Halloween is just around the corner, a time of treats, terror, and Tim Burton.  Nightmare Before Christmas is finally in season to watch and is personally one of my favorites.

Tim Burton’s strange and fantastic animation provides a unique take on the idea of holidays. In the movie each holiday has its own separate town and theme that is isolated from each other holiday.

When main character, Jack Skellington, got restless of his town of Halloween, he discovered Christmas town and was determined to make it his own. He came up with a plan to kidnap Santa Clause and do his job on Christmas Eve. When all of Halloween town pitched in, the children of the world were in for a nasty surprise.  Another character, Sally, has a vision early on that foreshadowed the events that were to come. She tried to stop Jack but was unsuccessful.

In the end Jack’s sleigh was shot down from the sky by the military. At this point Jack hit a low place and came to realize the faults with his actions. He found resolve with who he is, and returned to Halloween Town to save Santa from the Boogie Man and let Santa save Christmas.

Perhaps the strongest element of fear in the movie that attracts audiences during Halloween would be the Boogie Man, a large and disgusting monster with a devilish personality that scares even the people of HalloweenTown.

The story line is well constructed as it follows a logical flow of emotions within Jack Skellington. He transitions from lost and lonely to excited and eager as he plans for “his” Christmas. When he hit his low point, director Tim Burton successfully portrayed Jack’s feeling of worthlessness leading up to the transition where he accepts his identity with new found fervor.

The element of foreshadowing also adds a strong element of depth to the story. Sally’s vision of a Christmas tree burning allows the viewer to predict the climax of the story and feel sympathy and worry for Jack.

Throughout the movie there are quite a few elements of adult humor that attract older views. An example would be when the mayor of Halloween Town said, “Please Jack. I’m only an elected official, I can’t make decisions on my own.”

Overall The Nightmare Before Christmas is a terrific, fun, and insightful Halloween movie that I would suggest to everyone.