The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Henry Selick

Writers:

Tim Burton (story)
Michael McDowell (adaptation)
(more)

Release Date:

29 October 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy | Musical

Tagline:

Tim Burton's classic returns in 3-D so real, it's scary.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Halloween | Pumpkin | Woods | Monster

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

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)
Glenn Walters	...	Wolfman (voice)
Mia Brown	...	Additional Voices (voice)
L. Peter Callender	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Ann Fraser	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Jennifer Levey	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Jesse McClurg	...	Additional Voices (voice)
John Morris	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Robert Olague	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Bobbi Page	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Elena Praskin	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Trampas Warman	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Judi M. Durand	...	Additional Voices (voice) (as Judy Durand)
Doris Hess	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Daamen J. Krall	...	Additional Voices (voice) (as Daamen Krall)
Christina MacGregor	...	Additional Voices (voice)
David McCharen	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Gary Raff	...	Additional Voices (voice)
David Randolph	...	Additional Voice (voice) (as David J. Randolph)
Gary Schwartz	...	Additional Voices (voice)

Directed by
Henry Selick

Writing credits
Tim Burton		(story and characters)
Michael McDowell		(adaptation)
Caroline Thompson		(screenplay)

Produced by
Tim Burton	....	producer
Denise Di Novi	....	producer (as Denise DiNovi)
Danny Elfman	....	associate producer
Kathleen Gavin	....	co-producer
Don Hahn	....	producer (3D Version 2006)
Jill Jacobs	....	associate producer
Diane Minter Lewis	....	associate producer (as Diane Minter)
Philip Lofaro	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Danny Elfman

Cinematography by
Pete Kozachik		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Stan Webb

Casting by
Mary Gail Artz
Barbara Cohen

Art Direction by
Deane Taylor
Barry E. Jackson		(uncredited)

Production Management
Sara Duran	....	post-production supervisor
Cory Hansen	....	post-production supervisor
Jeffrey Katzenberg	....	executive in charge of production: Walt Disney Studios
Philip Lofaro	....	production manager

Art Department
Allison Abbate	....	artistic coordinator
Susan Alegria	....	set production assistant
Kelly Asbury	....	assistant art director (as Kelly Adam Asbury)
Bill Boes	....	assistant art director
Phil Brotherton	....	set builder
Mike Cachuela	....	storyboard artist (as Miguel Domingo Cachuela)
Hortensia Casagran	....	paint supervisor
Jennifer Clinard	....	scenic artist
Kendal Cronkhite	....	assistant art director
Fon Davis	....	set builder
Norm DeCarlo	....	sculptor
Randy Dutra	....	sculptor (as Randal M. Dutra)
Greg Dykstra	....	sculptor
Shane Francis	....	assistant artistic coordinator
B.J. Fredrickson	....	scenic artist
Joel Friesch	....	set dresser
Rick Heinrichs	....	visual consultant
Lee Bo Henry	....	set construction supervisor
Loren Hillman-Morgan	....	scenic artist (as Loren Hillman)
Peggy Hrastar	....	scenic artist
Jorgen Klubien	....	storyboard artist
Shelley Daniels Lekven	....	sculptor (as Shelley Daniels)
Todd Lookinland	....	set builder
Steve Moore	....	storyboard artist
Ben Nichols	....	set builder
Gregg Olsson	....	dressing supervisor
Gregg Olsson	....	set designer
Linda Overbey	....	scenic artist
Allessandro Palladini	....	set builder
Bob Pauley	....	storyboard artist
Joe Ranft	....	storyboard supervisor
Gretchen Scharfenberg	....	set dresser
Barry E. Jackson	....	visual development (uncredited)

Sound Department
Richard L. Anderson	....	supervising sound editor
Mary Andrews	....	dialogue editor
Tony Araki	....	dubbing recordist
Rick Canelli	....	adr recordist
Mike Chock	....	sound effects editor (as Michael Chock)
James Christopher	....	sound effects editor
Joe Dorn	....	adr editor
Ezra Dweck	....	foley mixer
Hilda Hodges	....	foley artist
Amy Leigh Hunter	....	sound transfer operator
Samuel Lehmer	....	original dialogue recordist
Thomas J. O'Connell	....	adr mixer
Terry Porter	....	sound re-recording mixer
John Pospisil	....	special sound effects
Joan Rowe	....	foley artist
Greg P. Russell	....	sound re-recording mixer
Scott Strain	....	sound recordist
Ralph Stuart	....	assistant sound editor
Tim Webb	....	dubbing recordist
Valerie Davidson	....	sound editor (uncredited)
Galen Goodpaster	....	assistant sound editor (uncredited)
Steve Lee	....	sound effects recordist (uncredited)
Courtenay Marvin	....	assistant sound editor (uncredited)
Philip Rogers	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)
Marco Streccioni	....	sound engineer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Myles Murphy	....	stereo artist
Loretta Weeks	....	special effects (as Loretta Asbury)

