Now that we have lost Lock (Paul Rubens), Shock (Catherine O’Hara), Santa (Edward Ivory) and Oogie Boogie (Ken Page) to the great beyond, it feels kind of strange to talk about The nightmare before christmas…
But we wouldn’t be true emos if we didn’t cover it, now would we ?
The consumerism empire of Jack Skellington
Released in 1993 and has now become a cult classic in stop motion animation.
Fun fact, Henry Selick directed it, NOT Tim Burton. He was behind the story though.
I dare you to find a goth world anywhere in the world that doesn’t have a Jack Skellington tattoo somewhere.
They also probably got it when they were 16 also.
The movie became a consumerism empire. From Loungefly, to decorating the haunted mansion in Disney parks, it sits on the spooky throne proudly.
I don’t think it’s necessary to go over the plot in details, I’m assuming anyone reading these lines has already seen it, right ?
A cult classic with a darker legacy
The characters designs are perfectly imperfect, the song are amazing (thanks to Danny Elfman) and the themes treated are interesting.
The tale old as time, the grass only seems greener on the other side.
Appreciate what you already have before it’s gone forever.
Oh, and don’t put dead things in wrapping paper. Yeah, that one doesn’t work for goth people.
The pumpkin king is voiced by Chris Sarandon (from Fright Night) and Danny Elfman (who also voiced Barrel) for the singing parts. To say those are catchy is an understatement.
33 years later and they are still blasted every single Halloween at my place.
But Nightmare shows some more layered tones once you look at it through adult eyes.
The dark reality of Dr. Finkelstein and Sally
From existential curiosity to some very selfish actions, the main point is embracing one’s true nature for Jack.
But Dr Finkelstein, who made himself a sex doll slave and then a bride, doesn’t seem to get talked about enough.
We’re talking about a kids’ movie here.
While not fully shown, it is deeply implied and doesn’t really sit well with me. And I know Igor is a nod to Dr Frankenstein’s servant, but… yeah. Let’s not go there.
Sally (voiced by Catherine O’Hara also) is held against her will, forced to cook and doesn’t seem to be able to even leave the house at will.
That’s very 50’s conservatism for a 1993 movie.
Aside from the witches and Shock, Sally is our only female lead, so as an audience she has to resonate with us… and seeing her poison her captor daily was a bold choice.
Why Jack and Sally are not “relationship goals”
I’m not going to make friends here, and I’ve already mentioned it in my Lisa Frankenstein review… BUT.
Can we collectively agree that Jack and Sally are NOT in a beautiful love story ?
She’s infatuated with him from the get go. He’s the most famous person in their town.
Imagine yourself locked in a house for extended periods of time and when you finally go out, Henry Cavill just casually strolls on by, of course it’s going to pique your interest.
That’s not the worst part though. He calls upon her as a seamstress for his Santa outfit.
We could have had a nice moment there, some lingering tension, or basically anything, but no.
He’s too obssessed with his new project to truly notice her as anything other than free labor.
He doesn’t even really take her warning into account, being too self centered to even consider he could fail.
The ending with their song isn’t deserved. There, I said it.
Yes he rescues her, but guess what ? He didn’t even know she was at Oogie Boogie’s, he was mainly rescuing Santa.
She was just lucky.
Jack doesn’t really even acknowledge her existence throughout the film.
His reaction to being with her at the end is opportunistic at best. She is pretty, she cares about him, so yeah, they’re together now. Congratulations ?
« We can live like Jack and Sally if we want », oh soooo through parasocialism ? No, thank you.
And I’m not even going to dig deep into the Oogie-Boogie controversies because it would be stepping on an entire community’s toes, and as white people, we already do that way too much.
While I still very much adore this movie and its aesthetic, and still watch it relentlessly, those plot points have become harder and harder to ignore. I might seem like a hater here, but believe me when I say I’m not.
I’m just sick of reading people blindly praising this movie without pointing out its flaws.
Or how some things aged while we did.
My rating : 4/5 bats
🦇🦇🦇🦇🎃
(Because it’s still legendary, even if the romance is toxic)