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Toku King
11-16-2007, 01:40 PM
After a long absence, the next chapter of 'Toku Reviews' is now here for its third go. But now, it's time to review an odder kind of movie. One close to this reviewer's heart, called "The Nightmare Before Christmas".

Now, most people should know about this movie by now, whether they saw it or not. Not only does it have some of the most popular songs in movie history, but its oddness and weird characters make it extremely famous.

The story of "Nightmare" is that Jack Skellington, the great master of Halloween, becomes bored with his holiday, and accidentally stumbled upon a gateway to the North Pole, where he meets the one and only Santa Clause. Jack thinks that Santa deserves a break, and, excitedly, replaces the fat man. But our misguided protagonist begins to understand not only the spirit of the holidays, but also responsibility as everything crumbles, and it's up to him to set things right.

The story is extremely original and entertaining. It is not extremely predictable, but gives you that feeling of satisfaction at the end.

One of the best things about this movie is the songs. They set the mood for the entire movie, and never switch tones. "This Is Halloween", "Jack's Lament", "What's This", "Sally's Song", "Kidnap The Santi-Clause", and "The Oogie Boogie Song" are some of the greatest songs I have ever heard in movies to date. The best part is that those are basically all of the songs sung in the film. That's right. It's just that good as a musical.

The characters are incredibly likable, and you really care for them in their misadventures. Jack Skellington is immensely likable, if not relatable in certain cases. His child like charm and suave character gives you someone to root for. Other characters like Sally, the Mayor, and Santa Clause give a lot of balance to the movie, and at the same time add some things to it. The Oogie Boogie Man is one of my favorite Disney villains of all time. He just oozes out evil and creepiness in the best ways possible. His henchmen were certainly fun to watch.

The animation, even for now, is fantastic. While a little slow at some points, those parts are very unobvious, and are barely recognizable. The fact that it is so inventive and 'new' adds even more to the charm.

So, overall, this movie may be one of the best musicals, animated movies, dark comedies, and overall movies of all time, and in all four of those categories as well. It's just that good. If you haven't seen it yet, try as best as you can to. It will only bring joy and life into movies, something that is hard to find these days, especially when it comes to Disney movies.

FINAL GRADE
10/10
A+

jesse_custer
11-16-2007, 02:20 PM
I tried watching it a couple of years ago, but it didn't captivate me at all. Just seemed like another musical, only this time animated with some dark humor. I also didn't think the music varied enough.

JohnPopa
11-16-2007, 02:23 PM
I tried watching it a couple of years ago, but it didn't captivate me at all. Just seemed like another musical, only this time animated with some dark humor. I also didn't think the music varied enough.

I like the movie a lot but the music is fairly pedestrian -- tuneful, but still pedestrian -- with a lot of clunky lyrics and forced awkward rhymes.

Toku King
11-16-2007, 02:30 PM
It was never forced, and is always fun to watch.

MaxofSteel
11-16-2007, 02:37 PM
My freshman year roomate in college would watch the DVD constantly. I'd wager to guess at least once everyday, especially around Halloween.

"This is Halloween" is permanently etched into my mind.

It's still a well made movie though, and I appreciate it more on a technical level being an animation student myself.

The Zapper
11-16-2007, 02:57 PM
It was never forced, and is always fun to watch.

I love the movie. LOVE IT. I have a Nightmare Before Christmas wine class set (4 total) and a glow in the dark clock (all Christmas presents) and I still enjoy the movie. That being said, the movie and it's products have become synonyms with Hot Topic. So many goth kids and wannabe goths are so into The Nightmare Before Christmas it's no surprise that it has a backlash against it.

Thorlief
11-16-2007, 04:14 PM
I can't possibly understand how anyone could not appreciate the movie. It's funny, colourful (in a way) and the music is good enough.