The old classic - The Nightmare Before Christmas. A much-loved musical fantasy film, the piece centres on Jack Skellington (aka The Pumpkin King) who resides in a world which is constantly in the essence of ‘Halloween.’ Directed by Henry Selick and co-written/produced by Tim Burton, the film centres on Jack's growing boredom of the constant traditions and celebrations he endures. One evening, Jack ventures into a forest where he discovers a portal to another land – ‘Christmas Town’ – and that’s when the trouble starts. As often as ever, there is an air of romance to the tale with the introduction of Sally, a rag doll woman who takes a great interest in Jack and his well being, even if he doesn't. Obviously, change in a land that has been consistently scary doesn't bode well for long – cue usurpation of Santa, dramatic encounters with the oogie boogie man and three very irritating children.
The film’s plot is easy enough to understand, but as always, it’s the characters themselves that drive the narrative and make it rather heart warming and disturbing to watch at the same time (especially as a young child.) It’s certainly a film which can holds the most memories and personal attachment to it, as some people remember watching it many times when they were younger, so it can possess a certain air of nostalgia.
The film’s plot is easy enough to understand, but as always, it’s the characters themselves that drive the narrative and make it rather heart warming and disturbing to watch at the same time (especially as a young child.) It’s certainly a film which can holds the most memories and personal attachment to it, as some people remember watching it many times when they were younger, so it can possess a certain air of nostalgia.
It’s certainly easy to appreciate a work of such consideration and time (stop motion takes a considerable amount of effort) which in turn sets it apart from just any other festive based tale; creating wonderful visuals that you just don’t get from any other collaborative producer. The visuals are enchanting and have the ability to entrance an audience, taking them to new worlds within the film and demonstrating the level of imagination behind the production. Furthermore, this showcases the purpose of cinema rather eloquently – to delight and captivate viewers, taking them away from the every day and providing multi-generational entertainment. No matter how many times you watch, the attraction is still there, the wonder is still there, and nowadays, there are very few films which can produce such a positive effect from people in the same way.
Additionally, the film incorporates possibly a fair few of the greatest movie based songs (personal thanks to Danny Elfman for a wonderfully whimsical and intricate musical score) in the form of ‘Sally’s song.’ Keeping in align with the themes of the film, the ‘song’ is decidedly eerie, memorable and thought provokingly sentimental – (everything you could possibly want from a rag doll girl singing about her affection for a skeleton.) ‘This is Halloween’ manages to garner a similar effect and I’m sure if you were to ask anyone who has seen the film they would eagerly recite to you, in perfect unison, all of the lines and verses in a mixture of voices to match each character. There is no denying that the film has a universal appeal to it and its songs are distinctive and easily remembered by all.
Moreover, it’s certainly not a stretch or would be unreasonable to say that the film has a certain legacy and cult/character obsessions behind it, and after all, the characters are key and people enjoy the humour and the opportunity to idolise their favourite characters, whom they might identify easily with.
Once you watch it, you won't be able to forget it, which make the regular features Disney has in its re-runs and theme park segments justly so; since its release, The Nightmare Before Christmas has made it onto several lists of the big Christmas movies of all time – and unlike some, its success is deserved, the film deserves to be remembered by those who have watched it and have been entertained. Rightly so, the decision to not make a sequel are appropriate (Burton himself has said that he ‘felt that the movie had a purity to it and that people liked it’) and that is sometimes an uncommon practice in cinema to leave things alone that have arguably, already been perfected, which in turn is a testament to its tale that it has been respected.
Regardless of the amount of input of the individuals who banded together to produce this piece of work, it is highly distinctive and recognisable in it use of colours and tone, its representation of its characters and landscapes and is something that rightly deserves to continue appealing to, enlightening and entertaining generations to come.
After all, boys and girls...wouldn't you like to see something strange?
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