Critic Reviews
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David Ansen, Newsweek
This cautionary fable (Be True to Your Ghoulish Self) may be a little too twisted for little kids but anyone 8 or older will spot the friendly glint behind jack's empty eye sockets.
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Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
I'm not sure I've ever seen a fantasy film that's at once so visually amazing and so emotionally dead.
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Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
A work of grand visual wit, clever songs, funny gags and genuine pathos, it is perhaps the greatest stop-motion animated film ever, a painstaking style of model animation that computers have all but completely done away with.
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Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine
A fun house of funereal glamour.
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Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
The set designs are ingenious and the songs (music and lyrics by Danny Elfman) are fairly good.
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Todd McCarthy, Variety
The dazzling techniques employed here create a strikinglook that's never been seen in such sustained form, making this a unique curio that will appeal to kids and film enthusiasts alike.
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Luke Goodsell, Empire Magazine Australasia
In the 13 years since it was released to a predictably puzzled family audience, Tim Burton's macabre stop motion musical has wound its way through cult affection (and survived mall-Goth appropriation) to earn its rightful place as a genuine classic.
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Liz Perle, Common Sense Media
Tim Burton magic with just a touch of scariness.
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Josh Larsen, LarsenOnFilm
...endlessly delightful, even as it deals in icky bugs and severed limbs.
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Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
O tom divertidamente sombrio da narrative, associado a uma direção de arte magnífica e à ótima trilha de Elfman, acaba resultando num conto de fadas que deve tanto aos Grimm quanto ao Expressionismo Alemão.
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, Irish Times
The thin story (the denizens of Halloween Town take over Christmas) is overpowered by the deliciousness of the images.
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Edward Havens, FilmJerk.com
Let's hope the next time Disney re-releases this on home video... they will include the 3D version.
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Andrea Chase, Killer Movie Reviews
inspiring, wacky, and infused with Burton's unique romanticism suffused with, but not subsumed by, a gothic sensibility
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Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews
A twisted revamp of Rankin-Bass by way of Edward Gorey. [Blu-ray]
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Kevin Carr, 7M Pictures
a brilliant feat of movie making
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James Plath, Movie Metropolis
Burton says that he was impressed by the Blu-ray version because it 'brings out all the textures and nuances' of the artwork. And it's true. As good as the DVD looked, the Blu-ray captures the fidelity of details even in the murkiest scenes.
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Sal Cinquemani, Slant Magazine
Leave it to Disney to bring a film back to life over and over again just to make a buck. Fortunately, Nightmare Before Christmas is good enough to withstand all of the reanimation.
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Steve Biodrowski, ESplatter
Tim Burton`s skewered sensibility finds excellent expression through the masterful stop-motion of director Henry Selick. The songs and score by Danny Elfman are wonderful; the characters are engaging; the visuals are enthralling.
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Saxon Bullock, Film4
This hugely entertaining horror fable for all the family might suffer from pacing problems, but it's also a true original that still stands out from today's CGI-heavy crowd.
Read all 19 critic reviews
Featured Audience Ratings
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A lot of credit to Danny Elfman for creating such a memorable soundtrack. "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a classic and one of the most iconic films ever made. With Tim Burton's imagination and Henry Selick's fine directing, you're bound to get something… More
A lot of credit to Danny Elfman for creating such a memorable soundtrack. "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a classic and one of the most iconic films ever made. With Tim Burton's imagination and Henry Selick's fine directing, you're bound to get something spectacular. A perfect film to watch on either Halloween or Christmas, but also a great one in general.
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A cult film that deserves its status.
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A ghoulish tale with wicked humour & stunning animation.
Great Movie! Painstakingly and meticulously crafted, "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a beautiful and wonderful film from start to finish. The most famous image of this film is the cover art, which features… More
A ghoulish tale with wicked humour & stunning animation.
Great Movie! Painstakingly and meticulously crafted, "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a beautiful and wonderful film from start to finish. The most famous image of this film is the cover art, which features Skellington eerily silhouetted against a full moon while he stands atop a coiled hill that overlooks a desolate graveyard. Tim Burton seems like the only being on the planet who could come with characters such as the ones found in "The Nightmare Before Christmas." The feature is literally a tale likely to be found in a child's dreams. It creates a world of its own, inhabiting unforgettable characters and events that should be shared with generations. This film is a visual masterpiece; a movie that deserves to be a holiday favorite for some time to come. Go see it!
