The Peanuts Movie (2015) Online

2015 Noah Schnapp Bill Melendez Hadley Belle Miller Steve Martino

Original Title :: The Peanuts Movie
Genre :: Movie / Animation / Comedy / Drama / Family
Year :: 2015
Directror :: Steve Martino
Cast :: Noah Schnapp,Bill Melendez,Hadley Belle Miller
Writer :: Craig Schulz,Bryan Schulz
Budget :: $99,000,000
Type :: Movie
Time :: 1h 28min
Rating :: 7.1/10

Snoopy embarks upon his greatest mission as he and his team take to the skies to pursue their archnemesis, while his best pal Charlie Brown begins his own epic quest back home to win the love of his life.

The Peanuts Movie (2015) Online

Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the whole gang are back in a heartwarming story. A new girl with red hair moves in across the street, and Charlie Brown falls in love. Now he tries to impress the Little Red-Haired Girl to make her feel like he's a winner, but Charlie Brown just can't do anything right. At the same time, Snoopy is writing a love story about his continuing battles with The Red Baron. Then Charlie Brown has accomplished something never done before. He gets a perfect score on his standardized test, but there has been a mistake. Should he tell the truth and risk losing all of his newfound popularity? Can Charlie Brown get the girl to love him, or will he go back to being a nothing?

Cast overview, first billed only:
	Trombone Shorty	-	Miss Othmar / Mrs. Little Red-Haired Girl (voice) (as Troy 'Trombone Shorty' Andrews)
	Rebecca Bloom	-	Marcie (voice)
	Anastasia Bredikhina	-	Patty (voice)
	Francesca Capaldi	-	The Little Red-Haired Girl / Frieda (voice) (as Francesca Angelucci Capaldi)
	Kristin Chenoweth	-	Fifi (voice)
	Alexander Garfin	-	Linus (voice) (as Alex Garfin)
	Noah Johnston	-	Schroeder (voice)
	Bill Melendez	-	Snoopy / Woodstock
	Hadley Belle Miller	-	Lucy (voice)
	Micah Revelli	-	Little Kid (voice)
	Noah Schnapp	-	Charlie Brown (voice)
	Venus Schultheis	-	Peppermint Patty (voice) (as Venus Omega Schultheis)
	Mariel Sheets	-	Sally (voice)
	Madisyn Shipman	-	Violet (voice)
	A.J. Tecce	-	Pigpen (voice) (as AJ Tecce)

After Charlie Brown becomes popular, the kids struggle over who gets his attention. Shermy (who has not appeared in the movie to this point) grabs his arm and says, "I saw him first!" In the first Peanuts strip printed, Charlie Brown walks by and Shermy is the first character to see him.

Snoopy's noises and Woodstock's chirpings are taken by Bill Melendez's performances from earlier Peanuts animated productions.

First Peanuts film since the death of creator Charles M. Schulz in 2000.

The first theatrical Peanuts movie in thirty-five years.

Various steps were taken with the animation to emulate the original look and feel of the comics and the previous animated specials. The characters are animated in a more limited manner. Also, the trees and other foliage in the background are static and never billow or sway in the wind.

Charles Schulz wanted to call his comic strip "Charlie Brown" (it had started out as "Good Ol' Charlie Brown"), but the editors were worried about legal action from people who had that name. It started publication as "Lil' Folks", but because that was the original title of someone else's strip, his syndicate forced the title "Peanuts" on him. He hated the title (partly because it made people assume the character's name was Peanut) and didn't use it in any of the specials or movies, which were titled "Charlie Brown" or "Snoopy". This is the first "Peanuts" feature to carry that title.

The script was created in 2006 by Charles M. Schulz's son Craig Schulz and grandson Bryan Schulz.

The Little Red-Haired Girl is number four on the list of student's rankings on the standardized test, and her name is indicated as "Heather Wold". "Heather" was the name given to the Little Red-Haired Girl in It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown (1977). Donna Wold was named after Charles M. Schulz's real-life red-haired girlfriend, who turned down his marriage proposal in 1950 (the same year the comic strip began) and upon whom the character in "Peanuts" was based. (However, Wold and Schulz remained friends until Schulz's death in 2000.)

This movie was released fifty years after A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), the first Peanuts animated special, and 65 years after the first Peanuts comic strip.

When Snoopy enters his dog house to fetch the instructions in order to help Charlie Brown learn to dance, he throws a bunch of stuff out. Amongst those, is the painting "Starry Night", by Vincent van Gogh. This is a reference to a running gag in the comic strips, when Snoopy is mentioned to owning a Van Gogh (though the painting is never seen).

Kristin Chenoweth, who voices Fifi, won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Sally Brown in the 1999 Broadway revival of the musical "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown".

Schulz, inspired by his son's love for World War I airplane models, created the Red Baron as Snoopy's nemesis. A model triplane is featured prominently in the movie.

Steve Martino was chosen as director because the Schulz family was impressed with his adaptation of the Dr. Seuss book Horton (2008).

The moving company is named "Mendelson & Melendez", after Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez, the long-time executive producers of the animated Peanuts television specials.

While the World War I Flying Ace is struggling to return to his airfield, he is briefly shown sporting a wiry mustache as he is crawling through the desert. This is a reference to Snoopy's brother Spike, who was named after Charles Schulz' childhood dog and appeared infrequently in the comics. Spike wore the same mustache and lived in the desert country near Needles, California.

The dance moves the kids have are the same ones from A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), with two differences:

Schroeder's dance was newly animated, since he played the piano in the Christmas special instead of dancing.
Violet and Patty have swapped dance styles from the Christmas special.

The Beagle Scouts, Snoopy's bird friends, who are all the same species as Woodstock, appear in this movie as the pit crew for Snoopy's plane in the World War I Flying Ace sequences. The birds are named Conrad, Bill, Olivier, and Harriet. In the comics, Harriet is generally portrayed as the toughest, while Olivier (likely the bird who appears to mess up constantly in the movie) is the dumbest.

Charlie Brown hands Patty and Violet a comic book with Spark Plug the Horse from the comic strip "Barney Google and Snuffy Smith" on the cover. Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz's nickname was "Sparky" after this character.

