The Nightmare Before Christmas

"Nice Work Bone Daddy"

This movie was the inspiration for this blog. Its style, animation, and originally is unmatched by any Disney film to date. Usually, I stick to Princess films in the Disney genre, but this one sticks out to me. The story, animation, music, and style of The Nightmare Before Christmas all make this movie a must see Disney film and my favorite stop-motion film of all-time. This review contains spoilers.

 

The Story of The Nightmare Before Christmas is centered around a skeleton named Jack who is tired of the same old holiday year after year. Upon his discovery of Christmas, he decides to take over the holiday and "improve" it. He does this by recruiting 3 trick-or-treaters, Lock, Shock, and Barrel, to kidnap who they call "Sandy Claws." The 3 kids then take Santa to Oogie Boogie, the Boogieman. The whole town of Halloween Town helps him by essentially Halloween-izing Christmas except for Sally, a rag doll created by Doctor Finklestein, who feels that it will end in tragedy. In a sub-plot to the main story, Sally has a crush on Jack that she feels is "not meant to be." The story is quite imaginative especially for a Disney film, and most of the characters are well-developed.

The animation in this film is unbelievable. If it was made today, it would have certainly have been CG. Everything in this film has texture. It makes you feel like you can touch these things. The sets are elaborate, creative, and above all extremely detailed. Oogie Boogie, to name one example, looks like a burlap bag. The texture of his bag makes him look almost 3-D. The stop-motion animation of this film gives it a surreal quality that makes the film seem even more bizarre. 

The music is catchy and well-written. Sally's Song is in my opinion the most honest crush song of all-time. If you have ever had a crush, you know what Sally is singing about. I still consider Poor Jack and Jack's lament as some of the best Disney moments of all-time. My favorite songs in the film stem from the feelings of the characters; however, my least favorite songs are plot driven. Songs like Jack's Obsession and Kidnap the Sandy Claws are good, but they do not have the impact of Sally's Song and Jack's Lament.

The style of this film is what I enjoy most about it. Halloween Town is dark and odd. Pumpkins, stone, and oblong structures are everywhere. However, Christmas Town is bright, colorful and looks like a town out of a children's book. The motifs of The Nightmare Before Christmas include Santa's hat, Sally's body parts, and masks. Santa's hat represents Christmas. When Jack has the hat he has control of Christmas. When he goes to rescue Santa, He brings him his hat which represents Jack giving back Christmas. Sally's body parts represent escape because when she separates them she is trying to get away of rescue someone. Masks represent hiding in The Nightmare Before Christmas. When Lock, Shock, and Barrel where their masks they are trying to convey themselves as innocents. When they take them off, they all act mischievous. A clown in Halloween Town also wears a mask that reveals nothing. This could symbolize how some people try to hide their emptiness through a happy facade. Speaking of symbols, the mayor of Halloween Town has two faces which could symbolize the two-faced nature of politicians.The themes in this film are also new and good themes. Jack ultimately fails, yet he finds that he can learn from his failure which is important lesson to learn at any age. Another theme is the spirit of Christmas. Jack "knows the stories and knows the rhymes" of Christmas, yet he cannot comprehend the meaning of Christmas. This could be likened to corporations "knowing Christmas" by materializing it. The character of Sally does have to be rescued, but that does NOT make her a damsel in distress. Sally does what she wants to when she wants to. She repeatedly escapes from Doctor Finkelstein and is portrayed as the smartest citizen in Halloween Town by knowing it will end in disaster.

Many people wonder if this is a Christmas or a Halloween film. Honestly, I think it's just a film that could be watched at any time of the year. Yes, there is enough Halloween and Christmas imagery to be considered either, but there is not enough of either to keep me from watching it year round.