It is the same routine every year in Halloweentown, on Halloween the monsters come out and perform a real scare. This particular Halloween, the pumpkin king Jack Skellington, bored of the idea, saunters off into the woods with his dog Zero after Halloween night. Upon the break of dawn, he discovers a clearing of trees with different doors representing various holidays. The Christmas Tree door attracts his attention and upon entrance into the world of Christmas, Jack is fascinated with this new idea of Christmas that he must absolutely share with the citizens of Halloweentown.
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The animation is absolutely brilliant and the songs are excellent. Its my favorite christmas film of all time.
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The problem with this is that it's both a Christmas film and a Halloween film and that doesn't really work. At Halloween it's too early to be thinking about Christmas but at Christmas it's too late to be thinking about Halloween and you just want pure Christmas. It… More
The problem with this is that it's both a Christmas film and a Halloween film and that doesn't really work. At Halloween it's too early to be thinking about Christmas but at Christmas it's too late to be thinking about Halloween and you just want pure Christmas. It is a good film with a good story and morals but it just didn't work for me.
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I remember seeing this in the theater as a kid. The main thing I remember is it's the first movie I saw with my mom where she fell asleep. I didn't think it was all that great at the time. However, time has been good to this movie. It's pretty much a cult classic… More
I remember seeing this in the theater as a kid. The main thing I remember is it's the first movie I saw with my mom where she fell asleep. I didn't think it was all that great at the time. However, time has been good to this movie. It's pretty much a cult classic now(hell my brother Matt has all kinds of merchandise). When I got a 3D TV, I knew I would wanna get this on 3D Blu Ray. In 3D, this is a whole new experience. The animation bursts off the screen, especially the Boogie Mans song scene. If you haven't seen it, the story is about Jack the Skeleton, the pumpkin king of Halloweentown. One day in the woods he stumbles through a door into Christmas town. He falls in love with Christmas and wants to have Christmas apart of Halloweentown, and things get crazy from there. By far, one of the weirdest, oddest animated movies ever. But, it is highly creative, imaginative, and a true one of a kind film. May not be a real Christmas classic, but it does hold up well, and the songs are catchy as hell. Re-watching this after all these years was like revisiting an old friend.
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I wish i knew why every girl i have dated (which i admit is not a big number) has been obsessed with this movie. i have the same kind of fascination watching my father with his hunting knife, waiting for the opportunity to use an Arby's coupon so he can viciously rip it away from… More
I wish i knew why every girl i have dated (which i admit is not a big number) has been obsessed with this movie. i have the same kind of fascination watching my father with his hunting knife, waiting for the opportunity to use an Arby's coupon so he can viciously rip it away from the other coupons with his knife. it brings simple joy to his face so i laugh and nod and shut the hell up and eat my beef n' cheddar.
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A Nightmare Before Chritmas is the one of the greatest films ever, the best mixture of two holidays ever, and one of the best animated films ever. The plot is a masterpiece, it takes two holidays and perfectly mixes them to be a creepy Christmas film. The voice acting was great, and… More
A Nightmare Before Chritmas is the one of the greatest films ever, the best mixture of two holidays ever, and one of the best animated films ever. The plot is a masterpiece, it takes two holidays and perfectly mixes them to be a creepy Christmas film. The voice acting was great, and Danny Elfman had a beautiful singing voice. This animation may be old, but every time I see it I just can't believr how perfect it is. The music is the highlight of the film, this is probably the best musical in the history of film, I loved it so much. This movie is beautiful, touching, and in my opinion, perfect in every way a movie can be.
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I LOVE Tim Burton's work, I'm his greatest fan, this movie is fantastic, so imaginative and dark, a truely gothic fairytale dream come to life. There is nothing much more to say here, its a near perfect film in every aspect and every field.
