Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” celebrated its 30th anniversary on Oct. 13, and to honor the film, it returned to theaters on Oct. 20. “The Nightmare Before Christmas” was originally released in 1993, and it captivated audiences with the way it had good enough stop-motion to pass as animation. Since then, it has been a classic household Halloween (not Christmas) favorite, and now viewers have the option to see the movie in theaters, and even in 3D.
“The Nightmare Before Christmas” follows the adventures of Jack Skellington (Danny Elfman), the “Pumpkin King” of Halloweentown, a town that eats, sleeps and breathes Halloween. Jack begins to get tired of doing the same thing every year, and while walking through the woods he discovers a door that leads him to Christmastown. He becomes delighted with the traditions of Christmas and tries to bring them to Halloweentown, and he eventually goes as far as to send the “Boogieman’s” (Ken Page) henchmen to kidnap Santa Claus so he can become the new Santa. Meanwhile, Sally (Catherine O’Hara), a girl who has become interested in Jack, has visions of his Christmas going horribly wrong and she tries to stop him.
Watching “The Nightmare Before Christmas” has become a yearly tradition for my family, so it’s safe to say I was extremely excited when I discovered it would be in theaters. Halloween never officially starts for me until I see the monsters and ghouls of Halloweentown, and seeing this movie on the big screen allowed me to appreciate it even more. Stop-motion movies are already extremely impressive to make — this one took Tim Burton’s team over three years — but seeing all of the tiny intricate details of every character and background made it that much more impressive. It makes you really notice every small movement and think of how much work was put into just one scene.
Although I went to the movie on opening night, the theater was nearly bare. I could tell that everyone in that theater appreciated the movie just as much as I did, if not more, but there still aren’t a whole lot of diehard fans for a 30-year-old movie. In my opinion, it would’ve been a better experience to have the opportunity to be in a crowded theater of people that have loved the movie from the start, but that’s a little hard to wish for. I still enjoyed the experience and I know others did as well, but I had been hoping that the movie would attract a bigger crowd.
If I had one complaint about the movie itself, it would be that the 3D aspect was unnecessary. From the start, I was skeptical about how well that could be pulled off on a movie that wasn’t originally meant for 3D, and rightfully so. The opening scene of the movie where monsters of Halloweentown sing “This is Halloween” was one time where I appreciated watching in 3D because monsters came close to the screen, and that’s what 3D is meant to enhance. However, during the rest of the movie there were only a small number of scenes where things were close to the screen, and during regular dialogue there was no noticeable difference between 3D and 2D. There were a few times that 3D actually made the movie look lower quality, and that was when there weren’t any characters close to the screen. During scenes that the camera was showing characters from farther away, the overall landscape was blurry and hard to focus on. Despite all of this, seeing the movie in 3D is a choice made when purchasing tickets, so I can’t really hold that against the experience.
Overall, I would highly recommend seeing “The Nightmare Before Christmas” in theaters if you’ve loved watching the movie at home or have ever thought of watching it for the first time. It gives viewers a better look into the world of Halloweentown and everything that comes with it, and that’s something you can’t miss. However, if you do decide to see the movie, don’t bother spending extra for the 3D experience. It only really enhances some scenes, and if you’re like me, the discomfort of the 3D glasses is not worth it.
“The Nightmare Before Christmas: 30th Anniversary”: ★★★★★