Visual Effects by
Joel Aron	....	digital production supervisor: ILM (3D version 2006)
Loretta A. Asbury	....	cel model painter
Jim Aupperle	....	camera operator
Al Bailey	....	digital artist
Katharine Baird	....	digital rotoscope and paint artist
Gordon Baker	....	effects animator
Jon Berg	....	moldmaker
Bill Boes	....	model maker
Nick Bogle	....	model maker
Scott Bonnenfant	....	assistant effects animator
Dave Bossert	....	snow animator
Jeff Brewer	....	model maker
Mike Cachuela	....	effects animator (as Miguel Domingo Cachuela)
Mario Capellari	....	digital artist
Thomas Cardone	....	color timing and paint
Nicholas Cerniglia	....	digital artist: RotoFactory, Inc. (3D version 2006)
Kai Chang	....	assistant technical director: ILM (3D version 2006)
Peter Chesloff	....	digital artist
Stephen D. Childs	....	digital artist: Evil Eye Pictures
Eric D. Christensen	....	senior staff: RotoFactory, Inc. (3D version 2006)
Ronnie Cleland	....	roto artist
Julie Creighton	....	visual effects coordinator (3D version 2006)
Scott David	....	compositor
Melissa De Santis	....	visual effects production assistant (3D version 2006)
Janeen Elliott	....	3D digital artist: ILM
Joel Fletcher	....	animator
Joel Friesch	....	model maker
Greg Gilmore	....	Inferno artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
David Gottlieb	....	digital artist
Rich Grande	....	digital artist: RotoFactory Inc. (3D version 2006)
Chris R. Green	....	effects animator (as Chris Green)
Michael Grivett	....	assistant moldmaker (as Mike Grivett)
Tyler Ham	....	layout artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Trevor Hazel	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Michael Hinton	....	additional optical effects
Sherry Hitch	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Rebecca House	....	assistant model maker
Adam Howard	....	Inferno artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Shirley Hsiao	....	production accountant
Amanda Instone	....	digital artist
Andreas Jablonka	....	rotoscope artist (3D version 2006)
Erik Jensen	....	moldmaker
Mike Jobe	....	moldmaker (as Michael Jobe)
Pamela Kibbee	....	assistant model maker
Aaron Kohr	....	assistant model maker
Pete Kozachik	....	visual effects supervisor
Derek Krauss	....	rotoscope artist (3D version 2006)
Donna Lanasa	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
John M. Levin	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Victoria Lewis	....	moldmaker (as Victoria B. Lewis)
Paula Lucchesi	....	model maker
Tia L. Marshall	....	digital stereo artist (3D version 2006)
Will McCoy	....	digital artist: ILM
Phil 'Captain 3D' McNally	....	stereoscopic supervisor (3D version 2006)
Tory Mercer	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Robert Molholm	....	technical support (3D version 2006)
Aaron Muszalski	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
C. Andrew Nelson	....	digital effects artist: RotoFactory, Inc. (3D version 2006)
Ken Nielsen	....	digital artist (special edition)
Ben O'Brien	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Jeffrey Odell	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Michael Parkinson	....	conform editor: 3D
Tony Preciado	....	assistant moldmaker
Tom Proost	....	set foreman
Rebecca Ramsey	....	visual effects executive producer: Look Effects
Jerome Ranft	....	assistant model maker
John Reed	....	mold maker supervisor (as John A. Reed III)
Marc Ribaud	....	model maker
Grover Richardson	....	roto artist: Evil Eye Pictures (3D version 2006)
Mitchell Romanauski	....	model shop supervisor (as Mitch Romanauski)
Rob Ronning	....	moldmaker
Dino Salee	....	roto artist: Evil Eye Pictures (3D version 2006)
Nicole Samarron	....	digital artist: Disney Digital 3D
Frederic Schmidt	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Chad Schott	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Kirk Scott	....	production assistant
Rene Segura	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Anthony Shafer	....	stereoscopic lead
Jason Smith	....	creature technical director: ILM (3D version 2006)
Tefft Smith	....	digital effects artist (3D version 2006)
Tom St. Amand	....	armature supervisor
Nathan Stanton	....	assistant effects animator
Eric Swenson	....	camera operator
Chad Taylor	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Radley Teruel	....	digital artist: RotoFactory Inc. (3D version 2006)
Meghan Thornton	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Alan Travis	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Wim van Thillo	....	moldmaker
Ariel Velasco-Shaw	....	digital effects supervisor (as Ariel Velasco Shaw)
Harry Walton	....	additional optical effects
Pablo Wang	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Talmage Watson	....	digital artist (3D version 2006)
Jeff White	....	digital artist
Eddy Wong	....	visual effects (3D version 2006)
Victor Wong	....	visual effects (3D version 2006)
Nick Woo	....	technical support: ILM (3D version 2006)
Shuichi Yoshida	....	digital artist: RotoFactory (3D version 2006)
Scott Younkin	....	digital artist: ILM (3D version 2006)
Megan McDonald	....	visual effects coordinator (3D version 2006) (uncredited)
Michelle Motta	....	digital paint & rotoscope artist (uncredited)
Winston Quitasol	....	optical line-up (uncredited)
Spencer Reynolds	....	digital artist (uncredited)
Sukumaran Lalithambika Vijin	....	rotoscope artist (uncredited)
Eric Voegels	....	digital stereo artist: ILM (3D version 2006) (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Mike Bienstock	....	assistant camera (as Michael Bienstock)
Jo Carson	....	camera operator
Richard Downing	....	photographer
Selwyn Eddy	....	camera operator (as Selwyn Eddy III)
Ray Gilberti	....	camera operator
David Hanks	....	camera operator (as Dave Hanks)
Joe Jiuliano	....	camera manager
Mark Kohr	....	assistant camera
Richard Lehmann	....	camera operator (as Richard E. Lehmann)
Sara Mast	....	assistant camera
James Matlosz	....	assistant camera
Carl Miller	....	assistant camera
Cameron Noble	....	assistant camera
Chris Peterson	....	assistant camera
Pat Sweeney	....	camera operator
Brian Van't Hul	....	assistant camera
Matthew White	....	assistant camera