Snoopy's siblings, Andy, Olaf, Marbles, Spike, and Belle, appear in the mid-credits scene. Two additional siblings, Molly and Rover, were created for the televised specials, but not by Charles M. Schulz, and are omitted from the scene.

Steve Martino and the animators spent over a year looking at Charles M. Schulz' "Peanuts" comics to help translate the hand-drawn style of the comic strip to 3D digital animation.

On the back of the "Spark Plug" comic book Charlie Brown recommends to Patty and Violet, a "Lil' Folks" panel can be briefly seen with Patty and Shermy. "Li'l Folks" was a single-panel comic strip drawn by Charles M. Schulz from 1947 to 1950, and a precursor to the "Peanuts" strip.

Lucy mentions real estate when talking to Charlie Brown about the Little Red-Haired Girl, a recurring topic on her mind in various media throughout the years.

This the first Peanuts film created with 3D digital animation.

There is a series of numbers on the test rank list for Charlie Brown's class, 555 95472, which is actually the name of one of Charlie Brown's classmates. 5 (as he called himself) first appeared in the Peanuts comic strip from September 30 to October 4, 1963. He has two little sisters, 3 and 4.

This and Snoopy Come Home (1972) are the only Peanuts films without Charlie Brown's name in the title.

Blue Sky Studios' tenth theatrical feature film..

The Little Red-Haired Girl's face is not shown until the end of the movie.

In the television specials, Linus is a year younger than Charlie Brown, and the same age as Sally. But in this movie, he's a year older than Sally, and the same age as the rest of the gang.

This marks the first movie from Blue Sky Studios to be nominated for a Golden Globe Awards.

Released theatrically in theaters with the "Ice Age" short Cosmic Scrat-tastrophe (2015).

Francesca Capaldi, who voiced the Little Red-Haired Girl, also has red hair.

Was on the short list of films eligible for a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

In the promotion of this movie, there were specific reassurances to the property's fans that its score would include compositions of the musician most famous for his music for the property, Vince Guaraldi, where appropriate. The music can be heard in numerous sections, such as the opening skating pond scene that includes "Skating" and "Linus and Lucy".

Charlie Brown's attempt to write a book report on Leo Tolstoy's "War and Peace" was also a plot point in the 1986 special Happy New Year, Charlie Brown (1986). Unlike this movie, in which Charlie's report is supposedly a well-written analysis, in the special, he received a D-. "War and Peace" was Charles Schulz' favorite novel.

On the list of test results, the names Violet Gray and Patricia Reichardt appear. These are the last names of Violet and Peppermint Patty in the comic strip, though they were used only once and twice in fifty years, respectively.

In the comic strip, many of the children are in different classes, and Peppermint Patty, Franklin are students at a different school across town. , In this film, they are all in the same class.

While Marcie's surname was never given in the comic strip, it was given as "Johnson" in You're in the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown! (1994). In this movie, it is "Carlin."

Fifi's first movie appearance was in Life Is a Circus, Charlie Brown (1980). She also served as love interest for Snoopy. She was never in the comic strip.

Blue Sky Studios' only film to not include a main antagonist.

The first Peanuts movie to be distributed by Twentieth Century Fox.

This movie was originally scheduled for release on November 25, 2015.

When Charlie Brown erroneously finds that he got a perfect score, Peppermint Patty's test score of "65" can be seen at the bottom at number fourteen. This is not only Charlie Brown's real score on the test, but also alludes to the comic strip's 65th anniversary.

User reviews

Authis

Source of my comment: hitfix.com Review By Drew McWeeny.

When we live in an age when everything, no matter how pure the intent of the creator, is simply IP to be farmed, it is right to be suspicious of a "Peanuts" movie. After all, Charlie Brown and the rest of the characters created by Charles Schulz have been huge business for decades, and it makes sense that they would put something together if for no other reason than to keep the characters active in pop culture.

Thankfully, it appears that the people behind "The Peanuts Movie" take the legacy of these characters very seriously, and the result is a gentle, charming movie that seems far less frantic than much of what is created for young audiences these days. Blue Sky, one of the two major producers of CG animated films for Fox, has produced ten feature films now, and while the majority of their efforts have been originals, it was clear from "Horton Hears A Who" that when they adapt someone else's property, they try to do so from a position of authenticity and respect.

One of the things that makes "Peanuts" such a broad target is all the different versions there have been. Even in our editorial meetings at HitFix, as we talk about the films or the specials that we think of when "Peanuts" is mentioned, we all have our own take on what that means. For me, the old school TV specials and the first few movies were the defining version. Louis Virtel told me he always thinks of "Race For Your Life, Charlie Brown!" first. My kids have been exposed to some of the specials, but Toshi took it upon himself to read the Fantagraphics collections of all of the strips that I have on my shelves. And to any of those people, I would say, "You'll recognize the 'Peanuts' you love in this movie, and you'll be happy." That could not have been an easy task, so for that alone, Blue Sky and Fox deserve some accolades.

One of the most interesting choices they made in approaching the movie was how to design the characters. They are 3D CG objects, but the faces are "drawn" onto the heads in a way that always feels like there's a physical brush stroke, a pencil mark. I assume the entire thing is CG, but it connects the characters to the long hand-made tradition that started with the comic strip itself. It's a strong stylistic decision, and it makes sure the characters feel like the characters we already know. Steve Martino, working from a script by Bryan Schulz, Craig Schulz, and Cornelius Uliano, touches on any number of familiar jokes and scenes and set-ups, with a number of references to the long history of the characters. Snoopy spends most of the movie working on a book on his newly-discovered typewriter, the story of a flying ace and his battle against the infamous Red Baron. Sally's got her crush on her sweet baboo, Linus, who nurses his faith in the the Great Pumpkin. Lucy gives advice at her sidewalk psychiatric stand while making passes as Schroeder every chance she gets. Peppermint Patty and her assistant Marcie both play their familiar roles as well, with Charlie Brown at the center of everything, constantly put upon, constantly taking one on the chin. If this is going to be true to the original strip that Schulz created, then Charlie Brown has got to be suffering, a kid who can't catch a break.

