10 Best Christmas Horror Movies

Although there has always been debate over whether The Nightmare Before Christmas is a Christmas film or a Halloween film, in actuality it's both a quintessential Halloween classic and a quintessential Christmas classic as the plot captures the spirit of both holidays equally throughout its 76 minute run time, which is very impressive.

The story follows Jack Skellington, the king of a fantasy land called Halloween Town, who stumbles through a portal to another realm called Christmas Town and becomes obsessed with that holiday. Although it is a child-friendly movie, it does include dark and horror-themed elements, in true Tim Burton style.

Directed by Henry Selick and based on a poem written by Tim Burton in 1982, the movie did well critically and financially, earning $91 million at the box office. Its critical reception has only gotten more and more positive over the years, and is now considered an animated classic for its highly original and creative approach to visual effects and storytelling.

The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, which was a first for an animated movie. It is now widely considered to be an iconic animated classic.