The Nightmare Before Christmas
1993 • 76 min • Fantasy · Animation · Family
Synopsis
Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.
Our family guide
Best from age 7- 100 Reviewers · 2 · 51%
- 78 Audience · 10463 · 49%
Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, grows tired of Halloween and discovers Christmas Town. Enchanted by the new holiday, he attempts to bring his own spooky twist to Christmas, leading to chaotic results as his girlfriend Sally tries to stop him.
- Violence & peril
- 3/10
- Language
- 1/10
- Drinking, drugs & smoking
- 0/10
- Romance & sensuality
- 1/10
- Scary moments
- 4/10
Heads up
- Some spooky imagery and characters
- Moments of peril for Santa Claus
- Brief discussions of kidnapping
What it models well
- Embracing individuality
- The spirit of generosity
- Creative expression
Talk about it after
- Understanding different traditions
- The importance of planning
- Consequences of good intentions
Written by the Movie Knight editorial team for The Nightmare Before Christmas. Our own words, our own scoring — always double-check against your family's standards.
Where to watch
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Top billed cast
Director: Henry Selick • Crew: Caroline Thompson, Tim Burton
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)
- E
Edward Ivory
Santa Claus (voice)
- S
Susan McBride
Big Witch / WWD. (voice)
Debi Durst
Corpse Kid / Corpse Mom / Small Witch (voice)
Trailers & clips
The Nightmare Before Christmas - 1994 International Trailer (35mm 4K)
1993 Theatrical Trailer
1993 Sneak Peek Trailer
The Nightmare Before Christmas | All the Facts | Disney+ Deets
Axelle Carolyn on The Nightmare Before Christmas
Trailer
The Nightmare Before Christmas - Town Meeting
The Making Of-The Nightmare Before Christmas.VOB
Reviewer notes
RecommendedThis is a cracking animation fantasy centring around "Jack Skellington" - the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town. When he feels all just a bit deflated after one celebration, he happens upon Christmas Town and encounters Santa Claus preparing to bring jolity and happiness. "Jack" sends a few of his rather stupid henchmen to kidnap Santa, takes his place and proceeds to deliver Christmas gifts that... well... are not e...
RecommendedI suppose I missed watching it at the proper time so I will explain it as not surviving well after all these years. The idea is daring, the stop motion is OKish and Danny Elfman's OST is quite good but even being only 70 min they were still too many for me. Specially, the songs were to close one to the next.
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Gallery
Details
- TMDB audience
- 7.8/10 (10,463)
- Age rating
- PG
- Status
- Released
- Budget
- $18,000,000
- Box office
- $75,634,409
- IMDb
- tt0107688
- Official site
- movies.disney.com
