The Nightmare Before Christmas is a film that I have a strange relationship with, because I absolutely adore it and watch it annually on November 1st, in fact it’s actually something I look forward to more than watching my usual horror films over the October period. It’s a household staple for me and a film that is perfect on so many levels…but the plot drives me up the bloody wall and is probably one of the worst stories I’ve ever seen in a good film.
Set in the fantasy land of Halloween Town, Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, has grown tired of the yearly Halloween rituals. The residents of Halloween Town look to Jack for inspiration every year as he is in charge of planning the Halloween festivities, but after questioning whether there is more to life than the same old routine, he finds himself in Christmas Town.
Fascinated by what he finds there, Jack wants to bring the spirit of Christmas Town to the residents of Halloween Town. But no matter how hard he tries he and the townspeople simply cannot grasp the cute and cuddly nature of Christmas, and once Santa is kidnapped as per Jack’s request Christmas is in danger of being cancelled completely!
The premise is great, and it starts off really well but what ultimately makes The Nightmare Before Christmas suffer the most is its painfully short runtime. Clocking in at just 76 minutes the film spends almost half the film establishing the world and central character, then the rest of the plot is crammed into just over half an hour of film and it’s painfully rushed in places. Whilst Jack is a great character that gets plenty of screentime and development; all of the secondary characters, and everyone’s relationships to each other, are horrendously underdeveloped.
For example, Sally is established as the love interest, yet Jack only says a couple of lines to her prior to the ending where the two get together and neither conversation has either character insinuating that they have feelings for the other. In fact, Jack shows no signs of anything other than determination to get this Christmas thing done over the whole film, let alone express feelings of love towards Sally. Then the main villain of the story, Oogie Boogie, doesn’t even show up until the final act of the story! His goals and desires are never expressed explicitly, it’s kind of implied by Lock, Shock, and Barrel (Oogie’s minions) that he wants to take Jack’s position as Pumpkin King, but how torturing Santa and Sally factor into that plan (which is the only thing he does in the whole film) remains to be seen.
Set in the fantasy land of Halloween Town, Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, has grown tired of the yearly Halloween rituals. The residents of Halloween Town look to Jack for inspiration every year as he is in charge of planning the Halloween festivities, but after questioning whether there is more to life than the same old routine, he finds himself in Christmas Town.
Fascinated by what he finds there, Jack wants to bring the spirit of Christmas Town to the residents of Halloween Town. But no matter how hard he tries he and the townspeople simply cannot grasp the cute and cuddly nature of Christmas, and once Santa is kidnapped as per Jack’s request Christmas is in danger of being cancelled completely!
The premise is great, and it starts off really well but what ultimately makes The Nightmare Before Christmas suffer the most is its painfully short runtime. Clocking in at just 76 minutes the film spends almost half the film establishing the world and central character, then the rest of the plot is crammed into just over half an hour of film and it’s painfully rushed in places. Whilst Jack is a great character that gets plenty of screentime and development; all of the secondary characters, and everyone’s relationships to each other, are horrendously underdeveloped.
For example, Sally is established as the love interest, yet Jack only says a couple of lines to her prior to the ending where the two get together and neither conversation has either character insinuating that they have feelings for the other. In fact, Jack shows no signs of anything other than determination to get this Christmas thing done over the whole film, let alone express feelings of love towards Sally. Then the main villain of the story, Oogie Boogie, doesn’t even show up until the final act of the story! His goals and desires are never expressed explicitly, it’s kind of implied by Lock, Shock, and Barrel (Oogie’s minions) that he wants to take Jack’s position as Pumpkin King, but how torturing Santa and Sally factor into that plan (which is the only thing he does in the whole film) remains to be seen.
My criticisms aside, every other aspect of The Nightmare Before Christmas is incredible. The combination of stop motion Claymation and hand drawn 2D animation is gorgeous and timeless. The film is over twenty years old now and it has not visibly aged a day. The art style too is so inspiring, though it lifts iconic imagery and designs from both Halloween and Christmas, it presents them in a way that feels entirely fresh and unique to the film, even to this day nothing has captured the mood of a town at Halloween or Christmas so perfectly than this film. The fantastic art style combined with some gorgeous cinematography presents a film that is truly a feast for the eyes. The most memorably beautiful scene is perhaps one early on where Jack wanders through a cemetery, silhouetted by moonlight as the camera dances around gravestones and the environment shifts to Jacks movements.
Add to that the classic songs that I am proud to say I will happily belt out at any time of the year, unprompted too. It is one of the best family musicals around with lyrics that are instantly memorable and songs that can apply to both holidays perfectly well. On top of this the films score is equally superb and are just as memorable as the songs.
The performances from the cast are incredible. Chris Sarandon steals the show as Jack which he truly brings to life. But Glenn Shadix as the mayor of Halloween Town definitely gives him a run for his money and is arguably my favourite character in the whole film with his two personalities.
The Nightmare Before Christmas’ greatest enemy is its limited runtime, hardly able to call itself a feature film with a paltry runtime such as what it has, the film desperately needs to be longer to achieve even the most fundamental aspects of storytelling. Beyond that though The Nightmare Before Christmas is a film that the entire family can enjoy and with its gorgeous visuals and catchy songs is likely to be a firm holiday favourite with people of every age. If you’ve yet to experience it, it is an essential film that regardless of its story faults is timelessly enjoyable.
Add to that the classic songs that I am proud to say I will happily belt out at any time of the year, unprompted too. It is one of the best family musicals around with lyrics that are instantly memorable and songs that can apply to both holidays perfectly well. On top of this the films score is equally superb and are just as memorable as the songs.
The performances from the cast are incredible. Chris Sarandon steals the show as Jack which he truly brings to life. But Glenn Shadix as the mayor of Halloween Town definitely gives him a run for his money and is arguably my favourite character in the whole film with his two personalities.
The Nightmare Before Christmas’ greatest enemy is its limited runtime, hardly able to call itself a feature film with a paltry runtime such as what it has, the film desperately needs to be longer to achieve even the most fundamental aspects of storytelling. Beyond that though The Nightmare Before Christmas is a film that the entire family can enjoy and with its gorgeous visuals and catchy songs is likely to be a firm holiday favourite with people of every age. If you’ve yet to experience it, it is an essential film that regardless of its story faults is timelessly enjoyable.