Animation Department
Mike Belzer	....	animator (as Michael Belzer)
Lana Bernberg	....	apprentice animator
Paul Berry	....	animator
Kim Blanchette	....	animator
Jeff Brewer	....	character fabricator
Stephen A. Buckley	....	animator
David Chong	....	character fabricator
Sandy Clifford	....	character fabricator
David Cutler	....	additional character designer
Bonita R. DeCarlo	....	character fabrication supervisor (as Bonita DeCarlo)
Chrystene R. Ells	....	character fabricator
Doug Engalla	....	animation research library (3-D edition)
Joel Fletcher	....	animator
Angie Glocka	....	animator
Margot Hale	....	character fabricator
Timothy Hittle	....	animator
Barry E. Jackson	....	additional character designer (as Barry Jackson)
Elizabeth Jennings	....	character fabricator
Paul Jessel	....	additional animator (as Paul W. Jessel)
Mike Johnson	....	assistant animation rigger (as Michael W. Johnson)
Mike Johnson	....	assistant animator (as Michael W. Johnson)
Tamara Khalaf	....	animation research library
Owen Klatte	....	animator
Jorgen Klubien	....	additional character designer (as Jorgen Klubein)
Justin Kohn	....	animator
Barbara Kossy	....	character fabricator
Eric Leighton	....	animation supervisor
Eric Leighton	....	animator
Gretchen Maschmeyer Albrecht	....	ink and paint manager (as Gretchen Albrecht)
Daniel Mason	....	additional animator
Grace Murphy	....	character fabricator
Tennessee Reid Norton	....	character fabricator (as Timothy Reid Norton)
Loyd Price	....	animator
Facundo Rabaudi	....	character fabricator
Elise Robertson	....	character fabricator
Anthony Scott	....	animator
Valerie Sofranko	....	character fabricator (as Valerie Sofranko-Banks)
Trey Thomas	....	animator
Lauren Vogt	....	character fabricator
Harry Walton	....	additional animator
Michael Wick	....	character fabricator
Ken Willard	....	additional animator
George Wong	....	animation rig engineer
Richard C. Zimmerman	....	animator
Jesse Spencer	....	character fabricator (uncredited)

