After his discovery, Jack becomes devoted to bringing Yuletide to his own home, but his plans are hampered by a lack of cooperation from his fellow residents, who can't quite seem to get to grips with the alien concept of Christmas cheer. The film ends with Jack's disastrous attempt to deliver presents after he had ordered the kidnap of Santa Claus (or Sandy Claws) – leading him to rescue his captive just in time for Kris Kringle to go about fulfilling his usual Christmas Eve duties.
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So here's the question: should The Nightmare Before Christmas be considered a staple of spooky season, or a firm festive favourite? Given both festivals feature prominently, you could certainly argue either way, but if we're to consider what the creators of the project have to say, the matter can actually be cleared up pretty easily.
In 2017, director Selick definitively declared "it's a Halloween movie" during a Q&A at Colorado's Telluride Horror Show film festival, while two years later composer Danny Elfman told USA Today, "It’s obviously about Christmas, but for me, it’s a Halloween movie." Furthermore the release date of the film – on October 29th – provides more evidence originally it was intended to be enjoyed primarily as a Halloween treat.
But simply taking the words of those who created it at face value would be boring – so let's do a little bit more theorising. Those who dispute Selick's and Elfman's claims the film is a Halloween movie can certainly point to a few factors in their favour: for much of the film, Jack is unambiguously pro-Christmas, appearing to favour the joy and bright lights of this previously unheard-of Winter festival to the ghouls and demons he's all too familiar with.
Moreover, the sight of Santa struggling to get the job done on Christmas Eve is a trope that's been seen in all manner of Christmas movies – from Miracle on 34th Street to Elf. And then there's the time of year at which the film is set – following the opening song and dance, all of the action takes place after Halloween, leading to a climax on Christmas Eve itself! How, then, could this be anything other than a Christmas film?
On the other side of the debate, fans would point out that the protagonists are all residents at Halloween Town, not Christmas Town: the characters have inspired many a fancy dress costume on 31st October over the years, but you won't find many people turning up at a caroling service dressed as Jack Skellington. This is also a film filled with more Halloween imagery and iconography than just about any other, with an overarching tone that is a masterclass in the macabre
And the ending, of course, sees Jack give up on his attempts to turn Halloween Town into another version of Christmas Town, realising the uniqueness and wonder of his own community and fully embracing Halloween in all its ghoulish and ghastly glory.
On balance, then, I'd say that, despite the presence of Christmas throughout the narrative, the film's atmosphere, visual style, and ending, when taken in conjunction with the claims of the brains behind the project, ensure that it should always be seen, first and foremost, as a Halloween movie. If you do want to watch it at Christmas though? Well, I'm not going to stop you!
A Nightmare Before Christmas is available to stream on Disney+. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our TV Guide.
“This is Halloween, this is Halloween, pumpkins scream in the dead of night.” sing the mummies, skeletons and fellow monsters in the world of Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. After watching the film for the first time, I can’t tell where the confusion lies - it is clearly a Halloween movie, not a Christmas one. The Nightmare Before Christmas follows Jack Skellington, Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, who has grown tired of frightening “the real world” with the same old tricks. When he stumbles upon Christmas Town, he attempts to kidnap Santa Claus and merge the two towns under his rule. I wanted to write this for you to clear the air - The Nightmare Before Christmas *is* a Halloween movie and here are five reasons why:
The film was released on Wednesday, October 13 of 1993
Coincidence? The film was released on October 13, a date just as spooky as the actual date of Halloween, October 31. The two dates being the inverse of each other, the fact that both the release date and the Holiday are both in the month of October, and how the film just *happened* to be released just in time for Halloween proves that The Nightmare Before Christmas is the perfect Halloween movie.
Photo from IMBd
The main character is a skeleton
First thing’s first, if the film was a Christmas film, the main character would be an elf who’s called “Snowflake King”, rather than a “Pumpkin King.” Even the supporting characters are the mummies, skeletons, ghosts and other monsters from Halloween.
For example Sally is a humanoid ragdoll. She can sew herself together and can detach parts of her body, similar to Frankenstein. She is made by Dr. Finkelstein, a mad scientist who is a resident of Halloween Town. Then, there is Jack’s ghost puppy, Zero. Even the Mayor of Halloween Town is a two-faced humanoid. There are no humans to be found in Halloween Town.
Photo from IMBd
Halloween is taking over Christmas, Christmas is not taking over Halloween.
To make this a Christmas film, it would make more sense for the plot to be how Christmas took over Halloween, “The Pre-Halloween Scare” where Santa’s elves are helping him plot to kidnap Jack and crown himself “Holiday King”. Because the main characters are all from Halloween Town, they make the film what it is.
In the song titled “Poor Jack,” Jack finally came to his senses and is starting to question why he ever attempted to take over Christmas Town in the first place. “I am Pumpkin King, I am Pumpkin King, ha ha ha and I just can’t wait until next Halloween,” he sings as he is also declaring that he has some new ideas to scare the real world. Clearly, Jack’s love for Halloween exceeds his want for Christmas Town. He comes to terms with his mistakes, and releases Santa back to Christmas Town. A true King.
Photo from IMBd
The color hue of the film says it all
From the beginning of the film, the main color palette used are shades of black, yellow, orange, purple, white and green, aka, the colors of Halloween. We see the hue lighten a little when Christmas Town is first introduced - when it is untouched by Halloween Town.
Once Halloween Town begins its Christmas Town takeover, even the Christmas lights begin to dim. If this was a Christmas movie, the color hue of the scenes would be brighter and more cheery, especially in Halloween Town once Christmas begins to take over - it wouldn’t be so doom and gloom.
Photo from IMBd
The film’s director says it is a Halloween movie.
Lastly, Director Henry Sellick told Entertainment Weekly that it is indeed a Halloween movie. If the film’s director says it is a Halloween movie, then it must be.
Photo from IMBd
All these factors add up to equal the perfect Halloween movie. From the song, “This is Halloween,” to humanoid ragdolls, ghost puppies and skeletons, you are sure to have a frighteningly good time watching this film. So grab your popcorn and candy, throw on your pjs, and watch
The Nightmare Before Christmas as a part of your Halloween movie watchlist. In the words of Jack Skellington, “I am so excited for Halloween”.
Feature photo from IMBd
Sources: YouTube, IMBd, Wiki, IMBd, Wiki, Wiki, Wiki, Wiki, YouTube, YouTube, Entertainment Weekly