For three decades, Jack Skellington has captivated not only Santa Claus on the screens of every Christmas-obsessed movie-goer, but also the hearts of generations. Tim Burton’s Christmas assassination has lost nothing of its value over the years and has become a timeless cult film.
Filmed using stop motion, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” took three years to shoot and polish to perfection. Thanks to the meticulous work and the ingeniously designed puppets, it is clear that the film’s greatest strength is its visuals, but the story itself is also very unique. Halloween Town’s main scarecrow, Jack Skellington, is experiencing intense burnout from his constant, boring scary job, and as he’s moping through the woods, he finds the secret passage to Christmas Town. It makes sense that no one here lives to scare the life out of others, but works to bring the most wonderful Christmas to homes. The head of the party is Santa Claus himself, whose work Jack envies and decides to take on the role of the old gift-giver. To do this, of course, he must first organize the kidnapping, and with Santa out of the picture, chaos ensues.
After the visuals and story, we can’t help but notice Danny Elfman’s catchy theme songs, of which there are plenty, and which almost make us feel like we’re watching an animated musical, and one of a better quality. And you have to be really headstrong to get the songs “Making Christmas” or “Kidnap the Sandy Claws” out of your head after the film….
The Nightmare Before Christmas” is a timeless work that, while it may at first glance seem like a fairy tale, can be entertaining for practically anyone aged 10-99 who is a buyer for the unmistakable dark charm of Burton’s fantasy world.