This is not a film directed by Tim Burton as many people think, it's directed by Henry Selick. Burton has though co-written the script and also produced the film.
We are introduced to the somewhat gloomy town called Halloweentown where Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon) is the mastermind behind almost everything being done there.
Halloweentown is filled with different kinds of 'dark creatures' sucgh as monsters, ghosts, ghouls, goblins, vampires, werewolves and witches, a rather normal town in other words.
Jack is The Pumpkin King and it's he who organizes the celebration every Halloween but after all these years he wants to do something else, create a new tradition. A good thought!
When wandering in the forest with his dog, he finds a cluster of trees with a door representing a certain holiday and opens the door shaped as a Christmas tree. This leads him to 'Christmas Town'.
There he studies how they celebrate Christmas and now he returns to 'his town' in order to make the others understand and adapt this Christmas celebration. Unfortunately they only make references to Halloween whereby Jack has to become more explicit.
Sally (Catherine O'Hara) is a rag doll-woman who is in love with Jack and she is able to see that this, his 'experiment', is not going to end in a good way.
She tries to warn him but as he's neither aware of her feelings for him nor interested in listening to anyone in all his obsession, he continues his planning.
He assigns three 'scary children' - Lock, Shock and Barrel - to bring Santa Claus to town and when the latter arrives - being kidnapped - Jack tells him about his plans of taking over Christmas. Santa is not happy about it at all.
In spite of Jack's instructions to guard Santa, the three kidnappers deliver Santa to Oogie Boogie (Ken Page), a gambling-addicted bogeyman who wants to play games with Santa's life on stake.
Meanwhile Jack embarks on his journey to Christmas Town on his coffin-like sleigh being pulled by skeleton reindeers.
Like Santa he starts to deliver presents to children but the presents consists of shrunken heads, Christmas tree-eating snakes and the like, wherefore Jack is being looked upon as an impostor, trying to look as Santa - and this is of course true!
Sally tries to free Santa and at the same time Jack is shot down by military forces during his 'raid' towards the children.
He returns to his own town and now starts a fight with Oogie Boogie, literally tearing the latter apart.
Santa is able to return to Christmas Town and repair the damage done by Jack and Jack and Sally becomes a couple - of course.
This is a very interesting and charming film, a bit 'noir' but not at all too gloomy as the content might indicate - at least not for those of you who don't prefer romantic comedies or 'Sound of Music' and the like.
First of all we get references to all kinds of 'monsters' and famous horror figures, secondly a love story, thirdly a rather thrilling 'crime' story and so on.
The drawings and effects are very well realized and we've got a hero making mistakes but also trying to make things right.
We both liked this film.
We are introduced to the somewhat gloomy town called Halloweentown where Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon) is the mastermind behind almost everything being done there.
Halloweentown is filled with different kinds of 'dark creatures' sucgh as monsters, ghosts, ghouls, goblins, vampires, werewolves and witches, a rather normal town in other words.
Jack is The Pumpkin King and it's he who organizes the celebration every Halloween but after all these years he wants to do something else, create a new tradition. A good thought!
When wandering in the forest with his dog, he finds a cluster of trees with a door representing a certain holiday and opens the door shaped as a Christmas tree. This leads him to 'Christmas Town'.
There he studies how they celebrate Christmas and now he returns to 'his town' in order to make the others understand and adapt this Christmas celebration. Unfortunately they only make references to Halloween whereby Jack has to become more explicit.
Sally (Catherine O'Hara) is a rag doll-woman who is in love with Jack and she is able to see that this, his 'experiment', is not going to end in a good way.
She tries to warn him but as he's neither aware of her feelings for him nor interested in listening to anyone in all his obsession, he continues his planning.
He assigns three 'scary children' - Lock, Shock and Barrel - to bring Santa Claus to town and when the latter arrives - being kidnapped - Jack tells him about his plans of taking over Christmas. Santa is not happy about it at all.
In spite of Jack's instructions to guard Santa, the three kidnappers deliver Santa to Oogie Boogie (Ken Page), a gambling-addicted bogeyman who wants to play games with Santa's life on stake.
Meanwhile Jack embarks on his journey to Christmas Town on his coffin-like sleigh being pulled by skeleton reindeers.
Like Santa he starts to deliver presents to children but the presents consists of shrunken heads, Christmas tree-eating snakes and the like, wherefore Jack is being looked upon as an impostor, trying to look as Santa - and this is of course true!
Sally tries to free Santa and at the same time Jack is shot down by military forces during his 'raid' towards the children.
He returns to his own town and now starts a fight with Oogie Boogie, literally tearing the latter apart.
Santa is able to return to Christmas Town and repair the damage done by Jack and Jack and Sally becomes a couple - of course.
This is a very interesting and charming film, a bit 'noir' but not at all too gloomy as the content might indicate - at least not for those of you who don't prefer romantic comedies or 'Sound of Music' and the like.
First of all we get references to all kinds of 'monsters' and famous horror figures, secondly a love story, thirdly a rather thrilling 'crime' story and so on.
The drawings and effects are very well realized and we've got a hero making mistakes but also trying to make things right.
We both liked this film.
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