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The Nightmare Before Christmas
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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) More at IMDbPro »

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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) -- Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) -- Clip: Deliveries
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) -- Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) -- Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) -- Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.

Overview

User Rating:
8.0/10   64,549 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 14% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Henry Selick
Writers:
Tim Burton (story)
Michael McDowell (adaptation)
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Nightmare Before Christmas on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
29 October 1993 (USA) more
Tagline:
Tim Burton's classic returns in 3-D so real, it's scary. more
Plot:
Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 6 nominations more
User Comments:
Burton's "Nightmare" is a dream come true more

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)
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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.
Runtime:
76 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital

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. more
Goofs:
Continuity: As Jack ponders the holiday doors, the Easter door appears to the right of the Thanksgiving door. Later as he approaches the Christmas door, it is now to the right of the Thanksgiving door and the turkey is facing the other way (the first shot was probably flipped). more
Quotes:
[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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Movie Connections:
Featured in The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004) more
Soundtrack:
DECK THE HALLS more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
115 out of 126 people found the following comment useful:-
Burton's "Nightmare" is a dream come true, 10 December 2004
10/10
Author: dee.reid from United States

By 1993, director Tim Burton was such a successful filmmaker in Hollywood that he was able to return to one of his most beloved early projects, "The Nightmare Before Christmas." It's certainly an inspired movie, as it is also very weird, and when I say "weird," I mean it's distinctly Burton.

Even though it was directed with enough competency by Henry Selick, this groundbreaking stop-motion animation film is Burton all the way, as it contains ample "esque" qualities that make this "Nightmare" uniquely his vision.

As the film opens in the twisted, "Burton"-esque village of "Halloweentown," Jack Skellington, who is dually voiced by Chris Sarandon and longtime Burton collaborator Danny Elfman, is celebrating another "horrible" Halloween. You'll be shocked and amazed at some of the town's inhabitants, who include jazz-playing zombies, Four Tenor-like vampires, a wolf man, and a wheelchair-bound scientist who occasionally opens up his cranium to (literally) scratch his brain; his creation, a Frankenstein-like scarecrow named Sally (Catherine O'Hara), yearns for contact with others and is quite fond of Jack Skellington.

But Jack's quickly growing tired of the same old routine year after year, and because he's so downtrodden with boredom, he ventures into the dark forest outside the town's borders, and accidentally stumbles onto the wondrous, jolly world of "Christmastown." Enticed by its splendor, he decides to bring back his discovery to the residents of Halloweentown, who of which are just as shocked by Christmas as he is. Jack gets the brilliant idea to pose as Santa Claus but hires three mischief-makers to kidnap the real Santa so he can share his own, misguided vision of Christmas with an unprepared world.

Painstakingly and meticulously crafted, "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a beautiful and wonderful film from start to finish. The most famous image of this film is the cover art, which features Skellington eerily silhouetted against a full moon while he stands atop a coiled hill that overlooks a desolate graveyard.

Burton is such a wonderful director, who had already brought us one unique "esque" vision after the other, especially with the first two "Batman" films and "Edward Scissorhands" behind him as of '93 when "Nightmare" was made.

10/10

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Poulenc/Elfman poppinjay
Narrator hdgotham
How many people here actually grew up with TNBC? horrormovieman89
yea we get it... scaredfamous
would you put this in the top 250 savannah-jackson
live action or broadway version cast and crew darthtom405
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