

Welcome to an extraordinary world filled with wonder and magic
Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.
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Character
Resolved, meticulous, effortless and richly built.
- resolvedopen-ended
- rawmeticulous
- effortlessdemanding
- sparerichly built
- character-ledplot-driven
Who loves it, who doesn't
93 profiled raters. Loved most by The Prestige Hunters; disliked most by The Sinceres.
Where do you stand?
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“Is it really for children?”
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“Is The Nightmare Before Christmas better than Coraline?”
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“Is Danny Elfman the best thing in The Nightmare Before Christmas?”
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A yes-or-no question, answered from what people wrote here, on TMDB and on Wikipedia. Never made up.
Reviews
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- CinemaSerfon TMDB · Aug 20237/10
This is a cracking animation fantasy centring around "Jack Skellington" - the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town. When he feels all just a bit deflated after one celebration, he happens upon Christmas Town and encounters Santa Claus preparing to bring jolity and happiness. "Jack" sends a few of his rather stupid henchmen to kidnap Santa, takes his place and proceeds to deliver Christmas gifts that... well... are not exactly typical. Can Santa be rescued in time?? The animation is wonderfully detailed, dark and enjoyable with plenty of characters including a mad scientist as well as a mummy, the two-faced mayor and plenty of witches and demons. Not for the first time, Tim Burton shows a visionary imagination that I couldn't help but smile at - and coupled with a marvellous score (and lead vocal) from Danny Elfman we are presented with a thoroughly engaging Christmas story with a bit of a twist. Interesting that in the cinema recently, it struggled to hold the attention of the youngsters which was a shame. Perhaps the intervening years have made this more suitable for adults now?
Read the whole review on TMDB - Andres Gomezon TMDB · Nov 20146/10
I suppose I missed watching it at the proper time so I will explain it as not surviving well after all these years. The idea is daring, the stop motion is OKish and Danny Elfman's OST is quite good but even being only 70 min they were still too many for me. Specially, the songs were to close one to the next.
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Cast
- Danny ElfmanJack Skellington (singing) / Barrel / Clown with the Tear away Face (voice)
- Chris SarandonJack Skellington (voice)
- Catherine O'HaraSally / Shock (voice)
- William HickeyDr. Finkelstein (voice)
- Glenn ShadixMayor (voice)
- Paul ReubensLock (voice)
- Ken PageOogie Boogie (voice)
- Edward IvorySanta Claus (voice)
- Susan McBrideBig Witch / WWD. (voice)
- Debi DurstCorpse Kid / Corpse Mom / Small Witch (voice)
Crew
- Henry SelickDirector
- Caroline ThompsonScreenplay
- Pete KozachikDirector of Photography
- Danny ElfmanOriginal Music Composer
- Stan WebbEditor
- Don HahnProducer
- Denise Di NoviProducer
- Tim BurtonProducer
Where to watch
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Pairings
Companions we picked from the closest works, and how to take them.
Similar in taste
Closest on the same fourteen dimensions, from everything scored on Tastebuds Other media included when they land close.
The Princess Bride 198777% alikeBoth resolved.
The Brothers Grimm 200575% alikeClose across the board.
Dick Tracy 199075% alikeBoth resolved, meticulous.
Labyrinth 198674% alikeClose across the board.
ParaNorman 201274% alikeClose across the board.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit 198874% alikeClose across the board.
Alice in Wonderland 201074% alikeClose across the board.
Hellboy 200473% alikeBoth resolved.
A Series of Unfortunate Events 201773% alikeTelevision · Close across the board.
Samurai Champloo 200470% alikeTelevision · Close across the board.
Often watched with
Recommendations from TMDB. Opening one adds it to Tastebuds














