My Review of The Nightmare Before Christmas · 4:05am Dec 31st, 2022
Rating Scale:
12/10—a complete masterpiece; flawless and outstanding
11/10—Excellent, near-perfect film
10/10—the standard rating; awesome film with a couple of flaws
9/10—a wonderful film with several flaws
8/10–a great film with numerous flaws but not enough to ruin it
7/10—a fun and entertaining movie; not great but still enjoyable
6/10—a slightly above average film; it is something I might watch again
5/10—mediocre movie; not awful but not great either
4/10—a below average film; it could have been much better
3/10—a bad film; poorly written and poorly executed
2/10—a very bad movie; the few good things in the movie overshadowed by the bad things
1/10—a terrible movie; a total waste of time
0/10—a worthless piece of abomination; should have never been made
Greetings, everyone! This is Mr. J back with my final movie review for this closing year 2022! Considering that I ended last year with a Tim Burton movie review, I figured it would be fitting to do this once again with my review for Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas from 1993. Folks, this was yet another Disney movie I grew up watching and one of the very few musicals that stand out in regards to emotional storytelling. This may not be my personal favorite, but I still admire the uniqueness of its fantasy world and how non-hesitant it was in showcasing its darkness and sweetness at the same time. Given that it is both a Halloween and Christmas movie, I think it balances both holiday themes perfectly in light of the story.
This is about the Pumpkin King—Jack Skellington by name—who discovers the vast amount of joy and cheer in Christmas. Driven by its very core, Jack sees more of its beauty once he encounters Sally and experiences something which he never felt before.
I must say that this is by far Tim Burton’s best movie out of all the films he made so far. It contains all the elements that describes his filmography perfectly and makes it stand apart from the others. How? It has an excellent storyline, has well-aged stop motion animation, and has incredibly catchy songs that would make you listen to them over and over.
The voice acting was amazing too. Chris Sarandon, Catherine O’Hara, Ken Page, and the other voice actors all did an outstanding performance through voiceover (RIP Glenn Shadix and William Hickey). Danny Elfman also did wonderfully as the singing voice for Jack. The man knows how to grab the attention of his audience with his wonderful voice and music composing.
Oh, and you want to know about my opinion of Oogie Boogie? He’s a dastardly, hammy sack of bed bugs. Oh yes, he’s charming alright but not my type. But of course, everything about him was quite interesting, to say the least. Ken Page had a lot of fun voicing him, I bet. I do truly miss villains who enjoy being evil and mischievous because it’s fun to do (I know, I won’t shut up about it, but it’s the truth).
The one thing I loved the most about it was the chemistry between Jack and Sally. It’s basically something we don’t often see in movies nowadays—actually, something that Disney doesn’t do anymore. True love that has actual character growth, well-written dialogue, and a musical tone that isn’t cliche or generic. You can tell Jack was discovering more about himself the more he talked with Sally. Sally herself was an enjoyable character also.
The moment they embraced each other at the end of the film was really heartwarming and touching…it actually makes me want to cry. I want to see more of that romance, not some half-assed cliche Disney stuff like Cinderella or Snow White.
Overall, this is both too scary for a Christmas movie and too wholesome for a Halloween movie. As Thanos would say, “Perfectly balanced as all things should be.” Plus, there are no issues I find with this movie whatsoever. With that said, I will rate it a solid 12/10.
I wish you guys a great evening and a soon-coming New Year’s Eve! 💜
Happy Yekaterina Bridge
“The Nightmare Before Christmas” is one of those movies where, despite my interest in checking it out, I was often advised to steer away from. I probably won’t be able to see it for myself for quite a while, but I wouldn’t mind doing so once I have a roof of my own to live under.