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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

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Ratings: 8.0/10 from 149,376 users  
Reviews: 383 user | 177 critic

Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.

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(story), (adaptation), 1 more credit »
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Title: The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

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Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 6 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
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Sally / Shock (voice)
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Dr. Finklestein (voice)
...
Mayor (voice)
...
Lock (voice)
...
Oogie Boogie (voice)
Edward Ivory ...
Santa (voice) (as Ed Ivory)
Susan McBride ...
Big Witch / WWD. (voice)
Debi Durst ...
Corpse Kid / Corpse Mom / Small Witch (voice)
...
Harlequin Demon / Devil / Sax Player (voice) (as Gregory Proops)
Kerry Katz ...
Randy Crenshaw ...
Mr. Hyde / Behemoth / Vampire (voice)
Sherwood Ball ...
Mummy / Vampire (voice)
...
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Storyline

Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of Halloween Town, is bored with doing the same thing every year for Halloween. One day he stumbles into Christmas Town, and is so taken with the idea of Christmas that he tries to get the resident bats, ghouls, and goblins of Halloween town to help him put on Christmas instead of Halloween -- but alas, they can't get it quite right. Written by Jon Reeves <jreeves@imdb.com>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some scary images | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Official Sites:

| |  »

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

29 October 1993 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas  »

Filming Locations:


Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£65,668 (UK) (1 December 2006)

Gross:

$75,082,668 (USA) (13 November 2009)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

(Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Behemoth is based on B-movie actor/Swedish wrestler Tor Johnson. See more »

Goofs

When Sally is raising the basket up to Jack's window Jack is writing on the chalkboard. When he stops writing the chalk he is holding disappears. See 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.
See more »

Crazy Credits

No credits are shown, except the company and the film's name. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Hewy's Animated Movie Reviews: Coraline (2009) See more »

Soundtracks

"Kidnap the Sandy Claws"
(1993) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Danny Elfman
Performed by Paul Reubens, Catherine O'Hara, and Danny Elfman
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
A True Tim Burton Film
2 August 2001 | by (United States) – See all my reviews

I was five years old when I saw this movie and after that the words Tim Burton rang in my ears as one of Hollywood's most eccentric directors. Whenever I hear that a Tim Burton film is coming out I think of The Nightmare Before Christmas and how wonderful it is. The story is very original, the scenery is wonderfully Gothic and the characters and animation is to scream for.

Another thing about this film are the songs. They're so twisted and funny that I can't help but hum, whistle or just sing them word by word and musical note by musical note.

So in conclusion, The Nightmare Before Christmas is what you would get if you were to put the minds of Edgar Allen Poe and Dr. Seuss in a blender. You get a beautifully dark and wildly bizarre film about Santa Claus, dancing skeletons and what goes bump in the night.


60 of 95 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

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Why is there no nightmare before Thanksgiving or Easter giggle227
I joked about this movie once and took a LOT of heat... edpower
How important do you think it is that this is a stop motion film? hadoukenify
Why do people say this is a Tim Burton Film? michael-jokela-1
How many people here actually grew up with TNBC? horrormovieman89
Appropriate for little kids? mohman77
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