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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
29 October 1993 (USA) moreTagline:
Tim Burton's classic returns in 3-D so real, it's scary. morePlot:
Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 6 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(53 articles)
Uncle Creepy's Blu Christmas Buyer's Guide (From Dread Central. 1 December 2008, 3:33 PM, PST)
tMF Featured Trailer: Henry Selick's Coraline!
(From The Movie Fanatic. 26 November 2008, 12:16 AM, PST)
User Comments:
One of the best films of 1993, highly re-watchable moreUS Showtimes:
(register to personalize)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Danny Elfman | ... | Jack Skellington (singing) / Barrel / Clown with the Tear away Face (voice) |
 | Chris Sarandon | ... | Jack Skellington (voice) |
 | Catherine O'Hara | ... | Sally / Shock (voice) |
 | William Hickey | ... | Dr. Finkelstein (voice) |
| Glenn Shadix | ... | Mayor (voice) |
 | Paul Reubens | ... | Lock (voice) |
| Ken Page | ... | Oogie Boogie (voice) |
| Edward Ivory | ... | Santa (voice) |
| Susan McBride | ... | Big Witch, W.W.D. (voice) |
| Debi Durst | ... | Corpse Kid, Corpse Mom, Small Witch (voice) |
 | Greg Proops | ... | Harlequin Demon, Devil, Sax Player (voice) (as Gregory Proops) |
| Kerry Katz | ... | Man Under the Stairs, Vampire, Corpse Dad (voice) |
| Randy Crenshaw | ... | Mr. Hyde, Behemoth, Vampire (voice) |
| Sherwood Ball | ... | Mummy, Vampire (voice) |
 | Carmen Twillie | ... | Undersea Gal, Creature Under the Bed (voice) |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA) (complete title)Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas in Disney Digital 3-D (USA) (promotional title)
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MPAA:
Rated PG for some scary images.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
76 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Dolby DigitalCertification:
Portugal:M/6 | Brazil:Livre | Netherlands:AL | Iceland:L | Spain:7 | Ireland:PG | South Korea:All (re-rating) (2006) | Hong Kong:IIA | South Korea:12 (original rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-10/7 | Germany:6 | Iceland:LH (video rating) | Iceland:L (original rating) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PGFilming Locations:
San Francisco, California, USAMOVIEmeter: 
70% since last week
why?
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The cat from Tim Burton's first film, Vincent (1982) is present in the beginning of the film. It's the cat that jumps onto the garbage can. moreGoofs:
Continuity: When Sally makes a basket of food for Jack she pushes the cork all the way into the bottle. When Jack opens it the cork is sticking out. moreQuotes:
[first lines]Santa: 'Twas a long time ago, longer now than it seems in a place perhaps you've seen in your dreams. For the story you're about to be told began with the holiday worlds of auld. Now you've probably wondered where holidays come from. If you haven't I'd say it's time you begun.
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Soundtrack:
DECK THE HALLS moreFAQ
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I was a kid when I first saw Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, but I wasn't scared by it in the slightest - this world is one entirely of the imagination, and in a sense saying that the film is scary for younger children is something of a compliment. 'Nightmare' is both a horror film and a musical, and fantasy and a suspense film, and like most Burton effort, comedy is thrown in at just the right moments.
With Henry Selick as director and Michael McDowell & Caroline Thompson as the screenwriters, Burton has fashioned the worlds of Halloween-town and Christmas-town as real originals, working on the cliches that are in each holiday and surrounding the worlds with a host of terrific and terrifying characters. While Halloween-town has a mayor (appropriately with two faces, one smiling one distressed), the real leader is Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon voices with a great Danny Elfman as the singing Jack) who orchestrates Halloween every year for its citizens. But he's grown weary over the years, and after stumbling upon Christmas-town, loaded with good will towards men and a large man in a red suit, he gets his town riled up to overtake the joyous holiday. Despite one protest by Sally (an amazing Catherine O'Hara), the doll-girl who loves him, the town goes on creating Jack's vision. The results are hilarious and, indeed, spellbinding.
Much credit is given to Burton and Selick for their work on the film, but a lot should also be attributed to Denise Di Novi (co-producer and co-designer), Rick Heinrichs (visual consultant), Pete Kozachik (D.P.), and of course Danny Elfman for his perfectly fitting score and song creations. Along with the talented voice actors, Nightmare Before Christmas ends up a triumph of artistic ingenuity. Some could construe it as too weird or too stylish, but for the cult audience it has garnered over the past ten years it remains of of Burton's finest accomplishments. A+