Casting Department
Barbara Harris	....	adr voice casting
Davia Nelson	....	casting: San Francisco
Mary Hidalgo	....	casting associate (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Tracy Barber	....	post-production assistant
Jeannine Berger	....	post-production administrator
Andrea Biklian	....	apprentice editor
Edie Bleiman	....	associate editor (as Edie Ichioka)
Kristen Gerstner	....	assistant editor
Dale E. Grahn	....	color timer
Michael Kelly	....	additional editor
Chris Lebenzon	....	consulting editor
Jenny Oznowicz	....	apprentice editor
Theresa Repola Mohammed	....	negative cutter
Patti Tauscher	....	apprentice editor
Kevin Rose-Williams	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Bob Badami	....	music editor
Steve Bartek	....	music arranger: vocal and song arrangements
Steve Bartek	....	orchestrator: songs
Chris Boardman	....	conductor
Megan Cavallari	....	vocal assistant to Danny Elfman
Mark McKenzie	....	orchestrator: score
Shawn Murphy	....	song & music mixer
J.A.C. Redford	....	conductor: score
Letitia Rogers	....	music editing assistant
Patrick Spain	....	assistant score engineer
Patti Zimmitti	....	orchestra contractor
Tod Cooper	....	music production supervisor (uncredited)
Robert Fernandez	....	scoring mixer (uncredited)

Other crew
Ila Abramson	....	production runner
Alia Agha	....	stage coordinator (as Alia Almeida Agha)
Robert Anderson	....	stage manager
Jon Angle	....	production assistant
Derick P. Arippol	....	intern
Christine Beck	....	caps personnel
Frances P. Behnam	....	caps personnel
Andrew Birch	....	production assistant
Thomas Buchanan	....	facilities production assistant
David Burke	....	production runner
Daniel Campbell	....	production assistant
Aisha Candrian	....	massage therapist
Hortensia Casagran	....	final check supervisor
Hortensia Casagran	....	ink supervisor
Merrick Cheney	....	armature engineer
Carol J. Choy	....	caps personnel (as Carol Choy)
Blair Clark	....	armature engineer
Jerome Cook	....	intern
Joel Franklin	....	supervising copyist
Derek Frey	....	assistant: Tim Burton (2006 3D version)
Christopher W. Gee	....	caps personnel (as Chris Gee)
Kent Gordon	....	caps personnel
Thomas Hahn	....	personnel: Pixar
Barbara Lynn Hamane	....	caps personnel (as Barbara Hamane)
Dina Hardy	....	intern
Craig Harris	....	assistant stage manager
Bruce Hatakeyama	....	caps personnel
Don Henry	....	caps personnel
Gisela Hermeling	....	assistant to producers & director
Shyh-Chyuan Huang	....	caps personnel (as Chyuan Huang)
Rebecca Pahr Huntley	....	caps personnel (as Rebecca Pahr)
Ron Jackson	....	caps personnel
David Janssen	....	production assistant
Shannon Fallis Kane	....	caps personnel (as Shannon Fallis-Kane)
Lisa Keene	....	caps personnel
R. Todd King	....	caps personnel (as Todd King)
Ed Leonard	....	caps personnel
Ethan Marak	....	intern
Daniel Mason	....	track reader
Michael Meagher	....	caps personnel (as Tony Meagher)
Kat Miller	....	assistant production coordinator
Mark Musumeci	....	electrical consultant/contractor
Peter Nye	....	personnel: Pixar
Lionel Ivan Orozco	....	additional armatures
Syndi Pilar	....	intern
Chris Rand	....	armature engineer
Kevin Reher	....	production accountant
Robyn Roberts	....	caps personnel
Ann M. Rockwell	....	intern
Denise Rottina	....	production assistant
David J. Rowe	....	caps personnel (as David Rowe)
James 'J.R.' Russell	....	caps personnel (as James Russell)
Jill Ruzicka	....	production coordinator
Beth Lee Schneider	....	production assistant
Michael Shantzis	....	personnel: Pixar (as Michael A. Shantzis)
Debra Y. Siegel	....	caps personnel (as Debbie Siegel)
Jenny Spamer	....	assistant accountant
Eben Stromquist	....	armature engineer
Michael T. Sullivan	....	caps personnel (as Michael Sullivan)
Arianne Sutner	....	production assistant
David Teller	....	production runner
Jefferson Thomas	....	intern
Bart Trickel	....	armature engineer
Ann Tucker	....	scene planning supervisor
Chuck Warren	....	caps personnel
Cathy Whitney	....	intern
Paul Yanover	....	caps and effects software lead
George Young	....	production coordinator
Renato Zero	....	voice dubbing (Italian version)
Thomas Baker	....	scene planner (uncredited)
Jim Belmessieri	....	stage manager (uncredited)
Jesse Merz	....	market researcher (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Skellington Productions Inc.
• Tim Burton Productions
• Touchstone Pictures
• Walt Disney Pictures (3D version)

