“T’was a long time ago, longer now than it seems, in a place that perhaps you’ve seen in your dreams. For the story you are about to be told took place in the holiday worlds of old. Now, you’ve probably wondered where holidays come from, if you haven’t I’d say it’s time you begun.”

And so begins Tim Burton’s fanciful tale of Pumpkin Kings, Oogie Boogies, and Sandy Claws, “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Filled with terrifyingly beautiful sights and one hell of a catchy soundtrack, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” tells the simple story of Halloween Town’s most famous citizen, Jack Skellington, and his desire to bring the colorful joy of Christmas Town to the German-expressionistic gloom of his community of ghouls through some of the most remarkable stop-motion animation ever seen.

Told in the same style of the animated holiday musicals Burton was essentially thumbing his nose at when he first conceived of the project during his time at Disney, such as the Rankin-Bass productions “Frosty the Snowman,” and “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” this unique fairy tale has become a revered holiday classic all its own and rightfully so. The film’s bone thin hero, Jack, is a classic Burton character in every way. Like many of Burton’s misfits and outcasts, Jack’s actions, such as kidnapping Santa Claus and hijacking his gift-giving route, may be questionable, his intentions are always sincere. And just like the characters in the films of holidays’ past, Jack’s plight is one that just about everyone can relate to and connect with.