A great debate for years has been whether or not The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) is a Christmas or a Halloween movie. This movie is a Tim Burton story, directed by Henry Selick. It follows a skeleton named Jack, the Pumpkin King, who is living in a town where every day is treated like Halloween. He is sick of his daily routine. Suddenly, he stumbles across a holiday called Christmas and quickly falls in love with it. He wants to be a part of the holiday so he ends up kidnapping Santa Claus. You can see why that could go terribly wrong.
Halloween
Some argue that it’s a Halloween movie because of all the spooky characters and the general unsettled feeling you get when watching. Leighton Guzofski, a freshman at Museum, thinks that The Nightmare Before Christmas is a Halloween movie. “The artistic style focuses more on a Halloween mood, with darker aesthetics,” said Guzofski. “Although it says Christmas in the title, I don’t think that it focuses on the Christmas aspect. When you think of Christmas you think of happy, light colors. You think of holly jolly, right? But Halloween is darker and mysterious, which I think fits the movie,” he notes.
The film was released on October 29th, which adds the extra effect of it being a Halloween movie. The picture was produced by Tim Burton based on a poem he wrote in 1982. Burton is known for his chilling movies like Beetlejuice (1988), Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride (2005), and Sweeney Todd (2007). Henry Selick, on the other hand, is known for his sinister stop-motion animated films. Other than The Nightmare Before Christmas, Selick has also directed Coraline (2009), which isn’t the most cheerful flick. Based on the people who brought the movie to life, it can be considered that it is one more of their gothic, Halloween-like horrors.
Christmas
Others say that this stop motion picture is a Christmas movie because of Jack’s obsession and love for the holiday. He tries to be a part of Christmas because he was so hypnotized by the warm feeling of presents, lights and families together. A freshman at Museum School, Josely Arias, vouches for team Christmas. “It’s a Christmas movie because you only really watch it in December. It has Christmas in the name and it’s about Jack trying to become a part of the holiday and feel its spirit. He likes Christmas and not Halloween,” she said.
In the movie, elements from Halloween Town were turned into something that could be used for Christmas. For instance, skeleton reindeer, scary gifts, and Jack as Santa Claus. The whole movie climax occurs on Christmas Eve. And like all good Christmas films, spoiler alert, all problems are solved and Christmas is saved.
The Director’s Point Of View
Henry Selick, the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas, had an interview with the New York Post in October 2024, where he claimed his side on this endless dispute. He said, “Thirty years after I directed the film, beneath its candy corn coating, skeletons and vampires, corpse child and witches, I know ‘Nightmare [Before Christmas]’ at its heart is a Christmas movie.” So yes, the director of the film himself says that this is indeed a Christmas movie. However, this does not mean that it should stop anyone from thinking otherwise.
A lot of people approached with this debate thought that it was both a Christmas and Halloween movie. It’s the perfect mix of erie and jolly. This is the perfect film to watch in October, December, and even November if you can’t decide. So really, this is a Thanksgiving feature.
