The Nightmare Before Christmas arrives on screen as a stop-motion feature from Tim Burton and Henry Selick, and it holds up as one of the best animated films ever made. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, who grows tired of the same old scares and sets out to bring Christmas to his world instead. The film’s score, lyrics and animation combine into a full package that still feels fresh decades later.
Trailer, via Disney Plus.
Jack Skellington’s Plan
Jack is a skeleton with a heart shaped like a pumpkin, voiced by Chris Sarandon. He loves Halloween, but he finds it dull after years of the same tricks and treats. He wanders into a forest and stumbles upon a portal to Christmas Town, where snow falls and children sing about gifts. Enchanted by what he sees, he returns to his own town and decides to bring Christmas back to Halloween Town.
He gathers a team of monsters to help him plan the holiday. Sally, voiced by Catherine O’Hara, tries to warn Jack that Christmas is not what he thinks it is. The whole scheme goes wrong fast, and Jack ends up taking Santa Claus prisoner and nearly destroying both holidays in the process.
Danny Elfman’s Music
Danny Elfman wrote the songs and the score for the film, and his work carries the movie from start to finish. The songs are clever, funny and often dark, with lines that land harder than they look at first glance. Elfman’s music mixes orchestral sound with a rock edge, giving the film a tone that suits both Halloween and Christmas at once.
The opening song, “This Is Halloween,” sets the mood immediately. It’s a jaunty march that turns into a warning, and it tells you everything you need to know about the world you’re entering. The film’s final song, “For the First Time in Forever,” is a reinvention of a classic Christmas tune, sung by Jack as he tries to make the holiday fit his own town.
Animation and Design
The stop-motion technique used here means every frame was built by hand, with models moved slightly and photographed to create motion. The attention to detail is everywhere you look. The characters’ movements are expressive, the settings are rich with color and texture, and the scenes flow with a sense of weight and scale that computer animation rarely matches.
Henry Selick directed the film with a clear eye for composition and timing. The camera moves through the streets of Halloween Town and Christmas Town with a confidence that shows the care behind each shot. The lighting changes from foggy orange to bright white, and the transitions between the two worlds are handled with a smoothness that suggests a real director’s hand at work.
Key Songs and Scenes
- “This Is Halloween” opens the film with a statement of purpose.
- “What’s This?” is Jack’s first reaction to Christmas, and it’s one of the funniest moments in the film.
- “Sally’s Song” gives Catherine O’Hara a chance to shine as a character who warns Jack about the dangers of his plan.
- “City of Light, City of Night” is a slow, romantic song that sets up the film’s central conflict.
- “For the First Time in Forever” closes the film with a twist on a familiar Christmas melody.
Running Order
| Scene | Time |
|---|---|
| Opening credits | 2:00 |
| “This Is Halloween” | 3:00 |
| Jack discovers Christmas Town | 6:00 |
| Sally warns Jack | 10:00 |
| “What’s This?” | 12:00 |
| Jack takes over Christmas planning | 15:00 |
| Oogie Boogie’s arrival | 18:00 |
| Jack takes Santa prisoner | 20:00 |
| Final confrontation | 22:00 |
| “For the First Time in Forever” | 24:00 |
The film runs roughly 76 minutes, and almost every second of it earns its place.
The Nightmare Before Christmas is a rare case where the film’s themes of identity and belonging feel just as sharp today as they did in 1993. Jack’s mistake is simple: he wants to change what he is, but he doesn’t understand what he’s changing it into. Sally tries to explain the difference, but Jack won’t listen until it’s too late.
The film also works as pure entertainment. The songs are catchier than most Christmas carols, and the animation holds up as some of the finest stop-motion ever put on screen. It’s a film that rewards repeated viewings, since each scene contains details you missed the first time.
It’s not perfect. Some of the jokes fall flat, and the pacing drags in the middle stretch. But the film’s strengths far outweigh its weaknesses, and it remains a landmark in animated storytelling.
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