heads, sticky worms and sharp teeth through the shadows. This is definitely a magical place that few would like to visit. But what does all this have to do with Christmas? This is precisely the questioning of the protagonist of "The Nightmare Before Christmas".

Considered the ultimate celebrity of his city, Jack Skellington (played by Chris Sarandon, from the series "Orange is the New Black", and Danny Elfman, composer of "The Simpsons" and "Justice League", among others) is one of the organizers of Halloween. Every year he and the ambiguous Mayor (Glenn Shadix, "The Ghosts Have Fun") organize the festive plight the locals so love, spreading the dark spirit around the world. But Jack is in one of those phases of life where everyone questions themselves. On a walk in search of what may be his epiphany, he discovers a peculiar colored door: green, shaped like a tree, with colorful acorns and a star at its tip. Jack discovers Christmas Town.

When we think of horror aimed at children, The Nightmare Before Christmas is the first work we imagine, always associated with the name of Tim Burton. Despite not being exactly a horror movie, we have, in the creation of this universe, a fantastic gothic feeling that assimilates many of the worst nightmares that children have, without ever causing repulsion, but without being easily digestible by them. For the kids Jack's Strange World frightens as much as it delights, allowing the tape to be an unforgettable milestone in their childhood. The name of Tim Burton, producer of the film, although not related to the direction, the responsibility of Henry Sellick, remains quite highlighted and in a fair way, as he has credit for the creation of the story and the world, with an aesthetic signature clearly his own. . Most interesting of all, in a behind-the-scenes thought, is the information that the film was produced by Skellington Productions, in a joint venture with Disney Studios. The reality is that, on second thought, it would be extremely complicated for a work with a villain composed of disgusting insects and worms to be directly linked to Disney, which is very different from the company. The creativity of Sellick and Burton, at least, is free from any ties, ready to give rise to a remarkable musical work, with peculiar and extraordinary characteristics in several of the areas in which we can analyze the work.

The construction of the world, above all, is one of the great initial successes of the filmmakers. The stop-motion technique, while in other cases it would be an ally for image creation, here it is the basis for what is manufactured in terms of the universe. No wonder that Tim Burton and Henry Sellick would be involved in other animations with this style, such as The Corpse Bride and Coraline and the Secret World. Stop-motion is "weird" in itself, deforming nature in a way that doesn't make it rejectable, but extremely special, not to mention charming. Skeleton Jack's Strange World (Chris Sarandon) is an impressive visual composition, giving rise to a stunning contrast when, later, we see the work's protagonist, saddened, discover another universe, and, consequently, discover Christmas. We're talking about a scrawny being, contradicting himself when his posture is so elegant, but his ability to be terrifying is revealed later as he converses with some demonic children in his world.

We are so used to thinking of terror, haunting or dark as elements aimed at an adult audience that we forget, or deny the fact that children can also feel fear and, in many cases, like that of little Izabel who discovered a new world to her. Coming across a film about a talking skeleton, much more than frightening or terrifying, ended up highlighting a universe where the different is also appreciated and does not cause any surprise or discomfort, but it becomes loved. Along with very few other examples of animations with details characteristic of horror, The Nightmare Before Christmas integrates small lessons and messages to a film whose visual aspect enchants and surprises precisely because we are so used to accompanying enchanted princesses or inanimate objects coming to life. Here, good intentions can lead to chaos, but knowing we made mistakes is part of the trajectory, and repairing our mistakes becomes even more important than admitting that we made mistakes. It's what we do with our mistakes that counts and, no one can deny that Jack, while creating the greatest chaos that Christmas has ever seen, was sincere and humble enough to look for a way to repair his mistake.

Tim Burton's story, at first glance, is not intended to reflect on the breaking of stereotypes, although, in the path he decides to navigate, it begins a subversive thought, in which a monster is capable, as well as any person, of fall in love with a festivity that you didn't know before. The doors are theoretically open for exploring the new. We actually have, despite this anti-conservative surface, a split with thoughts of social integration. Each little world in this created universe is far from the other, reaching the point where the union between two different ones, Halloween and Christmas, causes chaos and not harmony. The onslaught is somewhat tragic, whereas Skeleton Jack fails to translate Christmas into the creatures of Halloween City, failing to be the character Santa Claus (Ed Ivory) who ultimately fixes the mistakes made by the protagonist. Tim Burton's cinema is, in a way, excluding, but not with a malice, arising, however, from a more saddened and pessimistic view of reality. By being seen as different, Tim Burton ends up looking at his own characters, sort of versions of himself, like Edward Scissorhands, and putting them apart from society, which cannot, even at the end of the story, accept them. Children, for example, completely reject Jack's gifts in Strange World.

