The Nightmare Before Christmas light entertainment while marveling at how adept Hollywood has become at these techniques. There are songs, laughs, and a little romance. In short, "The Nightmare Before Christmas" does what it intends to: entertain." Desson Thomson of "The Washington Post" enjoyed stylistic features in common with Oscar Wilde, German Expressionism, the Brothers Grimm and "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". Michael A. Morrison discusses the influence of Dr. Seuss' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" on the film, writing that Jack parallels the Grinch and Zero parallels Max, the Grinch's dog. Philip Nel writes that the film "challenges the wisdom of adults through
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! high mountain just north of the town of Whoville, home of the merry and warm-hearted Whos. His only companion is his unloved, but loyal dog, Max. From his cave, the Grinch can hear the noisy Christmas festivities that take place in Whoville. Continuously annoyed, he devises a wicked scheme to steal their presents, trees, and food for their Christmas feast. He crudely disguises himself as Santa Claus, and forces Max, disguised as a reindeer, to drag a sleigh down the mountain towards Whoville. Once at Whoville, the Grinch slides down the chimney of one house and steals all of the