Distributors

• Buena Vista International (Australia) (1994) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (Austria) GmbH (1994) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (Sweden) (1994) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International Italia (1994) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International Spain (1994) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (France) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (USA) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (2004) (Japan) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Buena Vista International (1994) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (2006) (Singapore) (theatrical) (3-D version)
• Buena Vista Pictures (1993) (USA) (theatrical)
• Disney Digital 3-D (2006) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (2007) (Japan) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (2008) (Japan) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (2009) (Japan) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Abril Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (Brazil) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Gativideo (Argentina) (video)
• Laurenfilm (Spain)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1998) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Touchstone Home Video (199?) (USA) (VHS)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Buena Vista Visual Effects
• Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) (2006) (3D)
• LOOK! Effects (computer graphics images)
• Menfond Electronic Art & Computer Design Company
• RotoFactory (2006) (3D)
• Walt Disney Feature Animation (digital effects)

Other Companies

• Buena Vista Opticals  titles and opticals
• Hayes & Van Horn Casting  casting: San Francisco
• Walt Disney Records  soundtrack published by
• Warner Hollywood Studios  sound re-recording
• Weddington Productions  sound editing

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)

MPAA:

Rated PG for some scary images.

Runtime:

76 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Portugal:M/6 | Brazil:Livre | Netherlands:AL | Iceland:L | Spain:7 | Ireland:PG | South Korea:All (re-rating) (2006) | Hong Kong:IIA | South Korea:12 (original rating) | South Africa:10M | New Zealand:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-10/7 | Germany:6 | Iceland:LH (video rating) | Iceland:L (original rating) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Skellington Productions Inc.

Trivia:

Patrick Stewart did the original introduction for the movie, which can be heard on the film's soundtrack.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In the cemetery scene, as Jack sings and gets to the line "And I just can't wait until next Halloween", you can briefly see the wires supporting him shining against the background.

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.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004)

Soundtrack:

HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS

One of the most memorable holiday classics of all time. A visual masterpiece. ***1/2 out of ****.

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS / (1993) ***1/2

Starring the voices of: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, Ken Page, Ed Ivory, and William Hickey Directed by Henry Celiac. Written by Michael McDowell. Running time: 76 minutes. Rated PG (for horrific images and some animated violence).

Tim Burton seems like the only being on the planet who could come with characters such as the ones found in "The Nightmare Before Christmas." The feature is literally a tale likely to be found in a child's dreams. It creates a world of its own, inhabiting unforgettable characters and events that should be shared with generations. This film is a visual masterpiece; a movie that deserves to be a holiday favorite for some time to come.

The atmosphere director Henry Celiac captures in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is truly breathtaking. The cities and setting in which these characters live are visually perplexing, yet descriptive and develop the production's mood perfectly. We, as audiences starving for originality and imagination, are able to enter a scope so believable and unrelentingly convincing we lust for every last minute of it.

The movie's protagonist is Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of the holiday town of Halloween. Jack is the role model for much of the cities population. The only problem is that Jack has been around for ages, parked in a town where every single year builds up for a conventional holiday, Halloween. This character has grown depressed and saddened by the routine living style he inhabits. We learn of his passion for new events and a and new life through a musical number that is both effective and engaging.

Later on that vary night, Jack wonders off into a nearby woods and stumbles upon an area surrounded with magical doors leading to specific holiday worlds. Jack, blooming with curiosity, enters Christmas town: a joyful, happy place with snow, glitter, children singing, and colorful lights decorating the village in its entirety. Jack is mystified by the glamorous atmosphere, and rushes home to tell the Town of Halloween about his adventures.

We realize the internalconflict is Jack's boredom of routine. This becomes more complex when he tries to figure out the meaning of Christmas. The external problem comes later in the plot, where we predict an uneasy disaster upcoming due to his intentions of recreating Christmas in Halloween style.

Other key characters are Sally, the puppet-like creation of an angry professor, the city's Mayor who has a head for both his good and bad personality, the Oggie Boogie, the film's villain who is everything we ever dreamed of regarding a diabolical animated bad guy, and the inevitable character of Santa Clause.

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" is not necessarily a children's movie, it might be too strange or fanatical for the very young. It is certainly a musical production, and at times, I felt that the songs replaced essential development. However, the musical numbers are challenging and memorable, containing passion and emotion. The picture is a walk into the mind of some of the most wildly imaginative filmmakers of our time. "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is titled wonderfully, although the film is truly not a nightmare, but a dream--a dream brought to life on the big screen.

Brought to you by Touchstone Pictures.