Is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie?
Sure, viewers of all ages can indulge in the stylish animated film for months on end and
still be in season, but no matter when you watch, there are probably some things you
notice in the holiday classic as an adult.
It's no secret that Nightmare Before Christmas writer and producer Tim Burton is a huge fan
of classic monster films.
Early in his career, he directed the animated short Vincent, in which a young boy dreams
of becoming like his idol, the beloved classic horror master Vincent Price.
"He doesn't mind living with his sister, dog, and cats.
Though he'd rather share a home with spiders, roots, and bats."
Shortly after, Burton directed the short Frankenweenie, which would be expanded to a full-length animated
feature in 2012.
In both versions, a boy named Victor Frankenstein resurrects his beloved pet dog.
This love of monsters of movies past comes through loud and clear in Halloween Town,
where The Nightmare Before Christmas takes place.
The entire populace is monstrous in appearance, and adults will notice that they're frequently
references to specific literary and film monsters.
Dr. Finkelstein, the mad scientist who created Sally and helps Jack conjure up a skeleton
sled team, very obviously draws on Burton's love Dr. Victor Frankenstein.
Just about every monster in town is a reference to a classic: Igor, the Wolfman, Mr. Hyde,
the Undersea Gal, Mummy Boy, the Vampires.
You name a classic, and you'll find them living in Halloween Town.
There aren't a whole lot of kids movies about having a midlife crisis, but The Nightmare
Before Christmas is an exception.
Jack's been the Pumpkin King for far too long and sees himself stuck in a rut.
He feels bored with his life, so he haphazardly throws himself into a new obsession.
He assumes responsibilities that no one has asked him to take on and makes a mess that
basically spans the entire world.
For the most part, kids aren't at risk of reaching a point where they feel completely
stagnant in their lives.
The theme of facing an existential void and dealing with it in destructive ways probably
isn't too accessible to kids, though they can probably appreciate that Jack is seeking
adventure in some way.
For adults, it's far easier to notice the real-life emotions at the heart of Jack's
misguided actions.
Throughout The Nightmare Before Christmas, viewers witness a mostly one-sided romance
in which Sally, in an endless effort to prove herself to Jack, is continually subjected
to his oblivious nature and one-track mind.
Obviously, children recognize a romance budding here, but it takes an experienced heart to
notice that Sally's giving way more than she should for a guy who's so wrapped up in his
own existential problems.
Sally's sweet nature and desire to do good are admirable traits to have, but for most
of the movie, they're wasted on a pretty selfish guy.
Sally struggles with feeling acceptance and joy in her life in Halloween Town in much
the same way Jack does, but her solution is to try to make connections and help people
instead of wandering off and leaving her responsibilities behind.
"I'm restless!
I can't help it!"
"It's a phase, my dear.
It'll pass."
Because this is a children's movie, Jack and Sally get together in the end, and it appears
as though Jack has begun to understand how his actions have consequences.
We hope.
Until he discovers Thanksgiving town or something.
Granted, Sally's obsession with someone she barely seems to know leads to her creeping
around tombstones to get a look at him, poisoning her boss, falling asleep outside his house,
and throwing herself out of windows…but that's another problem entirely.
One of the most adult-oriented gags in The Nightmare Before Christmas is the character
of the Mayor, a squat, two-faced humanoid who's entirely uncertain of how to proceed
with just about anything in Halloween Town without assurance from his constituents.
Most kids won't pay close enough attention to politics to understand what makes the idea
of an incompetent mayor quite so funny, and a little bit scary.
The Mayor's smiling public face contrasts with the horror-stricken one on the other
side of his head, a conceit that tells the viewer he's performing for the public when
he really has a host of fears about how the town is run and his responsibility to keep
it running in an efficient manner.
When the Mayor approaches Jack's home with plans for the following year's Halloween celebration
and Jack doesn't answer, the Mayor loses his cool.
"Jack, please!
I'm only an elected official here, I can't make decisions by myself!"
Politics and hideous monsters have never gone together so well.
Except in real life.
Much like politics, most child viewers probably don't have much first-hand experience with
casinos.
This is, of course, Oogie Boogie's entire focus, surrounding himself with slot machines,
roulette wheels, and killer cards.
When Oogie rolls the dice and announces "Snake eyes!" it's probably safe to say that the
kids watching only really get value out of the snake that actually emerges from the dice,
and not what that roll means from a gambling perspective.
Nor would they gain much insight when Oogie bangs on the table to reset the dice to read
eleven, a much more desirable roll in this context.
But why a miniature gambling world in the middle of a place that's focused entirely
on monsters and Halloween mayhem?
What's the connection?
The scenes in Oogie Boogie's lair are some of the most fun, but it's interesting to notice
that in this town where the dreams of childhood Halloween reign supreme, the most feared monster
lives in a grown-up world with high stakes that serve only himself.
When Jack falls into Christmas Town and leaves overwhelmed by his excitement in this new
place, he gets the wild idea that he should try to make Christmas his own.
Without understanding the first thing about this strange new land, he attempts to engage
in research, but without ever asking any inhabitants of Christmas Town for their own input or advice.
He just takes an entire holiday, no questions asked.
"This year, Christmas will be ours!"
Of course, this arrogant need to just appropriate whatever he wants ends up in disaster, with
Jack being shot at as he attempts to spread Christmas cheer throughout the land.
It's only then, after he's almost blown apart, that he finally realizes he's in way over
his head, and he actually decides to ask Santa, who he kidnapped earlier, what the heck Christmas
is even about.
Santa, the person who's actually immersed in the traditions of Christmas Town, decides
to share those traditions with Jack.
It's a much more genuine interaction that Jack's attempts to straight-up steal the holiday,
and it introduces the good practice of seeking out the advice of those with firsthand knowledge
on a subject, rather than blundering your way through something blindly.
Kids might not see that message outright, but adults will notice, and hopefully the
nuance sticks with younger viewers as they grow older.
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