As good a fable as it is, this film takes us to Jack's questions when he finds himself creatively exhausted. On the other hand, we follow the rag doll Sally (Catherine O'Hara, "Frankenweenie"), whose curiosity complements what the Christmas spirit means so that it never becomes repetitive: a little creativity here; a bit of curiosity over there.

But the big difference is in the direction of Henry Selick ("Coraline"), who takes us from Halloween City to Christmas City, composing characteristics of the characters, which are intertwined in the feelings of scary and cuteness. In this story, the stranger not only doesn't fit, but allows himself to be many things. But the central issue in this permissiveness is the problem of putting it above all in favor of self-acceptance. The protagonist Jack has a crisis with Halloween because he should accept himself and so he could also love himself and also be able to love. Soon the character Sally has her narrative counterpoint parallel with her visions, being oppressed by the scientist who created her, in her capacity to self-destruct and build, apart from empathic understanding. She is the symbol of love that the screenwriter is so fond of, as can be seen in the writer's work in the film "Edwards Scissorhands". She, Sally, puts fatality in front of Jack's fake, emulative, blind belief. Because in your project there is the ego, even if it glimpses your image, believe in the simplicity of recreating Christmas. The result is that with immoral means, even the convincing innocence in Jack's work, it still doesn't determine his understanding of what Christmas is, much less what happiness is, since the film is almost a theft of festivity, with each party having its way of being happy.

Because "The Nightmare Before Christmas" recreates the Christmas spirit with the traditional gothic touches of Burton and Selick, without failing, with that, to lose its essence. Counting on the subtlety of the director and the inventiveness of the creator of this story, the apex of the film is precisely when we discover that the Christmas spirit here is also present in the union of individuals, whoever they may be. But what moves the most in the film is Sally's platonic passion (voice of Catherine O'Hara), a kind of monster of Frankenstein who is treated like a daughter by the mad scientist Dr. Finklestein (voice of William Hickey), for Jack. The most sensitive songs are on account of Sally, but the best ones are on account of Boggarts (voice of Ken Page), including the best musical number too, with a backdrop full of fluorescent colors. By the way, the entire art direction of the film is fantastic.

Technical elements aside, the movie's greatest asset is really its brilliant story. Able to please the whole family, the tale of the skeleton who wanted to be Santa Claus for a day takes us back to the famous popular saying that people are what they are born for. In Jack's case, he passes on and renounces his status as the horror king in search of a world he has discovered and idealized and which he thinks is happy in it. And it will be from this new perception that he will look back and value his own universe and his real condition, as well as all of Burton's characters who look for nothing but ways to be happy. And isn't that exactly what we're all looking for? And that we are often blinded by the discoveries we make and only later realize the reality? That would be a good thought for everyone who comes to see the movie. Analogies aside, The Nightmare Before Christmas works very well as entertainment. A great movie that came from the imagination of a great character creator and excellent storyteller.

Visual feast

[rbverhoef · 8/10 · 2 November 2003]

Tim Burton's 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' is one of the nice animated movies not from Disney. It is about Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, who lives in Halloweentown. One day he goes through a door in a tree and arrives in Christmastown and sees how happy and beautiful it is over there. When he is back in Halloweentown he shows his friends what Christmas is like, and he suggests to do Christmas this year instead of Halloween. Things do not go as planned.

Everything is beautifully animated and although the story is not that great it is entertaining the whole way through. I liked all the songs in the movie and there are some good laughs as well. Definitely worth watching.

Superb Gothic animation with a thin plot

[The_Void · 7/10 · 7 November 2004]

Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas is a visually spectacular tour de force of Gothic styles and themes, bound around a simple children's tale. The story follows Jack Skellington, the king of Halloween Town, who one day while walking in the woods stumbles upon Christmas Town; a town where, you guessed it, every day is Christmas. Jack doesn't quite understand the concept of a celebration where nobody is frightened or killed, but he decides to have the celebration in his town regardless. While plotting, he also decides to kidnap Santa and deliver Christmas Town's gifts himself this year...much to the dismay of the local children, who aren't too pleased about receiving the gifts that a skeleton from Halloween Town brings them...

This movie was actually directed by Henry Sellick, but it is obviously Tim Burton's film. His style is rampant throughout the film, and it is clear that this could only have come from his mind. The animation on display here is magnificent; the style is very unique and it blends very well with the Gothic theme. Where the film falls down, however, is on the story side and, more notably, the delivery of the story. The story is very linear; I understand that this film is predominantly aimed at children, but even children's films can be more expansive than this; the film also really should be more expansive as Tim Burton has created a whole world with many unique and interesting characters, yet only a handful are allowed to shine. Burton (and his composer, Elfman) seem far too keen to pack the movie with songs. I have no problem with this, but the songs here are really rather dull. The majority of them have little more than one or two lines that are sung over and over and considering that the film is packed with these songs; it gets old fast and more dialogue would have worked better.

