Tuesday
26Aug2008
DVD Review - 'The Nightmare Before Christmas'
Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 12:58AM The Nightmare Before ChristmasFeaturing the voices of Chris Sarandon, Catherine O' Hara, and Danny Elfman
Directed by Henry Selick
Rated PG
Review by Christian Carvajal
Tim Burton’s
The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of
those rare and impeccable movies that have entered the American consciousness.
Its characters are as likely to appear on present-day T-shirts as Darth Vader or
Cookie Monster. Walk into any Hot Topic in any shopping mall in the Western
world, and you’ll come away with the impression that The Nightmare Before
Christmas is the Goth Godfather.
Roger Ebert raved about its “completely new” landscape
and “visual richness”—“so abundant [it deserves] more than one viewing.” It may
come as a surprise, then, that the movie made less than fifty million dollars in
its initial U.S. run, finding the bulk of its adoring audience only via the
Disney Channel and home video.
I don’t need to say much about the story. Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of
Halloweentown, has grown disenchanted with his macabre dominion and contrives to
commandeer Christmas instead. Oogie Boogie, whose fabric epidermis conceals
ghastly innards, seizes upon this happy opportunity to torture St. Nick; and
Sally, a patchwork girl, pines for Jack in one of my favorite musical sequences
in all of Hollywood’s rich melodic history.
Given our shared familiarity with the film, why drop thirty bucks on its latest,
two-disc DVD release? Personally, I’ve been content with my VHS edition. Disney
Home Video did a fine job by that earlier release, as it has for so many of its
classic cel-animated films and Pixar CG extravaganzas. Yet there’s no denying
the appeal of the new packaging, which features its protagonist’s smiling Ping
Pong ball skull. I suspect young cinephiles will feature this edition as a video
bookend for their collections—unless, of course, plastic Weta Lord of the
Rings gewgaws already occupy that position.
So yes, The Nightmare is a must-have, but don’t let those five gorillas fool you: If you’re content with the VHS or DVD version you’ve already purchased, then there’s no substantial reason to upgrade, unless perhaps to the simultaneous Blu-Ray release. It’s especially unfortunate that a 2006 3-D revamp couldn’t be included. Yet the film certainly does qualify for the “New Classic” appellation thrown around so cavalierly by TNT; and indeed, it hasn’t aged a day in fifteen years. You should also consider it as an early holiday gift for that freaky little emo kid in your life. Believe me, it’s a hell of a lot more fun than wading through a trio of disheartening sequels to The Crow.
Christian Carvajal | Permalink | in Animation, DVD, Reviews, Tim Burton | Print Article | Email Article | 2 Comments | Share Article
Reader Comments (2)
Probably the greatest movie ever for oh so many reasons...
Even before Blink 182 and Hot Topic made it "Trendy".
Well done Colin Boyd, Well Done!
I really have to agree with this article. I've had the VHS video since it first came out (I was 10) and about a few years ago it became the world's greatest movie and emo people are claiming that it is their's.