6 Tim Burton Films You Need To Stream This Halloween

Tim Burton and his films have become known as the epitome of spooky season. Scroll down to see which quirky movies of his you need to stream to get into the Halloween spirit!

It’s sad to see spooky season ending as our minds shift to the holiday season. But before you switch your mind completely, go grab your favorite candy and get ready for some Halloween throwbacks that you can stream and enjoy one last week. Tim Burton has been recognized by all for his ability to bring his viewers into another world through horror, fantasy, and stop motion pictures. See below the films of Burton’s revolved around Halloween that you need to watch before this season runs out!

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Get ready because this is Halloween! The Nightmare Before Christmas was released in 1993 where Burton was the producer for the project and not the director. The story was based on the poem: ‘Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas,’ written by Burton with his own twist on the classic Christmas poem when he was an animator for Disney.

The Nightmare Before Christmas explores Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovering the neighboring Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion and things get out of hand. The stop motion picture took three years to perfect and has been nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Score – Motion Picture and an Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Although there was a second novel published this year on the beloved film, Long Live The Pumpkin Queen: Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Burton has made his point clear that he does not want the film to have a sequel.

Not only has The Nightmare Before Christmas caught the eyes of children and adults alike, but it also has sparked couples costumes for Jack Skellington and Sally. On a personal note: in elementary school, my parents dressed up as Sally and Jack and all I remember is that my siblings and I were terrified!

If you want to get into the spirit for this Halloween season go stream Burton’s animated classic on Disney+.

Edward Scissorhands

If you’re looking for something that’s not terrifying like A Nightmare On Elm Street and something creepier than X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands is the perfect film for you. Edward Scissorhands was released in 1990 and explores Johnny Depp as an artificial man, who was incompletely constructed and left with scissors for hands and leads a solitary life. Then one day, a suburban lady meets him and introduces him to her world.

Burton and Depp are known to have worked on many collaborations together, but this was the film where the two began their partnership. The character was inspired by a drawing Tim Burton had done when he was a teenager. It depicted a thin, solemn man with long, sharp blades for fingers. Edward Scissorhands was also nominated for an Oscar for best makeup.

If you’re looking for a film that resonates with how physical appearance is played throughout society, then go stream Edward Scissorhands this spooky season on Disney+ and Amazon Prime.

Frankenweenie

ATTENTION: no one try this at home! We all have that one beloved pet for whom we would do anything possible to bring them back. Burton brings this idea in to reality in his 2012 animated film Frankenweenie. In this pet version of Frankenstein, Frankenweenie explores when a boy’s beloved dog passes away suddenly, he attempts to bring the animal back to life through a powerful science experiment. Although this mastermind has made animated films prior, Frankenweenie has become the first of Burton’s animations to not be a musical. The pet version of Frankenstein is the purrfect way to get into the Halloween spirit this year.

Before becoming a feature-length animation, the film was originally a live-action short produced by Burton in 1984. The film stars Shelley Duvall who is also known in the horror universe for playing Jack Nicholson’s wife in the hit movie The Shining.

When the film was first released, speculation flew from fans that Burton’s other two stop-motion animated films The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride all took place in a shared continuity, and tell one big story spanning over several centuries!

If you want to compare the live-action short with the animated feature film, make sure to check out both Frankenweenies on Disney+ as you snack on your Halloween candy.

Corpse Bride

Although the wedding vow goes, “Till Death Do Us Part”, Burton twists this saying by having our main characters accidentally wed after death! What other way to get into the Halloween spirit than to dive into a film that’s revolved all around ghosts and the afterlife? Corpse Bride was released in 2005 and is based on when a shy groom practices his wedding vows in the inadvertent presence of a deceased young woman, she rises from the grave assuming he has married her. The film was nominated for an Oscar in 2006 for Best Animated Feature Film of the year.

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Not only has the film been a Halloween classic of Burton’s over the years, but the main character has become a very popular Halloween costume. Corpse Bride delves into the themes we all deal with as humans, including unrequited love, self-consciousness, hope in the face of despair, living up to societal and familial standards, and the fear of the unusual.

If you’re looking for love this spooky season, this is the perfect film for you to dive into. Corpse Bride can be streamed on HBO Max and Hulu for your date night from home.

Sleepy Hollow

One of the most well known Halloween tales is that of the headless horseman. Burton takes his twist on the classic tale by having Johnny Depp back again starring as Ichabod Crane who is sent to the town of Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people, with the culprit being the legendary apparition, The Headless Horseman. The film was released in 1999 with an Oscar win for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration.

If you’re on the east coast, make sure that instead of just watching the film to go visit the town of Sleepy Hollow in New York to get into the spirit of Halloween. Hopefully, the legends aren’t true and you won’t see the headless horseman beheading and rummaging throughout the town!

You can catch Sleepy Hollow this Halloween on Amazon Prime.

Beetlejuice

If you loved Catherine O’Hara in Schitt’s Creek and The Nightmare Before Christmas go watch her in Beetlejuice with the most iconic scene of her singing Day-O at the dinner table. Beetlejuice is a staple film you need to watch to get into the spirit of the season. The film was released in 1988 and explores the spirits of a deceased couple who are harassed by an unbearable family that has moved into their home. They hire a malicious spirit to help drive them out so they can rest in peace.

The film is actually Michael Keaton’s favorite film that he starred in, and if the lead actor is saying that… then it has to be great! Beetlejuice won an Oscar for Best Makeup in 1989. In 2018, fans loved the film so much that the production was turned into a musical for broadway.

@iheartradiobway Can you say obsessed with #beetlejuicebway three times? 🪲🖤💚💜 Video credit: @beetlejuicebway #BeetlejuiceBroadway #Beetlejuice #Broadway #Musical ♬ original sound – iHeartRadio Broadway

As people continue to keep their spirits high for a sequel to Burton’s masterpiece, it seems that fans will not have to wait much longer because Plan B Entertainment, Brad Pitt’s production company, has signed on to make our collection dreams come true. The only thing that we know so far is that Keaton and Winona Ryder have signed back on to reprise their roles.

If you want to check out the original Beetlejuice before seeing the play and potential sequel, make sure to keep a lookout on HBO MAX.

Tim Burton is an exceptional filmmaker when it comes to bringing these imaginative and playful concepts to the big screen. Make sure to have a safe and healthy Halloween, and let us know on Twitter @AfterBuzz TV which one of Burton’s films you will be watching to get into the Halloween spirit!