Overall, Nightmare Before Christmas is a nice film. The animation and style are amazing and it has lots of nice moments; but it is let down by a thin story and poor delivery. Horror fans will have fun spotting the tributes, and I don't doubt that many children will love this film, as will many adults; but it could and really should have been a lot better, and I have to say that it left me cold.

Gothic stop-motion masterpiece: an essential holiday film

[TheRetroCritic · 10/10 · 6 November 2023]

An animated Disney production from 1993 directed by Henry Selick (Coraline, Wendell & Wild), The Nightmare Before Christmas follows "Pumpkin King" Jack Skellington's doomed adventures from Halloween Town to Christmas Town and back again.

Based on a story and characters by Tim Burton, the film is a stop-motion animated musical featuring the singing voice of Danny Elfman, who also wrote the score. While it wasn't a huge hit initially, it soon achieved cult classic status and is seen, to this day, as one of the best animated features of all time. Two holidays are cleverly intertwined here as Jack Skellington (voiced by Chris Sarandon), a Halloween hero, grows tired of entertaining his usual ghoulish crowd, delivering the same spooky thrills year after year. When he discovers a place called Christmas Town, he becomes enamored with the entire concept and so decides to... take it for himself.

A loving yet twisted pastiche of classic Rankin/Bass specials, as well as Dr Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas and other classic cartoons, The Nightmare Before Christmas lures you in quick with its delightfully macabre "This Is Halloween" tune and it never lets go as Danny Elfman offers catchy song after catchy song, making the most of each one in his own unique style. This may have been Tim Burton's idea, and it may be Henry Selick's masterpiece, but it is, first and foremost, Elfman's baby: his work here is nothing short of genius and deserved a lot more recognition back in the day. From the lonely "Jack's Lament" to the bombastic "What's This?", the beautiful "Sally's Song", the playful "Making Christmas" and the devilish "Oogie Boogie's Song", the movie never missteps and is singalong-worthy from start to finish.

The animation here is, frankly, incredible. This is stop-motion at its best with every shot carefully composed, Tim Burton's art style perfectly captured and the emotions of all these bizarre characters conveyed with great care. The character design is unique, the settings are appropriately gothic and countless inventive techniques are used here to make the animation flow in harmony with the music. The film looks gorgeous, of course, but it also has a timeless, nostalgic feel that'll make you want to watch it for both aforementioned holidays every single year. We care about these characters, feel for them, and can't wait to see them naively attempt the impossible in true Halloween Town style!

Few animated films manage to get everything right: The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of those rarities. Hugely entertaining, a visual treat, a truly fantastic musical and, despite its frightening look, very very funny, not to mention filled with the magic that many Christmas movies promise but so often fail to materialize. It's one hell of a sleigh ride and viewers of all ages should get a big kick out of it.

Essential holiday romp.

A great achievement but could had been way more entertaining.

[Boba_Fett1138 · 7/10 · 16 October 2005]

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a perfectly professionally made movie with almost flawless looking stop-motion animation. However as entertainment this movie is flawed, due to its simple story and a pace that is a bit too fast for the movie.

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" has some highly fun and amusing characters in it and that also is the strongest thing of the movie. Jack Skellington is a nice and memorable main character but it is the Mayor that mostly steals the show in this movie. The movie is filled with tons of odd looking- and acting monstrous characters. Oogie Boogie is a cool villain but he unfortunately doesn't get an awful lot to do in this movie. The characters are fun but the movie itself isn't halve as much as fun. There are just a few laughs in it and in general the movie is simply too short. Because the movie is so short all of the scene's come and go too fast after each other. The story is told too fast and because of that things aren't always build up nicely or correctly. Because of this there also are some plot holes in the movie. The movie should had been maybe at least 10-15 minutes longer. It makes "The Nightmare Before Christmas" a bit of a movie that is most certainly not bad but has many missed opportunities in it.

Even though the movie isn't directed by Tim Burton himself, it still has 'Tim Burton' written all over it. The visual style and characters are definitely Burton material. There is plenty to enjoy for his fans, in this movie. The music and songs by Danny Elfman are also what gives this movie a 'Burton' kind of feeling and atmosphere. The music by Elfman is good and the songs, even though no Oscar material, are enjoyable and quite memorable as well.

