Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9786303122649 Format: Animated ISBN: 6303122647 Label: Walt Disney Video/Touchstone Home Video Manufacturer: Walt Disney Video/Touchstone Home Video Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Walt Disney Video/Touchstone Home Video Release Date: 1997-08-26 Running Time: 76 Studio: Walt Disney Video/Touchstone Home Video Theatrical Release Date: 1993-10-29
For those who never thought Disney would release a film in which Santa Claus is kidnapped and tortured, well, here it is! The full title is Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, which should give you an idea of the tone of this stop-action animated musical/fantasy/horror/comedy. It is based on characters created by Burton, the former Disney animator best known as the director of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, and the first two Batman movies. His benignly scary-funny sensibility dominates the story of Halloweentown resident Jack Skellington (voice by Danny Elfman, who also wrote the songs), who stumbles on a bizarre and fascinating alternative universe called ... Christmastown! Directed by Henry Selick (who later made the delightful James and the Giant Peach), this PG-rated picture has a reassuringly light touch. As Roger Ebert noted in his review, "some of the Halloween creatures might be a tad scary for smaller children, but this is the kind of movie older kids will eat up; it has the kind of offbeat, subversive energy that tells them wonderful things are likely to happen." --Jim Emerson
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating: Summary: This is Creepy Christmas at its Creepiest Comment: It had been a while since I had seen this movie, but you could tell that the quality was much better! I had forgotten how funny and weird and wacky "Nightmare" is; then I remembered that it was a Tim Burton movie. Customer Rating: Summary: Best Movie Ever! Comment: Best movie ever! I loved this movie when I was younger and now my daughter loves to watch it too Customer Rating: Summary: What high-def is all about Comment: Superb. Unbelievable. Watch this Blu-ray version to see things you never even knew were in the move. Every little shadow and shimmer of light. Truly glorious. Customer Rating: Summary: Perfect Comment: The clarity of the Blu Ray disc is unbelievable. Watching this on my Hitachi 57" HD TV along with my Sony Play Station 3, it was almost like I could reach out and touch the scenery. I am totally impressed with the sight and sound of this Blu Ray DVD. This disc should be the standard for the others.
Thanks
Mills Customer Rating: Summary: Stunning quality Comment: A problem with the review section is that is does not differentiate among the many releases and formats of this movie. I have a VHS copy that I must have had for over a decade. Many of the reviews are for various DVD transfers. But the one I am reviewing is the Blu-ray version.
The quality and clarity of this presentation is stunning. I could not have imagined I'd be seeing the level of detail that is presented here. If I had to name a fault, it was so clear that it made me aware of just how much the models have improved since this movie was made. In newer movies such as Corpse Bride, there's an improved feeling of flow to the animation. In this one, characters such as Sally appear as cruder toys when seen with all the detail. But those details are all consistent with the intent of the production.
Once I got beyond the initial surprise of the Blu-ray transfer, I was able to enjoy the movie more than ever before. The contrasts between the sets for Christmastown and Halloweentown reveal the true artistry in a way that the limitations of DVD did not allow. The transfer shows off the true differences between stop motion and the best of computer animation in a way that leaves one with a feeling of awe.
I won't go into the details of the movie itself, since it's been around long enough that others have done so exhaustively. I don't know what criteria critics are supposed to apply to decide when something is one of the greatest movies ever made. But in my subjective opinion, this one ranks among the best.
If you share my view of the film itself, getting the Blu-ray version is well worth it, even if you think the DVD version is already impressive.
