Nightmare gets and 'A' for visual effort, but falls short as a total viewing experience because of Burton's historical inability to tell a good story.
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06/05/02
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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
97
%
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Reviews Counted:70
Fresh:68
Rotten:2
Average Rating:8.2/10
Consensus: A stunningly original and visually delightful work of stop-motion animation.
Theatrical Release:Oct 20, 2006 Limited
Box Office: $356,022
Synopsis: Tim Burton's holiday classic, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, makes a return to the big screen this holiday season in stunning Disney Digital 3D™. The dazzling new make-over of the ... [More]
Starring: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey
Director: Henry Selick
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Reviews for The Nightmare Before Christmas
Likely to appeal to grown-ups of all ages--while putting the fear of God into kids--it's a perfect antidote to standard festive fare and evidence of the rich and varied possibilities of stop-motion animation. In a word, wonderful.
04/17/01
The result, though refreshingly different from mainstream animated fare, is ultimately more trick than treat.
11/27/07
Feels longer than it is, but still good fun.
02/11/03
inspiring, wacky, and infused with Burton's unique romanticism suffused with, but not subsumed by, a gothic sensibility
09/08/08
The script’s non-stop momentum suits the roller-coaster photography –- and the punchy running time brings things to a close before eye-strain sets in.
01/26/06
It's a Dead Man's Party in Santa's Village ... clever and infectious
03/19/03
No review available.
08/22/03
Burton, Elfman and director Henry Selick, whose camera movements are more inventive than most live-action pictures, have certainly created one of the most surprisingly unique films to come along in many a full moon.
01/01/00
The hippest of all holiday classics, the 1993 release rendered anew in 3-D format remains a postmodern three-ring circus of morbid humor, eye-popping puppet animation and show-stopping songs.
10/30/06
If the 3-D fails to grab you as much as you might hope, it never takes you out of the movie, which is a remarkable feat.
10/19/06
Concise, elegant, a tad scary, this is a treat for Halloween.
10/20/06
This brilliant combination of stop-motion animation, three-dimensional sets and superbly imaginative graphics, brings animation to new peaks.
01/01/00
Top CriticRe-imagining "The Nightmare Before Christmas" as a three dimensional film has taken Henry Selick's modern masterwork and turned it into a timeless classic.
10/20/06
(Producer Tim) Burton's skewed vision is seamlessly realized by director Henry Selick and cleverly enhanced by Danny Elfman's songs.
10/20/06
Watching something like this on the big screen is always better than seeing it on DVD. Period.
10/16/06
Light, amusingly macabre, droll, looking and sounding freshly minted...a marvelous holiday treat with luscious tricks up its sleeve.
12/06/05
Although this is often mistaken for being directed by Tim Burton, his unique and creative imagination is clearly the film's fuel, followed ,of course, by the impressive claymation.
07/10/03
The Nightmare Before Christmas has something to offer just about everyone.
01/01/00
Top CriticLatest News for The Nightmare Before Christmas
May 09, 2009:
Exclusive: The Art of Coraline with Henry Selick
Henry Selick, the animation mastermind behind such Certified Fresh classics as The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach adds another gong to his cabinet with... More...
December 21, 2006:
RT's Top Yuletide Kid Flicks -- Christmas Countdown, Day Four
It's Day Four of RT's Five Days of Christmas Countdown, where we serve up a different list each day of the best holiday flicks around. Today, we've got something for kids and... More...
October 22, 2006:
Box Office Wrapup: Prestige Defeats Flags for #1 Spot
Three well-reviewed dramas fought over the weekend box office crown, but it was a pair of dueling magicians that North American moviegoers chose first as The Prestige opened at... More...
October 19, 2006:
Critical Consensus: "Flags" Flies High; "The Prestige" Is Magic; "Flicka" Is A Pretty Good Ride; "Marie Antoinette" Spared Critical Guillotine
This week at the movies, we've got a complex tale of heroism (Clint Eastwood's "Flags of Our Fathers," starring Ryan Phillippe), a story of dueling magicians... More...
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