It certainly is a professionally made and good looking movie but the story could had used some more work and the movie should had been longer, to build up the scene's and characters better. It still is an enjoyable movie to watch but it could and should had been way more entertaining.

7/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Wondefull

[gianmarcoronconi · 10/10 · 30 August 2021]

The most beautiful cartoon ever made, a masterpiece in every sense. The film has a wonderful storyline and character. All very disturbing and fun at the same time, with simply wonderful songs and a unique atmosphere.

What does it mean? What does it mean?

[lastliberal-853-253708 · 8/10 · 2 November 2014]

How appropriate that I start holiday viewing with a film that bridges Halloween and Christmas.

Now, I am not a fan of animated films, but this isn't the usually animation you find in Disney films.

It is call stop-motion animation, and it looks very realistic.

Now, Jack Skellington from Halloweentown (voiced by Chris Sarandon and Danny Elfman (the singing), is really getting bored with Halloween - the same thing every year, and he goes walking in the forest and enters the door for Christmastown.

He gets excited about Christmas, and tries to institute it in Halloweentown. Unfortunately, he doesn't understand the concept and it turns out badly. They even kidnap Santa Claus (voiced by Edward Ivory).

And, can you believe they even wove a love story in here.

The film is full of interesting characters, of course, and some really good music. It is a visual feast.

So spooky!

[AnnaPagrati · 10/10 · 1 November 2021]

Such a spooky film, with clues of Christmas! I actually consider this a TRULY Halloween movie, & love to watch it around that time of year! Interesting & festive!

Timeless classic

[NateWatchesCoolMovies · 10/10 · 15 December 2015]

Tim Burton/Henry Selick's The Nightmare Before Christmas is very special in the sense that it can be re-watched and apreciated at both halloween and Christmas, which I always do. It's such a classic that it's catchy songs, distinct characters and boundless imagination have ingrained it into the collective consciousness of pop culture for eternity. It paved the roads of animation with its innovative, eye candy stop motion animation (my favorite style) and lit up the musical genre with its crowd pleasing ballads of pure holiday joy. By now anyone who hasn't seen this and doesn't know the plot really needs to rethink their life choices, but for those few lost souls who haven't seen it, I'll go I'll to the plot a bit, because I love talking about it. In a far off fantasy realm called Halloweentown, the residents toil endlessly all year for their annual festivities. They're a wide variety of whacky creatures, including werewolves, bicycle riding clowns, witches, ghouls sand so many more. A gaunt, spindly gentleman called Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon, with Danny Elfman seamlessly providing his singing voice) is the top dog in Halloweentown, the 'Pumpkin King'. But he yearns for more, and laments the mundane, everyday slog of halloween. On a forest walk he discovers portals to the other holiday realms, and unwittingly tumbles headlong into Christmas Town, with his ghostly dog Zero. We then are treated to one of the most charming sequences in any animated film ever, as he discovers an adorable host of elves, reindeer, snow, and all kinds of brightly lit festive delight that he's never seen before, as he excitedly belts out my favourite number of the piece, 'What's This?'. In his elation, he hatches a plan to kidnap Santa Claus and use him to spruce up his hometown and give it that Christmas cheer for fora change. Of course his scheme backfires in hilarious, poignant ways and he learns along the way. He's joined by Sally the rag doll (Catherine O Hara), and the neurotic Mayor of Halloweentown (Glenn Shadix) as well as a whole impressively designed host of creatures too numerous to name here, some of my favourites being the mischievous Lock, Shock and Barrel, as well as villainous Oogie Boogie. The film is pure magic, with song after song stirring your heart and sticking in your mind long after ft er the credits. This Is Halloween, Making Christmas, The Oogie Boogie song to name a few are pure gold. If there's ever after terrestrial cinematic time capsule fpr generations down the road to unearth among the rubble, this one has top priority for a spot. It's simply magic.

Magic, Tim Burton Style

[jhclues · 10/10 · 21 January 2002]

With the advent of video/DVD, certain movies lend themselves to annual viewing during specific holiday seasons, especially Halloween (It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown'), Thanksgiving (`Home for the Holidays'), and of course, The Big One, Christmas (Insert your own favorites here); specific films that for whatever reason manifest the spirit of their respective times of the year, and they generally match up one season per film. Filmmaker Tim Burton, however, has the distinction of having created a singular film to add to this category, unique in that it is suited equally to both Halloween AND Christmas. And it tops the entire list of the titles of which that can be said; in fact, it IS the list-- there simply are no others. Burton's brainchild, which had a gestation period of many years before at last being realized in 1993 is, indeed, in a category of it's own. It is, of course, `The Nightmare Before Christmas,' directed by Henry Selick.

Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon), the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, can put the scare on like no one else. But after years of doing what he does best-- scaring the wits out of children of all ages, everywhere, every Halloween-- he's bored; depressed, even. There's just no `rush' in it for him anymore. So, after a particularly unfulfilling Allhallow's Eve, Jack wanders off alone into the night to contemplate his circumstance and his future, whereupon he inadvertently stumbles into `Christmas Town,' and discovers something new (`What's this? What's this!')-- a different holiday, as well as the celebration that accompanies it. Most importantly, though, he also discovers his counterpart, the one who is to this holiday what he is to Halloween. `And they call... him... San-Dee CLAWS!' And Jack, his eyes and ears filled with the sights and sounds of Christmas, is more excited than he's been in a long, long while. He doesn't know, yet, what all of this is about, but he's going to find out; and he's already made up his mind: Whatever it is, it's going to be his! Sandee Claws, step aside-- Jack Skellington is here!

Through the magic of stop-motion animation, Burton's vision-- his story and the characters who populate his `nightmare'-- comes vividly to life, the process of which is guided along nicely by director Selick. And what a bunch of characters there are! Besides Jack (who is, without question, the star of the show), there is the two-faced (literally) Mayor (Glenn Shadix); Dr. Finklestein (wonderfully voiced by William Hickey); Lock, Shock and Barrel (Paul Reubens, Catherine O'Hara, Danny Elfman), the unholy trio who work for the dreadful Mr. Oogie Boogie (Ken Page); and, last but not least, gentle and compassionate Sally (Catherine O'Hara), who cares for Jack and so badly wants to help him find whatever it is he's looking for. Intriguing characters for a highly original story, imaginatively drawn and presented with care and an expertise that really makes this one work.

Another element that sells it is the engaging score and original songs by Danny Elfman (who also supplies Jack's singing voice). And Selick uses the music wisely to create an appropriate atmosphere and mood conducive to the storyline. The songs, especially, are haunting, hypnotic, upbeat and theatrical, and combined with the magic of the splendid visual content, helps set the tone for a rich and thoroughly entertaining experience.

The supporting cast includes (the voices of) Ed Ivory (Santa), Susan McBride (Big Witch), Debi Durst (Corpse Kid/Corpse Mother/Small Witch), Greg Proops (Harlequin Demon/Devil/Sax Player), Kerry Katz (Man Under Stairs/Vampire/Corpse Father), Randy Crenshaw (Mr. Hyde/Behemoth/Vampire), Sherwood Ball (Mummy/ Vampire), Carmen Twillie (Undersea Gal/Man Under the Stairs) and Glenn Waters (Wolfman). There's a decidedly dark side to this film that may be disturbing to younger viewers, but for those to whom the monster-in-the-closet no longer appears, `The Nightmare Before Christmas' is good for TWO of your favorite holidays (or actually, for any time of the year, for that matter). Unique, to say the least, this is a fun foray into fantasy that can be enjoyed time and again. The story, the characters, the images, the songs; it's all magic. It is, in fact, the magic of the movies. Tim Burton style. I rate this one 10/10.

A True Tim Burton Film

[bbSouthstreet · 10/10 · 2 August 2001]

I was five years old when I saw this movie and after that the words Tim Burton rang in my ears as one of Hollywood's most eccentric directors. Whenever I hear that a Tim Burton film is coming out I think of The Nightmare Before Christmas and how wonderful it is. The story is very original, the scenery is wonderfully Gothic and the characters and animation is to scream for.

Another thing about this film are the songs. They're so twisted and funny that I can't help but hum, whistle or just sing them word by word and musical note by musical note.

So in conclusion, The Nightmare Before Christmas is what you would get if you were to put the minds of Edgar Allen Poe and Dr. Seuss in a blender. You get a beautifully dark and wildly bizarre film about Santa Claus, dancing skeletons and what goes bump in the night.

A Classic

[Scars_Remain · 10/10 · 2 September 2008]

Henry Selick did an amazing job adapting Tim Burton's original story of this Halloween/Christmas classic. I just bought the new two-disc set and am very happy to own it. I am a very big Tim Burton fan and this is definitely a Burton film so fans will not be let down. Watch it as soon as you can!

The singing is amazing as well as the songs themselves and all of the characters are brilliant. The story is the driving force and easily the best part of the movie but the amazing visuals and stop motion animation would be a very close second. I was blown away by how this film looked as well as everything else.

If you grew up on this film like I did, you owe it to yourself to get the new DVD set. It's like experiencing the film for the first time all over again. Give it a chance!