What surprised me was the way they took a quiet approach to finding something else to say about Charlie Brown. I was worried that this was going to be a film where they had to turn him into something he wasn't just to tick some demographic checklist, and instead, the film makes some very strong and interesting points about what is heroic when you're just a kid trying to define yourself. In this case, there's a new kid in school, the Little Red-Haired Girl, and Charlie Brown is determined to reinvent himself in a way that will win this girl's attention and approval. This being Charlie Brown, things are not that easy, but I thought the way they eventually bring it together was unexpectedly honest. At this point, these characters have been playing the same beats for so long that it is genuinely surprising to see them do something new that doesn't feel like a violation of the characters, but rather a natural extension of what we already know about them.

The cast of young voice actors all seem appropriately chosen, and it's interesting to hear how they've gone out of their way to find kids who naturally sound like the voices that have been connected to the characters for over 40 years now. One of the reasons I don't ever want a "Calvin & Hobbes" adaptation to happen is because I don't want to hear anyone else's take on how Hobbes should sound, but with these characters, they've had the same voices for so long now that it's kind of like a magic trick. It's a cast of real kids here, but they sound like the "real" Charlie Brown, the "real" Lucy, the "real" Linus.

Frequently very funny, undeniably aimed at younger audiences, and true to the source material, "The Peanuts Movie" is too mild-mannered to win over brand new audiences, but it's going to please people who were already fond of the underlying property, and it should be a big nostalgia-driven hit for the studio.

Kulafyn

When the Little Red-Haired Girl moves into his neighborhood, Charlie Brown develops a crush on her, but is frustrated that his long-running streak of bad luck will prevent him from ever getting noticed. Lucy tells Charlie that he should try being more confident. Charlie Brown decides to embark upon a series of new activities in hope of finding one that will get the Little Red-Haired Girl to notice him. His first attempt is to participate in the school's talent show with a magic act. However, when his sister Sally's act goes wrong, Charlie Brown sacrifices his time for her and then with Snoopy's help, rescues his sister and her act, only to humiliate himself in return. Learning that the Little Red-Haired Girl likes dancing, Charlie signs up for the school dance and gets Snoopy to teach him all his best moves. At the dance, Charlie Brown starts to attract praise for his skills until he slips and sets off the sprinkler system, which causes the dance to be cut short. All the other students forget his success and blame him for ruining their fun.

Later, Charlie Brown is partnered with the Little Red-Haired Girl to write a book report. At first, he is excited to have a chance to be with her, but she is called away for a week to deal with a family illness, leaving Charlie Brown to write the report all by himself. Hoping to impress both the Little Red-Haired Girl and his teacher, Charlie Brown writes his report on the collegiate-level novel War and Peace. At the same time, Charlie Brown finds he is the only student to get a perfect score on a standardized test. The other children congratulate him, and his popularity begins to climb. However, when he goes to accept a medal at a school assembly, he learns that the test papers were accidentally mixed up and that the perfect score actually belongs to Peppermint Patty. Charlie Brown declines the medal, losing all his new-found popularity. He feels worse when his book report is destroyed, and admits to the Little Red-Haired Girl that he has caused them to both fail the assignment.

At the end of the school year, Charlie Brown is surprised when the Little Red-Haired Girl chooses him for a pen pal. Linus convinces Charlie Brown that he needs to tell the Little Red-Haired Girl how he feels about her before she leaves for the summer. Racing to her house, he discovers that she is about to leave on a bus for summer camp. He tries to chase the bus, but is prevented from reaching it. Just as he is about to give up, Charlie Brown sees a kite fall from the Kite-Eating Tree, and the string becomes entangled around his waist and sails away with him, quickly bringing him up to the bus's window. Amazed to see Charlie Brown successfully flying a kite, the other children follow.

Upon reaching the bus, Charlie Brown finally asks the Little Red-Haired Girl why she chose him in spite of his failures. The Little Red-Haired Girl explains she admires his selflessness and praises him as an honest, caring, and compassionate person. The two promise to write to one another. The other children catch up to Charlie Brown and crowd around to congratulate him before picking him up on their shoulders and carrying him away.

In a side story, Snoopy, upon discovering a typewriter in a dumpster, decides to write a novel about his alter-ego, the World War I Flying Ace, trying to save his lover Fifi from the Red Baron. He ends up acting out his adventure, coming across the Peanuts gang several times along the way. He successfully defeats the Red Baron and rescues Fifi. However, as he is celebrating his victory with Fifi and his siblings, he learns that the Red Baron has survived, causing him to furiously declare revenge.

Both me and my only son Muhammad enjoyed this movie and honestly my son wanted to see this great movie again. Well Done.

Monin

I really enjoy The Peanuts Movie. It reminds me of the classic Charlie Brown movies, but even better! Even though the Peanuts creator, Charles M. Schulz passed away in 2000, this movie is a tribute to his memory and the legacy that he left behind.

While the members of the Peanuts Gang look and act like their lovable selves, there are many updates to this film. The animation is much more detailed than the previous movies and viewers are able to watch it in 3D. There are many new upbeat songs in addition to the much loved tunes. "Better When I'm Dancin'" by Meghan Trainor is a great addition to the original songs.

The Peanuts Movie is about Charlie Brown trying to break his losing streak so the little Red Haired Girl (voiced by Disney's Francesca Capaldi) will view him differently than his friends do. He tries to change his luck in a dance contest, a talent show, flying a kite and writing a book report. Also, Snoopy tries to defeat the Red Baron in order to win the love of his life Fi Fi, voiced by Kristen Chenoweth.

My favorite character is Snoopy because he is very funny. His story is well written and filled with love, comedy and adventure. Some of the funniest characters are Lucy, Sally, Snoopy and Woodstock. They got great laughs from the audience including kids as young as three. All the voice talent perfectly suits their characters. Fans of Linus, Schroeder, Pig Pen, Peppermint Patty and all the others will not be disappointed.

