These are what we call the 'YMMV items.' Things that some people find in this work. We call them 'your mileage might vary' because not everyone sees these things in the same way. This starts discussions in the trope lists, a thing we don't want. Please use the discussion page if you'd like to discuss any of these items.
YMMV: The Nightmare Before Christmas
Accidental Innuendo: The song "What's This" has quite a few passages that, when listened to in the proper state of mind, sound like they're describing something completely different.
Complete Monster: Oogie Boogie. Although played by the boisterously playful Ken Page, he's still a psychotic, sadistic serial killer who has the bodies of his victims acting up as arts and playthings. He's pretty much Jeffrey Dahmer and Ed Gein taking on the Disney universe.
He was banished by Halloweentown and seems like the Mayor is seriously afraid of him so you could probably imagine what a monster literally and metaphorically must have been.
This is probably why the promotional material for Coraline only said it was "by the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas", without specifying who said director was and inevitably leading people to assume it was Tim Burton.
Draco in Leather Pants: Oogie Boogie tend to get this a lot, often making Jack into a bully to do so. Also, Jack is probably one of the rare heroes (if not the only one) who gets this. Fans bash the military for shooting Jack down, despite the fact that they were justified in doing so.
Dr. Finkelstein gets the opposite of this. Yes, he has a rather . . . questionable and dysfuntional relationship with Sally, but this does not excuse the Fan Fic writers for writing him into a freaking rapist.
Ear Worm: Pretty much any song, but especially "This Is Halloween", "What's This?" and "Oogie Boogie's Song".
The soundtrack has a brief Santa-narrated coda not found in the film, where years later Santa drops by Jack's place for a visit and bluntly asks Jack if he'd do it all over again, knowing then what he knows now. Jack's gleeful reply? "Wouldn't you?" So it seems to not be "Ambition is Evil" so much as "Jack's idea of fun is not the World's idea of fun."
Lost Aesop: Maybe? Consider these lines from "Poor Jack":
Well, what the heck, I went and did my best And, by God, I really tasted something swell And for a moment, why, I even touched the sky And at least I left some stories they can tell, I did And for the first time since I don't remember when I felt just like my old bony self again
which suggest the moral "Break out of your comfort zone once in a while; even if it doesn't work it may give you a fresh perspective!" (Still a bit warped considering he nearly causes a major disaster...)
Then there's Oogie's Shout Out comment to Santa, sounding like Oogie's going to rape him.
The Show Some Leg scene! Seriously, that's probably the reason for the Oogie/Sally ship!
"Funny Aneurysm" Moment: The Mayor ends up falling down the stairs of Jack's house trying to get Jack. This is hilarious until you realize that the Mayor's voice actor Glenn Shadix died because of blunt trauma to the head following a fall at his Birmingham condo.
Germans Love David Hasselhoff: The Halloween Towners LOVE the idea of Christmas Town. Too bad they don't have a clue.
Also, Nightmare is Big in Japan, which explains why Halloween Town is featured throughout the Kingdom Hearts series.
It's also very well-known and popular in the America's, despite being a Cult Classic in other parts of the world.
Ho Yay: Of all the citizens of Halloween Town, the Mayor appears to be the most worried for Jack when he goes missing — and it doesn't look like just as a professional and/or as a friend, either.
In his defense, there are only 365 more days until NEXT Halloween.
Especially now that Jack Skellington's head is the icon for Nightmare Fuel on the top-of-page linky things, because High Octane Nightmare Fuel trope is renamed as "Nightmare Fuel", and people are still working on the issues.
It's less that specific parts of the movie are Nightmare Fuel, and more that the entire movie is scary to varying degrees.
The Problem with Licensed Games: Averted, mostly. As Halloween Town has made most of its appearances in Kingdom Hearts, it's been pretty good. As for the PS2 game...decent, but it would have made a better movie sequel than a game.
Tear Jerker: The part following Jack being shot down, where we see all the kids crying as the police announce that they've yet to find the actual Santa Claus and Christmas will most likely be cancelled.
As well Jack's song after he's been shot down and landed in the graveyard... well, until he decides to fix things and not mope around feeling sorry for himself, realizing that his holiday is Halloween, not Christmas, and that even though he failed he did his best and he's ready to give his all for the next Halloween.
Uncanny Valley: Usually the ones quoted for this trope in the Halloween Town citizens, but a lot of the fans think the elves are creepier. They're too cheerful, dammit!
The human children are creepier than most things hanging around Halloween Town.
Have you ever seen fanart of Jack drawn realistically? Dear Lord, there's a reason why Jack is a cartoony skeleton!
Vindicated by History: It was a modest hit in 1993, and well-received by critics, but it wasn't near as big as Disney's in-house fare at the time (Aladdin arrived the previous year, The Lion King the next). This was partially because Disney was nervous about the Nightmare Fuel; they initially released it under their Touchstone Pictures banner (which was reserved for mature films and the edgier Who Framed Roger Rabbit). But now it's arguably a much more popular film than any of Disney's post-Lion King animated efforts, and they've since allowed it to be released under the Disney banner itself.
What an Idiot: No amount of naiveness can excuse Jack from actually trusting Lock, Shock, and Barrel to take care of Sandy and not hand him over to Oogie.
What Do You Mean, It's for Kids?: Several parents won't let their little children watch it because it looks too scary, while the actual film, outside of the kooky visuals and character designs, doesn't actually contain a lot which is unsuitable for a younger audience.
The Woobie: All those who feel sorry for Henry Selick because he never gets credit for this film, raise your hand.
Sally is one too. All the things she does for someone who doesn't reciprocate her feelings (at first) is heartbreaking. *
Though note that "not-reciprocate-Sally's-feelings" does NOT equal "hardly-notices-her".
Jack might be considered one too. A guy who gets tired of his job might sound whiny, but not when you consider that he lives in a town where it's all about said job. Put that on top of the fact that a lot of the responsibility for Halloween is on his shoulders, and all you have to say is "That's rough, buddy."
Also since Jack is Dem Bones he might be Really 700 Years Old, who knows how long he was doing the same thing every year. 10 years? 50 years? 100 years? Since Halloween was created?
Even Oogie Boogie's death makes you feel sorry for the guy!
And he's also the biggest in-universe celebrity. That's got to be exhausting.
