Disney Re-releasing Nightmare Before Christmas In 3D

Disney has decided to re-release the 1993 film The Nightmare Before Christmas back into theaters in 3D technology.

The film, created by Tim Burton, will hit theaters on October 20th in the updated version. The Hollywood Reporter adds Nightmare marks the second film being released in 3D after last year's Chicken Little; and it did well for the Mouse at the box office. In 81 locations, the total was a reported 3-1 higher at the 3D theaters.

Disney will start releasing The Nightmare Before Christmas in theaters October 20th.

Starring: Chris Sarandon, Danny Elfman, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Paul Reubens, Ken Page, Ed Ivory, Susan McBride, Debi Durst, Greg Proops, Kerry Katz, Randy Crenshaw, Sherwood Ball, Carmen Twillie, Catherine O'Hara

Synopsis: When the king of Halloween Town, Jack Skellington, gets bored of his job preparing for Halloween every year, he discovers Christmas Town and is inspired to take control of Christmas season for a change. Unfortunately his ghoulish subjects have difficulty getting the festive holiday quite right.

Meanwhile, Sally, a pretty maid who takes care of her creator, Dr. Finklestein, is trying to escape from her confines. She worries for Jack and foresees his plans will end in ruin.

This is a re-release of the 1993 film -- digitally scanned and converted into 3-D.

Review from 1993: If you were to lop off the top of Tim Burton's head and take a peek inside - not something I'm in any way advocating by the way - I like to think the contents would look something like 'The Nightmare Before Christmas'.

This animated masterpiece is the full embodiment of the worlds hinted at in previous Burton projects such as 'Beetlejuice', 'Edward Scissorhands' and the first two 'Batman' movies. But it's also much more than that. It's the antidote to every overly-sugary Chrimbo-flick ever made. It's the number one example of how good quality animation can be used to make any stretch of the imagination seem real. And, like so many of Burton's movies, it's macabre and morbid, but also surprisingly uplifting.

Chris Sarandon is the voice of Jack Skellington, the spindly-legged resident of the ghoulish Halloween Town. While walking in the woods one day, he discovers a doorway to Christmas Town, where he's overcome by the spirit of goodwill shown by the cheery residents with their decorated trees and snow-covered streets. In fact, so taken is he by the idea of Chrimbo, that upon returning home he convinces his fellow townsfolk to abandon Halloween and start preparing for yuletide instead.

The only trouble is, his plans - which include having "San-dee Claws" kidnapped - aren't entirely appreciated by the rest of the world. Particularly when small children discover severed heads and giant snakes in their stockings instead of the usual array of pressies.

Director Henry Selick (you can also see his work in 'James and the Giant Peach') is the man behind making Burton's vision come true, using the stop-start animation technique to brilliantly create a world packed with creepy characters.

Danny Elfman, meanwhile, chips in with a string of marvellous songs with razor-sharp lyrics to turn this into a dark musical from the same file as 'Little Shop of Horrors'. Elfman also supplies several of the voices, including that of Jack himself when it's time for another song.

Coming in at a short 76 minutes, you needn't worry about kids losing interest. Every scene is both a visual and a musical treat, and there's so much going on in the shadows that you'll be happy to watch it over and over again. But be warned - although it's a PG, you can bet that some kids (and quite possibly some adults) will find it just a teensy-weensy bit too scary. Personally, that's just another one of the many things I love about it.

DVD Extras: Deleted scenes, animated sequences, behind-the-scenes featurette, storyboards and image gallery, an audio commentary, and some excellent original trailers.

*Review by Review by Gary Panton, Movie Gazette