The Nightmare Before Christmas (DVD, 2000)

The Nightmare before Christmas is one of my favorite pieces of animation. It is a charming story about Jack the Pumpkin King and resident of Halloween Town who is sick the day to day drudgery of creating Halloween. One day he wanders off and finds a doorway to Christmas Town. He enters the door and finds himself hip deep in snow and good cheer. He is amazed at this new holiday and decides that a great way to break out of his funk is to kidnap the guy most responsible for Christmas and take over his holiday for him. While Jacks heart is in the right place, the residents of Halloween Town have a tough time adapting to Christmas. Severed heads and man eating gift boxes are not what Jack had in mind.



The film is in widescreen format and the picture transfer is very good. It's presented in the original theatrical aspect ratio. The video transfer really captures the detail in the set design and the colors. Halloween town has dark and eerie blacks, browns and grays, back light by pale oranges and blood reds. Christmas town is filled with bright blues, reds and greens set against red brick houses and white snow. The colors are rich and warm. The sound is offered in Dolby Digital and DTS formats. Both transfers are nice. Since it’s a musical the main aspects I focused on were the songs. The vocals are sharp and stand out above the music. For the most part they sound great but at times the vocals overpower the music in the song. There is a director's commentary that runs through the film. There are some great pieces of info on how they did certain scenes and where ideas came from, but a lot of it is also covered in the making of feature and for me the feature is a lot more interesting.

The DVDs making of video is fantastic. It takes you through every aspect of the making of the film. There is a lot of great information about the set design and what influenced the look of the film. It looks at how the models were made and what went in to making them move and how certain tracking shots, a first for in stop motion animation history, were filmed. This is a true making of feature, not a slick five-minute promotional piece, on how the film was made. Fans of this movie will definitely want to see this. Folks who do not know how the film was animated will be amazed on how the characters were brought to life. If this does not give you a new appreciation of this movie when you are watching it, I do not know what will!

The disc has a lot of deleted scenes and storyboards that are ok. If you're not a hard core fan of the film then you could probably live with out seeing them. One deleted sequence had the identity of Oogie Boogie turn out to be one of the characters we have been introduced to before. Better than the deleted scenes are the movement tests of Jack, Sally and Zero. They were made to show the Disney execs how the characters could use movement to show emotion. There is a slew of concept art and storyboards to sift through, and the disc contains the teaser and the trailer.

In short, fans of the film and of Tim Burton will consider this a must have disc. If you are animation buff and want to get a good behind the scenes look at the film this is for you. If you have some little ones and are looking for an off beat movie to get them or something for the holidays, this is the perfect film for them.

Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” is not your grandma’s holiday film (unless you have a really cool grandma).
The story centers around Jack Skellington, a well respected citizen of Halloween-town who stumbles into Christmas-town by accident and becomes smitten with all that is Christmas.
He brings his newfound knowledge back to his fellow citizens who promptly devise a plot to kidnap Santa, feed him to the oogey boogie man and take over the Christmas holiday.
The film was shot in stop-action animation, meaning the characters and props were moved frame by frame, which really brings the characters to life. The towns and their inhabitants are intricately detailed and make for an easy escape into the story.
In the end, Jack realizes the error of his ways and after a few tense moments he is successful in rescuing Santa from the oogey boogey man and viewers experience the only conventional aspect of this film—a happy ending.
“The Nightmare Before Christmas” is rated PG and although some have argued that it may be too scary for young children, my two little ones love it. This surprisingly heart-warming tale is good for the entire family. It is original, expertly animated, imaginative and fun. And that is why it is my all-time favorite holiday film.

I had been a long fan of Burton's work and felt it was time to introduce my daughters to him. After peering through my collection, I selected this charming tale to see if they would be bit by the Burton bug. To my plesant surprise, they caught Burton fever.

The plot for this gem of a film is simple: Jack Skellington is the king of Halloweentown is the Pumpking King and the genius behind Halloween. Each year, he works with the residents of Halloween town to make it scarier and scarier. However, Jack is bored and feels that something is missing in his dreary life. By chance, he stumbles upon Christmas town and discovers the joyful and happy holiday of Christmas. After experiencing such a wonderful holiday, Jack hatches a plan: he'll kidnap Santa Claus and become the new king of Christmas Town. Unfortunately, the results are a little twisted...

This is a great film full of wonderful chracters and songs. My daughters really enjoyed the dark nature of the film and felt it was "a good scare" at times. Even I sit and watch the film with them through repeated viewings. I often find myself sympathizing with Jack and wondering if there is something more out there.

Grab this film if you are tired of Charlie Brown's Christmas and need something with a bit of bounce. However, beware the some children may be frightened by the images in this film.

Tim Burton draws attention to any of his work - people tend to love him or hate him... but with the Nightmare Before Christmas, Tim Burton has created a visually stunning masterpiece. The Nightmare before Christmas is a stop-motion animated movie following Pumpkin King Jack Skellington (Love the name!!) who chases what he thinks will be the finer life in Santa Claus's land. But Jack Skellington struggles to leave his world - Halloween!

The beauty of The Nightmare Before Christmas is that its beautifuly created and assembled. In fact, it was nominated for an Academy Award. This is the predecessor to Tim Burton's 2005 release the Corpse Bride. The Nightmare Before Christmas is a must have DVD as, with each watch, you will find new and special scenes and moments.

This movie was, as a Tim Burton film (notably unique and entertaining with all his works) comprised of stop-animation (unique to its time of release, as well, outdated perhaps but very cool) reminiscent of our childhoods, destined to become a classic from the point of release. To this day, Hot Topic and other specialty apparel and accessory stores still capitalize on Nightmare-themed items. The storyline is engaging, the music is really quite good and very memorable. The love element, much like the whole storyline (a charactaristic of any Nurton movie) is delightfully offbeat but still sweet. the two main protagonists are Jack the Pumpkin King and Sally, a demure rag doll. No doubt anyone who has been out from under a rock for a few years or into a Hot Topic store is familiar with the visages of these two: ghastly enough to be Halloween-y but endearing enough not to frighten younger viewers, who also flock to this film, and for whom it was designed. I myself first saw it as a child, but most of the other children I know who watched it as wel mhave grown up like me--appreciating it even more. Definitely, this movie became a classic--albeit in something of a cult one, much like the Dark Crystal or Labyrinth or Better Off Dead. Although I think I can safely say that this movie has a broader and more numerous follwing. Parents can rest assured that they are getting a wacky, funny movie disguised as a scary one that their kids will love their whole lives, and that they themselves will enjoy watching with them. (And hiding when it's time for the kids to move out. That's right Ma, I'm still looking for it!) Happy viewing--you won't be disappointed!