For those who enjoy a good seasonal classic,an underrated Tim Burton movie on Disney+is the perfect follow-up toThe Nightmare Before Christmas. As December draws on, audiences indulging in their favorite holiday films might be compelled to return to the stop-motion classic. Though even creatorsdebate whetherThe Nightmare Before Christmasis a Halloween movieor a Christmas one, streaming numbers show it’s a must-watch during both festivities. Fans watching it this month might be craving similar spooky vibes amidst the Christmas season, and this movie with a 91% rotten tomatoes score is just the thing.
WhileThe Nightmare Before Christmasreviews often praise Burton’s story and characters, they usually forget it was Henry Selick’s directorial debut before he became a hit withCoraline. Just as the 2009 Neil Gaiman adaptation is confused as a Burton movie, many glide past thetwo directors’ other collaboration, despite it being considered one of thebest stop-motion movies.Three years afterThe Nightmare Before Christmas, Burton and Selick released the one movie that matches their first project’s unique style, combining spooky elements with a charmingly cozy soundtrack, perfect to add to the holiday movie marathon.
James & The Giant Peach Is Available On Disney+, With Animation Perfect For Nightmare Before Christmas Fans
Tim Burton And Coraline Director’s Second Movie Together Mixes Live Action With Stop-Motion
Based on Roald Dahl’s book,James and the Giant Peachwas almost Pixar’s first movieinstead ofToy Story. Though Disney still adapted the story a year later, its animation ended up being in charge of the creators ofThe Nightmare Before Christmas. Directed by Henry Selick and produced by Tim Burton,James and the Giant Peachcombines stop-motion and live-action sequences that convey an uncanny world that assimilates the most alluring of nightmares. Available on Disney+, the movie tells ahypnotizing tale that shares many elements that makeThe Nightmare Before Christmasgreat.
James and the Giant Peach’s unusual horror can be overshadowed by the popular Halloween-coded creatures in other stop-motion movies by Burton or Selick.
After meeting a magical man who offers him an escape from his cruel aunts, James befriends the talking bugs living inside a giant peach, and they sail across the ocean to reach the “city where dreams come true.” At times scarier than its predecessor, the film sets itself apart by featuring its ownuniquely designed characters, an innovative mix of animation styles, and Academy-nominated songs. For all its originality,James and the Giant Peach’s aesthetic feels like something out of the same universe asThe Nightmare Before Christmas, even responsible for thetheory that Jack Skellington was a pirate.
Why James & The Giant Peach Is Such An Underrated Movie
Roald Dhal’s Horror Doesn’t Come From Popular Halloween Monsters
Though it’s recognized as one ofRoald Dhal’s best movie adaptations,James and the Giant Peachfalls more into a cult classic than into a must-watch every-year-type-movie. One reason for this could be thatit’s not holiday-themed likeThe Nightmare Before Christmas. Despite its scary elements, the story doesn’t belong to any particular season, featuring various climates but not one festivity. ThoughCorpse BrideandCoraline’s horror tropes make them perfect for Halloween without featuring the holiday,James and the Giant Peach’s spooky elements are unconventional.
The Nightmare Before Christmas Doesn’t Need A Sequel, But It Can Still Have A Future
The Nightmare Before Christmas isn’t a movie that needs a sequel, but one forgotten detail in it allows it to have a different future.
Dhal, known for both light and dark stories, commonly shied away from overusing common monsters such as ghosts, witches, vampires, etc.James and the Giant Peach’s unusual horror can be overshadowed by the popular Halloween-coded creatures in other stop-motion movies by Burton or Selick, likeThe Nightmare Before Christmas. Though a brief sequence features villainous pirate skeletons, the movie’s strangest bits see James’ fear become a giant rhino, and his aunts get mummified. Its uniqueness, however, is part of its attractiveness, andthose who enjoyThe Nightmare Before Christmas’ charming eeriness will surely like this movie by the same creators.
Cast
An orphan who lives with his two cruel aunts befriends anthropomorphic bugs who live inside a giant peach, and they embark on a journey to New York City.