The moral to this film is, "if you see yourself as a winner or a loser in life, you are probably going to act like one. If you think you are a winner, act like one and others might think so too."

I rate The Peanuts Movie 5 out of 5 stars because of the colorful animation and it being true to the original Peanuts Gang. I recommend this movie for ages 3 to 15 or any people who have enjoyed the other Peanuts movies. At the end of this film there is a 3 second clip. The credits are very long so be sure to stick around until the end.

Reviewed by Mia A., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 11.

Shaktizragore

Ten stars is too low of a rating! I am a thoroughly invested Peanuts fan, and have been for as long as I can remember (I'll be 32 this year). Peanuts is far and away my all time favorite cartoon. I have always appreciated the blend of childhood innocence with deep theology and philosophy that is present throughout the 65 years since the world was introduced to the lovable blockhead Charlie Brown (actually 68 years going back to 'Li'l Folks').

This movie continues the blend: both modern and classic animation styles that I believe set Blue Sky Studios apart from and ahead of both Pixar and Dreamworks; a classic Vince Guraldi soundtrack with some tastefully and not overdone modern sound; but best of all nearly all the classic tropes and references to story lines blended together in a thoroughly entertaining story that might have come from Schulz himself.

Without giving too much away, this movie has everything any and every super fan of Peanuts could want: kite eating tree; baseball; hockey; an epic battle with the Red Baron; Lucy's booth; Schroeder's toy piano and Beethoven; Snoopy sneaking into school; Leo Tolstoy's 'War and Peace'; and Charlie Brown pining away for the little red headed girl.

As I said, ten out of ten is too low a rating.

Conjukus

As someone who grew up watching the Charlie Brown animated specials as well as reading the comic strip "Peanuts" in my local paper and also in various book compilations, I highly enjoyed this movie immensely. What's to like? Well, how about an adult "voice" being represented by a trombone doing that "wah-wah" sound? Or Vince Guaraldi's music score occasionally being sprinkled throughout like the unofficial theme of "Linus & Lucy"? And then there's the various unrequited love pairings of Sally & Linus, Lucy & Schroeder, not to mention both Peppermint Patty and Marcie liking Charlie Brown who doesn't even notice? Speaking of whom, here he once again has a crush on a Little Red-Haired Girl who's depicted here as the new kid in town and school. Creator Charles Schulz never had her drawn in his strip nor given her a name though I remember one of the animated specials-"It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown"-had her animated and called Heather there. I don't think she spoke there, though. Here, she's not named but she does speak and is seen quite a bit. Since Schulz' son and grandson wrote the screenplay, I don't think he would have objected one bit especially when we hear what she says to Charlie Brown at the end. Also enjoyable was Snoopy's active imagination when playing the World War I Flying Ace and his battle against the Red Baron and his attempted rescue of Fifi. In summary, The Peanuts Movie is a wonderful tribute to the comic strip and the animated specials produced by Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez whose vintage voice tracks as Snoopy and Woodstock were provided here as well. Really, all I'll now say is go see The Peanuts Movie if you like entertainment that is both funny and touching and makes you look fondly back at your own childhood.

Larosa

I am a hardcore Peanuts fan and have been looking forward to this movie coming out ever since I found out about it almost 2 years ago. We went on opening day and I will admit, I was hoping that the creators of this movie would stay true to the heart of the characters and the Schulz comic strip. I found it amazing that the voices were spot on and I have no clue how they made them sound so authentic! They even managed to work in the original comic strips and animations into the movie in a really awesome and creative way! I literally did not stop smiling during the entire movie and left with a headache because of it LOL We are going back to see it again this week and cannot wait for it on DVD! :)

Capella

The daily newspaper comic strip of Charlie Brown and friends (AKA The Peanuts) has been around for decades. Created by Charles M. Shulz in the 1950s about a bald headed kid doing his best to get by in life like any other average Joe, seemed to stick with its audience. Schulz passed away in 2000, far too long to see his largely popular foundation publicized in this fashion – full on Hollywood style. It's surprising that this even happened though. When most beloved childhood properties or cartoons become produced by a big budget Hollywood studio, people are less than pleased. The whole idea of taking something from the past is to either bring it to current time or at the very minimum reintroduce it to a new generation as it was when it was originally made from its inception. Schulz did have the classic animated specials for the holidays and even a short-lived TV show, but having it brought to the big screen never felt like it was ever a part of his intentions. Perhaps it never was, but it's safe to say this will not make him roll in his grave.

Taking a look at the credits, it is clear as to why this film is as good as it is. First, Steve Martino, the same director of Dr. Seuss' adaptation Horton Hears a Who! (2008), directs it. Secondly, the descendants of the creator himself, Bryan and Craig Schulz were the writers. From that alone there seems to be a decent amount of people who care about this project. The plot is the classic story for new generations that are not familiar with The Peanuts crew. Charlie Brown and his friends discover a new classmate has come to their town. That new person is no other than Charlie Brown's crush, the little red-haired girl. Meanwhile, Snoopy's having trouble of his own with the red baron constantly fouling up his plans. Anyone who enjoys Snoopy and friends will continue to enjoy how this film takes the things people love about them and runs with it. There are numerous references to other iconic Peanuts moments; the list is long. There's also a lot of new material as well. An example of this is when Charlie Brown ends up becoming the most popular kid in the school and how his life dramatically changes. These different scenarios are important because they put Charlie Brown in new situations probably not even the veterans of the comic have scene.

Also, Snoopy's story arc is delightfully written as the allegory to Charlie Brown's life struggle where the Red Baron is Chuck's annoying bad luck that doesn't cease to leave him alone. The voice actors to this production are well cast and perfectly blend with their animated counter parts. Noah Schnapp as Charlie Brown was perfect, Alexander Garfin as Linus was great, Hadley Belle Miller as Lucy had the best attitude to match, Bill Melendez (if were still alive would've been 99 this year!) voices Snoopy and it's as cute as ever. The list is too long to fully mention but all cast members perform their roles spot on. For writing of various characters they all get a decent amount of screen time too and their own gags. There are times when they do act in ways that seem rather silly but these are children based characters, which makes them gullible so that is acceptable. If there's anything that doesn't make sense to this film is the fact that a cinematographer was needed (Renato Falcão). There have been animated films that have credited cinematography but it's not common. So as to what was filmed physically isn't answered but that doesn't diminish the quality.

