Arguing about the minutiae of pop culture is a proud tradition amongst nerds the world over, but there are a few subjects that seemingly shouldn’t be up for debate. Yet one of these subjects manages to rear its head every year, tearing the Internet apart like a baby Demogoron feasting on a Three Musketeer’s bar. It’s a question that has essentially split the internet into two, deeply partisan camps that refuse to find common ground with one another even though they’re fundamentally arguing over something they both love. That question is whether the stop-motion animated 1993 classic The Nightmare Before Christmas is a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie.
[brightcove video_id=”5630046663001″ brightcove_account_id=”3653334524001″ brightcove_player_id=“rJs2ZD8x”]While you might assume that, like Henry Clay, we can collectively reach some sort of Great Compromise on this matter, you would be wrong. Because as I learned in my research, nearly 60% of the Internet is wrong about this. There is, in fact, only one right answer about the true nature of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and it flies directly in the face of what director Henry Selick claimed at a post-screening Q&A so many moons ago. But let’s face it — parents are wrong about their kids all the time, just like the internet is deeply wrong about the real meaning of The Nightmare Before Christmas. It’s a Christmas movie for people who love Halloween, and I’ll explain why in the video above.
But what do you think? Is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie? Let us know in the comments below. Unless you’re going to say “It’s a Thanksgiving movie.” Don’t be that person. You’re better than that.
Image: DreamWorks Animation
Even more Nerdoween treats await you…
- How Hocus Pocus became a cult classic and essential Halloween viewing
- This chef managed to make a see-through slice of pumpkin pie
- We ranked every The Simpsons “Treehouse of Horror” episode
How do Ouija boards really work?
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Welcome to Nerdoween! Throughout the month of October, we’ll be celebrating everything spooky, macabre, and just plain weird. Nerdoween 2017 is presented by Alpha, our interactive membership service, which offers you exclusive content from Nerdist and Geek & Sundry, as well as a 10% discount on all of our merch.
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Dan Casey is the senior editor of Nerdist and the author of books about Star Wars and the Avengers. Follow him on Twitter (@DanCasey).
