The Nightmare Before Christmas Movie Review

“Just because I cannot see it, doesn’t mean I can’t believe it!” ✨🎃

There are movies that are good. There are movies that are great. And then there’s The Nightmare Before Christmas — the movie that somehow manages to be both Halloween and Christmas, spooky and sweet, creepy and cozy, all at once.

Released back in 1993 (yes, it’s that old), this stop-motion musical from Tim Burton, Henry Selick, and Danny Elfman is pure handcrafted magic. It’s one of those rare films where every single frame feels like a work of art. You can practically feel the love that went into it.

I rewatched it recently, and I swear — it might be even better now than when it first came out. Here’s why.

Okay, first off, the production on this thing is absolutely insane. Over 120 artists worked for years building and moving tiny puppets, sets, and props by hand. Every blink, every gesture, every single moment was shot frame by frame.

They captured something like 109,000 individual shots. Let that sink in.

The sets are incredible — all crooked and twisty, like a haunted storybook that someone dreamed up during a thunderstorm. You can tell every corner of Halloween Town was built by someone who truly cared. There’s this perfect blend of weirdness and warmth that just doesn’t happen in CGI movies.

Director Henry Selick once described it as “a pop-up book come to life,” and that’s exactly what it feels like. It’s handmade, imperfect, and somehow more alive because of it.

If the visuals are the bones, then Danny Elfman’s music is the heart — and it’s beating loud.

Elfman didn’t just write the songs; he sang them too, giving voice to Jack Skellington’s every emotion. The man basically is Jack. And the songs? Absolute bangers. Every single one.

• “This Is Halloween” – an anthem for weirdos everywhere.

• “Jack’s Lament” – sad skeleton sings about his existential crisis (and somehow it’s catchy).

• “What’s This?” – pure joy in musical form.

• “Sally’s Song” – haunting, beautiful, and perfectly bittersweet.

Elfman wrote all of this in about a month, which is ridiculous. The melodies are playful, spooky, and totally timeless. He mixed Broadway flair with dark fairytale weirdness, and the result is still one of the best movie soundtracks ever made.

Seriously — how many movies can you hum 30 years later and still get chills?

This cast? Flawless.

Chris Sarandon gives Jack his speaking voice — suave and poetic, like a sad prince made of bones. Then Danny Elfman jumps in for the singing, and the two performances blend so seamlessly it’s almost eerie.

Catherine O’Hara (before Schitt’s Creek fame) is Sally, the lonely rag doll who sees through all of Jack’s chaos. She’s soft, vulnerable, and just so real.

And then there’s Ken Page as Oogie Boogie, who steals every scene he’s in. His jazzy villain song is one of the most fun, over-the-top moments in the whole movie.

The cast might not be “big names,” but that’s part of what makes it special — everyone feels perfectly matched to their character. It’s voice acting at its best.

Even though it’s stop-motion, Nightmare looks more cinematic than most live-action films. Cinematographer Pete Kozachik deserves all the love.

The lighting is gorgeous. Halloween Town is all gloomy blues and candlelight oranges, like something out of a Tim Burton fever dream (which, to be fair, it is). Then when Jack finds Christmas Town, everything explodes into bright reds, greens, and pure snowy light. It’s such a satisfying visual shift — you can actually feel Jack’s excitement.

What’s wild is that every single shadow, every highlight, was set up manually. There’s no “fix it in post” when you’re working frame by frame. It’s a perfect mix of technical skill and pure art.

Editing stop-motion is the definition of patience. Editor Stan Webb had to take all those tiny, disconnected moments and somehow make them flow like a living movie.

And he nailed it. You completely forget you’re watching puppets after five minutes. The pacing, especially in the musical numbers, is perfect. The cuts land right on the beats, the transitions glide from spooky to sentimental, and nothing ever feels choppy.

Honestly, that’s part of the magic — it feels effortless even though it’s anything but.

Even after all these years, The Nightmare Before Christmas hasn’t lost an ounce of its charm. The world still feels fresh, the music still slaps, and the story still hits hard. It’s about wanting more from life, about finding your place, about realizing you don’t have to change who you are to find meaning.

It’s weirdly profound for a movie about a skeleton who kidnaps Santa.

The film’s influence is everywhere — from Hot Topic merch to live symphony performances with Elfman himself. It’s the rare movie that’s both a cult classic and a family tradition.

There’s a reason people keep arguing whether The Nightmare Before Christmas is a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie — it’s both. It’s everything.

It’s spooky, it’s sweet, it’s funny, it’s sad. It’s stop-motion perfection, wrapped up in killer music and pure imagination. There’s nothing else like it, and honestly, there never will be.

If you haven’t rewatched it in a while, do it. Light a candle, grab some hot chocolate, maybe carve a pumpkin for old times’ sake. Then let Jack Skellington remind you that even in the darkest worlds, there’s always a little light to be found.

Overall Rating: 10/10

“What’s this? What’s this?”

It's pure magic.