The animation is another solid component to this feature. Headed by senior animator Joseph Antonuccio (Rio (2011) and Epic (2013)), almost every scene flows extremely well. There are areas where the animation looks choppy but this was apparently done on purpose to resemble that of the older films. As long as there's a reason. One thing though that stands out is the 3D texturing on this 2D film and that doesn't mean watching it in 3D either. The fact that Charlie Brown's shoes look like real tangible leather and Snoopy's fur is made up of individual follicles is astounding. Then there's the film score by Christophe Beck and soundtrack by various artists. Meghan Trainor's "Better When I'm Dancin'" and Flo Rida's "That's What I Like" both help bring forth the moral of the story about believing in oneself and not giving up. They are both catchy and optimistic songs. Christophe Beck's score is another added bonus. To hear The Peanuts main theme in full updated orchestra sound is truly something. Plus Beck adds in a lot of his signature instrument sounds with organ, drums and even bells. By far though, his most effective motifs are when he brings out the solo piano that reminisce of his Paperman (2012) score and it does tug on the heartstrings. Very effective and heart warming.

Seeing Snoopy, Charlie Brown and his crew for the first time in a long time with updated animation and music are great. The story is a classic and although it has been used before, it is still an original nonetheless. It's new for people unknown to it and a favorite for the fans. Topping that off is the spectacular cast of child actors who helped bring the characters to life and a script with fortified character development.

Monam

First of all, WHO doesn't love peanuts?! I remember watching the Charlie Brown and Snoopy show in the 1980's on Saturday mornings... Aaah... What memories... This movie has captured EVERYTHING! It has captured the magic of Peanuts. In this movie you will find Classic recurring themes like the football gag, Charlie Brown's kite flying and a thrilling Dog fight with the Red Baron! This movie is perfect for kids who haven't grown up with Peanuts and for adults who want to go back to their childhood. It has a great life message and it shows the qualities that every person must have. Charles M. Schulz would be really proud of this movie. This movie is worth it! This is a perfect comeback for Peanuts

WUNDERKIND

Watching this made me remember the Charlie Brown specials I use to watch when I was a kid, I believe kids and adults will find this movie charming.

The plot centers around Charlie Brown trying to overcome his insecurities in hopes to talk to the new girl that lives across the street, and course you know what follows.

The whole Peanuts gang really come alive here, I also love the subplot with Snoopy. I believe a new generation of fans will get into this. It's perfectly harmless fun for the whole family. The animation is incredible. If you are looking for harmless fun to take your kids to see this movie is it.

Shalinrad

Not having released a new Peanuts movie since 1980's Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (And Don't Come Back!). For Blue Sky Studios, their most successful movie franchises Ice Age and Rio, and even tackling Dr. Seuss' whimsical work Horton Hears A Who! proved that the studio can compete alongside the big-name animation studios continuing to thrive in the movie industry today. Now as for them taking on the beloved comic strip Peanuts, I'd say the studio has definitely outdone itself by pulling out a great movie from the mind of Charles Schulz. Over the past six decades, Peanuts had leapt from its comic strip medium and into the form of animated TV shows, holiday specials, and even a few movies, but rendering these well-known characters into CGI in this new animated feature turned out to be unique in its own right because it's basically channeling the essence of Schulz's original designs and humor that the older generation had gotten to know so well.

For the littler crowd who are just getting to know Charlie Brown himself, his beloved dog Snoopy, and the rest of the Peanuts gang, they're in for a story that focuses on the insecurities of the former and how he manages to overcome it on a life-changing adventure with his friends along the way.

The Peanuts Movie serves as a fitting comeback for the characters who have long been absent from the big screen. I appreciated how the studio consulted the Schulz family to preserve all the gags and themes used in their beloved patriarch's past specials. I even noticed throughout the film that modern day conveniences and current events like today's electronic devices, music (save for one), and even trends are completely absent. This is to keep the story timeless and to avoid violating what Peanuts actually stood for, which I found both appropriate and nostalgic since I too grew up watching these characters on TV. Another thing to take note of are the scenarios and nods to past Peanuts-related segments and specials, which adds a nice touch to some scenes. To keep true to tradition that's been done many years prior, having several new child actors to voice these characters remains intact making them sound vibrant and full of energy. And as an homage to the late Bill Melendez, his voice (as Snoopy and Woodstock) was used via archival recordings. To conclude, although Charles Schulz had passed on since 2000 - and therefore no longer around to see his work still live on for future generations - this movie serves as a reminder that the studio wasn't trying to make his work relevant again. Instead, it's more of a personal tribute to him that shows how these characters may remind you of yourself at that age or the kids of this current decade personality-wise. Now it makes sense on how this became the studio's most critically-acclaimed film compared to their previous projects. A robust effort and appropriate for the holiday season.

Swift Summer

Great movie, for people who likes the The Peanuts. Great for the kids, even if I'm 16, I got a few laughs out of it nice movie.

This movie may not be all for the newer generation who never even seen a piece of The Peanuts. So before you go show your kids the movie.. please.... show them a couple of comic strip of the The Peanuts, and see if they like it and you guys can go! :)

Other than that the movie was excellent, great for all ages for people looking for a nice nostalgia stuff. So this is why I give this movie a 10/10. A fun loving movie, that's purely a great art style and that gives humour. :)

roternow

I saw "The Peanuts Movie" last night, and I thought it was superb! I grew up in the 80's, and so I was familiar with the Charlie Brown gang, but only through vague recollections. I had of course read a few of the comic strips over the years, and I'm confident that I saw the TV specials a few times, but I was still a bit fuzzy on the details of things like Snoopy and his battles with the Red Barron, the names of certain characters, and the gist of how different aspects of the series fits together into a competent narrative.

