The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Director: Henry Selick
Stars: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara
Runtime: 76 minutes

Synopsis: Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.

Verdict: Whenever December is around the corner, I promise myself to go on a binge of Christmas movies to get into the holiday spirit... only to end up watching one or two. This year was no exception, and considering the current status of the world, I found it most appropriate to put on the movie whose title best encapsulates it: "The Nightmare Before Christmas".

Now, this is not my first time watching what I thought for a very long time to be a film directed by Tim Burton, though I believe that I've only seen it once a while ago. I was eager to check if it held up to this day, and I'm glad to report that it absolutely does.

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" contains some of the best stop motion animation and character designs I have ever seen on screen. It wonderfully captures the Halloween spooky atmosphere while achieving an impossible task: binding it to the joyful one of Christmas. To me, the answer to the age-old question of whether the film should be enjoyed in October or December is a simple one because I can see myself watching it during both holidays. The setting is clearly made to capture the scariest day of the year, but the intentions behind it promote very jolly themes that can be associated with Santa's season.

Despite Burton's name being in the title, the true MVP of the project has to be Danny Elfman, whose music instantly pulls you into the film's universe. The original songs are what stuck with me most since I had the pleasure of watching it for the first time, and this time was no different. Despite Christmas being just around the corner as I'm writing these words, I can't stop humming the tune to "This Is Halloween", which says a lot about the effectiveness of that soundtrack.

Even though I do believe that some moments could've been developed more and that the CGI doesn't blend well with the stop motion at times, I still had a very good time revisiting Henry Selick's work. It's definitely a film I urge you to check out this holiday season if you're looking for something unconventional to put on.     

FINAL GRADE: 8/10