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The Nightmare Before Christmas is one terrific, flawless film. This is definitely a great film to watch either on Halloween or Christmas. The film will appeal to adults and children alike. The film has stunning animation, a great story and a great cast to voice the characters.… More
The Nightmare Before Christmas is one terrific, flawless film. This is definitely a great film to watch either on Halloween or Christmas. The film will appeal to adults and children alike. The film has stunning animation, a great story and a great cast to voice the characters. Producer Tim Burton along with director Henry Selick delivers one of the most memorable animated features in the cinematic medium. The film is wonderful, entertaining and lots of fun. This film remains a classic as it is just as groundbreaking as the first Toy Story was two years later. A Nightmare Before Christmas is a great film to watch again and again, and you admire the effort that went into such a film. As far as stop motion is concerned, this film is one of the best. Among the voice cast is Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon and Paul Reubens to name a few. This is a well done film that just astounds you with every viewing. I remember watching this film for the first time, and I was blown away. A Nightmare Before Christmas is really a benchmark in film because the effects used in this film helped develop and advance CGI elements in films. A Nightmare Before Christmas is really a film that can either be viewed during the halloween season or Christmas season, it has a few minimal horror elements thrown in, and that's what makes this film so special too, the creative use of two seasons into one film, and the filmmakers are able to pull off something very memorable, creative and effective at delivering a rich, and amusing and above all stunning film that will appeal to the entire family and people of all ages. A superb film and a childhood favorite. A definite must see.
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JUST BARELY watched this movie after all these years! I now understand why people go so crazy for The Nightmare Before Christmas. Genius work all around.
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THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS was an interesting idea for a family/horror/musical blend, but especially for a Tim Burton film, it wasn't really achieved all that well. Sure, this was a cute one, and it was definitely enjoyable; it just, looking at it from a critical… More
THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS was an interesting idea for a family/horror/musical blend, but especially for a Tim Burton film, it wasn't really achieved all that well. Sure, this was a cute one, and it was definitely enjoyable; it just, looking at it from a critical perspective, was not the best movie.
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Mayor: Jack, please, I'm only an elected official here, I can't make decisions by myself!
The Nightmare Before Christmas was my favorite movie growing up. The fact that it's my favorite children's movie ever will probably never change. I just can't see… More
Mayor: Jack, please, I'm only an elected official here, I can't make decisions by myself!
The Nightmare Before Christmas was my favorite movie growing up. The fact that it's my favorite children's movie ever will probably never change. I just can't see anything topping the brilliance of this. The film looks great and sounds great. The songs are all amazing, with my favorite being, "This is Halloween." Danny Elfman did an amazing job with the score and songs. It's definitely among his best and he always does a terrific job.
The stop motion animation is flawless and looks so good. The scenery is creative and breathtaking. And the creatures are done to perfection. The amount of creativity put into Nightmare is absolutely ridiculous and everyone who had a hand in making it should be commended for it. Honestly I think I like this more now than when I was a kid.
Oogie Boogie Man: I am the shadow on the moon at night / Filling your dreams to the brim with fright.
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Nothing I can say that hasn't been said.
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My absolute favourite movie from my childhood, one of the movies that made me love Tim Burton and Danny Elfman, and overall a huge influence on my life, I think. I still watch this movie at least once a year. The plot seems simple on the surface, but this isn't an ordinary… More
My absolute favourite movie from my childhood, one of the movies that made me love Tim Burton and Danny Elfman, and overall a huge influence on my life, I think. I still watch this movie at least once a year. The plot seems simple on the surface, but this isn't an ordinary Disney flick, it's dark and scary and emotional. The songs are brilliant, the clay animation is uniquely Burton, yet influenced by the old gothic and expressionistic horror films, and it's just plain fun for both kids and adults. I highly recommend this movie, I love it so.
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Pure Burton. Bursting with imagination with some real heart to boot. Full review later.
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A fantastic musical. The songs are absolutely wonderful with an artsy flair and melancholy that shines!
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This has got to be one of the most creative stories ever. Magnificently done, though I doubt few truly appreciate the amount of work and effort that went into it.
AC rating: Between Danny Elfman and Henry Selick, Tim Burton didn't get much in, but it was still interesting to hear… More
This has got to be one of the most creative stories ever. Magnificently done, though I doubt few truly appreciate the amount of work and effort that went into it.
AC rating: Between Danny Elfman and Henry Selick, Tim Burton didn't get much in, but it was still interesting to hear their points of view and their involvement in Tim's original vision.
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the most magical film ever created by the mind of tim burton. It truly captures your imagination, you feel magic, wonder, and fear while watching it and you come back to the real world satisfied at the end truly one of the best
Read all 20 featured audience ratings
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