I'm crystal clear on that now, as this movie does a wonderful job of weaving together the many separate concepts of the Peanuts series. I really fell in love with the franchise by watching this film, and I can see how it will be very rewatchable.

My only criticism is that the film does cram a bit too much into its ninety minutes. It all comes together nicely, but it was clear that the script was trying to accomplish a LOT in this movie. It felt almost as though nothing was left for a sequel, but I suppose the idea was to introduce as much of the series as possible. The slightly crammed feel of the film is the only reason I didn't give it a perfect ten stars. But it's fantastic, even if a bit overdone!

krot

I have always been a fan of the Peanuts specials like a Charlie Brown Christmas for it's great humor and creative stories. When I heard of this film, I really had high hopes for this film and the trailers were hilarious. OK, now lets go to detail on the film.

The story is about Charlie Brown trying to become a winner to redeem himself and impress a new red haired girl. It may not sound engaging, but once you watch it, it's really a good story even if it's at times predictable. As for Snoopy's subplot with fighting the red baron, I've got to admit, it may be filler, but it's really funny and even creative but it doesn't have to do with Charlie Brown. In this subplot, Snoopy has a love interest as well. As for the humor, I didn't think that the jokes in the trailer were as funny as the ones you see in the movie. They are just hilarious. There are also great references to other specials. So overall, this is a good enough screen play for a Charlie Brown film.

The animation in this movie may've bagged the 2-D and made 3-D instead, it is just amazing. The backgrounds are just breathtaking in the red baron scenes because it showed it unlike the Charlie Brown Halloween where the flying scenes only showed the sky. Charlie Brown and his friends may look a bit simplistic, but it's OK. The animation showed that they could bring peanuts to Computer Animation. It looks almost flawless and maybe even a bit hand drawn. So you've got to look into this great texture of hair and backgrounds, it's that amazing.

The characters in this movie are unforgettable just like the classics. The side characters like Lucy and Snoopy are just hilarious and fun to watch even if they are just 2-D. The main character, Charlie Brown is 3 dimensional and he try's to accomplish his goals. He's also lovable because he shows helpfulness and honesty. Then there's the little red haired girl whose face was revealed for the first time since the 1977 Charlie Brown short, "Its your first kiss, Charlie Brown". Even though they revealed her unlike the comic strips, she's still really cute, and uses her very few lines in the movie to tell Charlie Brown about how she liked him for who he was, which was sweet.

If you're a fan of Charlie Brown and Snoopy, go watch this film, Even people who never watched the Peanuts cartoons or read the comics should watch it. The only people I don't recommend it to are those who hate Peanuts because even though its modern, its still Peanuts. One additional detail I would like to make is the fact that we never see one cell phone nor computer in the movie. This shows that the environment stayed around the 1960s era. So go watch it, it's a treat.

Story: 7/10 Animation 9.5/10 Characters: 8.5/10 8.5/10

Androwyn

If this film could be summed up with one word, it would be "charming". Unlike most animated films nowadays, this film doesn't rely on crude, modern humor to be funny. It manages to stay innocent throughout, and still bring laughs to both older and younger audiences.

The concept of the story is simple. Charlie Brown wants the new girl to like him, and not see him as a loser as everyone else does. Sounds a bit cliché, but the way the film executes it makes it a sweet, original story. Charlie Brown learns throughout the film who he truly is, which is a boy with a large heart. I like how he learns these lessons, and the ending is definitely satisfying to watch. I must admit that I actually teared up a bit.

The animation is stunning. I have yet to see anything like it. It looks like stop motion mixed with CGI. The background and characters look like they were taken straight out of Mr. Schulz's comics, or the classic animated movies. The animation of the characters isn't too bouncy or exaggerated like most CGI films tend to be, but they still move like a cartoon. The best example of this is with Snoopy's animation. He moves like a cartoon, but it's not too exaggerated. I like that the animators even threw in sound words, like "Crack!", "Smash!", etc. to give the film the feel as if it were a comic. The hair/fur on characters looked realistic, but the characters still looked like themselves.

The characters stay true to their comic and classic cartoon selves. Charlie Brown is still the same unfortunate boy who only wants to fit in. Linus is still the same thumb sucking friend of Charlie Brown who's ready to give his friend advice when needed. Lucy is still the same bossy girl, who seems to have a slight soft spot for our bald main character. The children in the film are the same as before, and it's refreshing to see that none of them were altered to cater to our generation. Even the new girl seems to fit in well. The people who made this film clearly took into account that old generations of Charlie Brown fans would be watching, and stayed true to Schulz's comics and the cartoons.

The Peanuts Movie is a refreshing film. It was nice to sit back and see something that is both innocent and fun. I didn't feel disturbed by anything, nor did I feel like the film was trying to make the new generation enjoy it by adding in modern songs, products, etc. Its humor is very much like the comics/cartoons, and it is in no way crude. It doesn't rely on fart jokes or anything of that sort. The film stayed true to the nature of The Peanuts. From what I gathered in the theater, both adults and children were enjoying what they were seeing. I certainly enjoyed the film, and not only do I recommend it for anyone who likes The Peanuts, but I recommend for, well, anyone. I think anyone can enjoy this film. It's a must see.

Vertokini

This movie is much better than almost any movie I have seen. The artwork is clear and bright and strangely alluring.

I do have a complaint. They made all the girls except the redhead girl look silly. There was something strange about the seemingly radiant storyboard.

I can say that the only character that was both interesting and good that everyone should hold to liking the best was the "little red haired girl." Woodstock was really cute and probably added a dot of interest and spark of energy in a sea of Snoopy spam.

I did enjoy the ideas that they came up with to feature as a presentation. It was a little more depressing than upbeat.

The comics themselves present themselves as more a work of still art like a painting, whereas this rendition seemed very "plastic," maybe moreso than the other movies out there. You know, I waited to save up for a better TV that has good motion reception and display.

I didn't get much attention of the voice-over work. The people who worked on it are sweet, honest people, who know what they know. They were attractive voices in many ways. Another 10/10 rating ratio. It's also amazing to me how they can make their voices sound like the originals. There were some characters I hadn't heard before, I think, too.

If I had to chose a career in Hollywood like art or directing, I'd have a hard time choosing to do it. It's such a sacrifice, but it's a good venue to grow more and more talent. I've held an interest to film since 2006, so 9 years. I could have gotten 2 degrees since then. The general studies is what gets me down. It was a big thing that music conservatories don't offer general studies, but I know some do.

I know there are some classics I have not seen of them much, but I was very excited to purchase them several years back, just haven't opened them yet, the holiday classics.

DireRaven

I was very skeptical when I first heard they were making The Peanuts Movie. I figured it would be a quick cash-in on a nostalgic property, kind of like The Smurfs, or more recently, Goosebumps. I was also afraid they were going to sneak in some innuendos and maybe some childish toilet humor, much in the same sense. I feared the worst for this movie, and I grew up reading the strips, and watching the specials, and movies from the days of old (I'm 28 BTW). However, upon watching this movie with my 6 year old daughter (who I introduced to Peanuts aka Charlie Brown and the gang), I was immediately relieved.

This movie has a charm and feel to it, that very few "kids" movies do nowadays. If you are familiar with Charles M. Shulz's work, you will instantly know that this movie was created with pure passion, and was held close to the heart during the whole process. The art direction feels just like the old style hand drawn strips, not like a cheap 3D imitation like other companies do. They invested time and effort into capturing the soul of Peanuts.

The story is your typical Peanuts adventure. Kids going day to day, dealing with life, school, and good old Charlie Brown getting stepped on by everything, but refusing to give up. He tries flying a kite in the winter, he sees the Litte Red-Haired Girl, and wants to build up the courage to say hi, he tries to write a book report on War and Peace, and even becomes the "smartest kid in the school". All while this is going on, we see Snoopy trying his usual shtick of trying to sneak into school, but getting kicked out. After that he finds a typewriter and starts writing his epic story of Flying Ace vs the Red Baron. These scenes are some of the best Snoopy moments ever put to film. Snoopy has always been a personal favorite of mine, as well as many other people, and they definitely gave him plenty of love. In fact, every character feels and looks just like they did 5 decades ago.

I have read other reviews and opinions, and I have to completely disagree with the negative ones. People complained that the movie had no original ideas, and when they used the typical gags, the end result wasn't even remotely funny. Honestly, what could you do in a situation like this? The characters have been around for about 65 years! They have been put in just about every scenario a bunch of kids could experience. Plus, the screenplay was created by Shulz's son and grandson. They wanted to honor his work in the best way possible. They went through thousands of strips, and picked out some of the best ones, and seamlessly strung them together into a feature length movie, and added a couple bits of flair to fill a few gaps.

Another gripe I read about was the kids voice acting. People say that they can hear them "trying to imitate the voices" and that they sound too professional to be in this movie. BlueSky must have gone through a ton of effort to find these kids, because there is NO forced effort in any of the performances. Every bit of dialogue flows naturally, just like it did back in the old movies. Sure, some of the kids may not have known exactly each and every perk about their character, but the mannerisms are spot on, the enunciation is scarily good, and the best point of all, THEY ALL SOUND LIKE THEY DID SINCE THEY FIRST HAD VOICES. There were times where I forgot that they had modern day kids doing the voices.

Now the biggest question in any review. Would I recommend this movie? Absolutely! This movie may not be a huge success, but it's coming from a source that really hasn't been hurting, or lacking success. It comes from something that is generational. Your grandparents used to read the comics. your parents watched the movies. The yearly specials are consistently watched every year, because they are just THAT good. There is no dating to the characters or the world they live in, because there is nothing there to date it. They are just kids, dealing with daily situations that most kids would have to deal with. There is gender equality with everyone playing baseball, or hockey. The stereotypes are just them being kids. No race or culture bias. This is the epitome of a wholesome family movie.

Now the movie will not be for everyone. Sure, those with nostalgia for the franchise will immediately love it, newer generations may enjoy the humor that is in there, and for some, it may just be too bland and slow. Peanuts has always had a mass appeal, but there do exist people that don't like it. If you don't enjoy it, or even if you adore it, I for one, respect your choices. Give this one a shot, it may surprise you in the end.

Kulabandis

Can't say enough good things about this movie, A+++++. Great film from the beginning to end. I was laughing along with my kids. The messages in the film were great talking points with my kids, especially the big win for Chuck at the end. Really good to send the message that there is more to a person than their mistakes, and took look at the good that a person accomplishes in any day. The animation was wonderful and the nod to scenes from the previous holiday specials was lots of fun to recognize and rehash in the theater experience. The producers of the current Muppet Show should take a page from the creators of this film and see what it goes into paying homage to a franchise and its fans and not turning out some cynical version of characters people have loved their entire lives. To digress, We will be watching this movies many times when we own it at home. Put it in the pantheon of great Peanuts films.

Gadar

The new Peanuts movie is sensational. It is absolutely classic Peanuts. They have not wrecked Peanuts by making it a 21st century melodrama that deals with issues of various sorts.

The Peanuts Movie is a superbly animated retelling of stories that we all know: the kite-eating tree, Snoopy vs. the Red Baron, the Little Red-Haired Girl, and on and on.

The voices are mostly done by unknowns. The only recognizable name in the cast is Kristin Chenoweth as Snoopy's love interest, Fifi. The children seem to have been cast to mimic as closely as possible the voicing from the 1960s TV specials.

There is even a reference to late Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz and his nickname Sparky. Schulz's sons produced this movie and they did a remarkably faithful job of reviving his father's creation; they kept new, unwelcome ideas from infringing on the Peanuts legacy.

This was wonderful to watch in 3D.

Qutalan

If you do not know, I am a huge Peanuts fan-boy. I watch A Charlie Brown Christmas every year and it gets better with age. I also like to watch some of the older specials and movies that came out back in the 70's and 60's. When I heard one of my favorite animated studios, Blue Sky, was making a Peanuts movie I was ecstatic. I loved Peanuts. I couldn't wait for it. 2 years went by when it was announced and now I have finally seen it.

Perfect. Just Perfect.

In Every Sense of The Word, Perfect.

Schultz would be so proud.

Where to begin with this new instant classic? They got all the characters. Even ones from the 50's and 60's strip. They look just the way they did back then and now they are fresh and new out of the washer. They act the way they should, and they don't do anything out of character throughout the entire movie. That is very rare for an adaptation of something to do this.

The music is still the best. When they started playing Vince's Christmas Music at the beginning, I was in love. They even have a new song in the movie to fit the whole mood. A song called Better When I'm Dancing by Megan Trainor. It plays a very important part of the story when Charlie Brown is learning to dance for the new Winter dance coming up. I love this scene because it is something different that works for a Peanuts movie.

Everything is perfect. The little details like not showing the bottom of the house when Snoopy is flying in the air. The dialog cut straight from the comics, the adult voices, the animation looking a lot like the comic strip and the characters personalities are outstanding.

One of my favorite parts of the movie is when Charlie Brown does a book report on War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This leads to some funny moments and originality for something already done in a Peanuts comic. We all know in the specials and comics that they had to do book reports. We see Peppermint Patty and Marcie always doing them, but not Charlie Brown! That is a very interesting way to go for it. It works so well.

The ending got me a bit emotional *MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD* because they have the final shot of Charlie Brown being held up with the whole Peanuts gang while at the bottom right corner, the signature of Charles M. Schultz is written. I really wanted to applaud this movie for it's kindness and respect to the source material and Schultz himself.

The Peanuts Movie is an instant classic. I think this will be a new tradition for me to watch the movie every single year with A Charlie Brown Christmas. Please watch this movie. It is absolutely perfect and I wanted to see more.

Perfect I say.

100/100 A+

Nagor

I loved the Peanuts half hour TV specials as a kid, particularly Halloween and Christmas. I make my kids watch them each year and they enjoy them. We have also watched at least one fuller length movie made some time ago (about a spelling bee?) that ran a little too long. Before the specials even existed I loved the Peanuts comic strips. This movie handled the characters great, no complaint there. I just got part way through and said okay where are we going with this and how much is left. So maybe the bottom line is Peanuts is more effective in small doses than in a full length movie. They seemed to realize that in having a short movie to start and keeping the running time down. Of the story lines the best (and the one that could be enjoyed the longest) was the Snoopy WWI theme. But the bottom line is that it may be hard to make this work for an hour or more no matter how you do it, even if you have stupendous graphics. In any event, nice to see a new generation of Schulz's carrying the torch.

P.S. In watching some of the older shows recently, I remembered that the best of the TV shows was where they basically just strung a bunch of the daily cartoons together, rather than tell a traditional story. Charles Schulz was a cartoon genius, and had a penchant for running a series of consecutive strips on the same subject, sort of a continual story with a daily punch line, which is directly transferable to the screen. Maybe they could go back to that format next time around?

Tuliancel

The Peanuts Movie is just like a puppy: adorable, irresistible, charming, and absolutely worthy despite any flaws it may or may not present. This extremely well-made movie does exactly what adaptations should do: be very faithful regardless of current audience, keep it very close to the source, don't try to spice it up with unnecessary additions, and do plenty of callbacks to the original work. Blue Sky does an absolutely phenomenal job transforming the world of Schultz into the computer-animated-obsessed cinematic world we see today. This is the best Blue Sky has released since the also-faithful Horton Hears a Who and one of the best films of the entire year. Seriously.

Peanuts has been so embedded in American society that we forget how groundbreaking and how seriously funny the original comic strip was. What Winnie the Pooh is to Disney, Peanuts was to the newspaper---a reliable source of entertainment and harmless beauty. Side-Note: Disney's 2011 Winnie the Pooh revival was criminally underrated. Transforming Peanuts successfully requires tons of research and special care since Schultz and most of the magical staff behind the specials and movies are no longer with us unfortunately.

The details is what makes The Peanuts Movie phenomenal. The more you loved the comic strips, the more you'll appreciate the effort. From the art style to the running jokes (Curse you Red Baron!!!) to the fact that the Red-Haired Girl never reveals her name so we can all relate to our childhood crushes, to even the fact that they recycled the sound clips of Snoopy, Steve Martino (delicately directing this with lots of care) and company continue carrying the torch behind one of the most beloved groups of children in the history of cartoons. Peanuts Movie also doesn't even try to sneak in any adult humor: it sticks to the kids and the kids-at-heart, as well as those that grew up watching the delightful specials. The art style alone throws you right back to the first time you saw A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Charlie Brown is still a wonderful relatable boy, despite his social insecurities and bad luck. Snoopy is still that trustworthy best friend despite his eccentricity. Linus, Sally, Schroeder, Peppermint Patty, Woodstock, and the rest of the gang all don't skip a beat despite it being nearly four decades since the last movie, and years since the last special. The plot never thickens or gets deep, it never outstays its welcome, and never loses the tight focus on Charlie Brown/Snoopy while simultaneously giving the other kids their moments to shine. It's a miracle that they found a cast that matched the voices of the predecessors so well. The fact that there is not a single adult seen (or coherently heard) is a perfectly executed idea that adds to the childhood innocence tone of the film.

You can nitpick and (try to) find some flaws, but I was far too busy smiling at the perfect art style and the light humor that decorated the carefree 88 minutes. I was far too busy rooting for Charlie Brown to finally have his moment. And lastly, I was far too busy enjoying the wild imagination of Snoopy and Woodstock as they take on their version of World War I. Fast, yet harmless and irresistible, The Peanuts Movie will appeal, delight, entertain, and cheer up anybody that decides to give it a chance.

Charles M. Schultz would be extremely proud.

Taulkree

First thing's first, this was not as good as the original Peanuts. I knew that from the moment I saw this was computer animated. But the movie was still good. All your favorite characters are here and the story is the same good old Charlie Brown story just on a larger scale. Charlie Brown (Noah Schnapp) has to muster up enough courage to talk to the little red haired girl (Francesca Capaldi). I'm glad that the movie didn't just go the same way that other big budget children movies have gone. With the exception of a few things I still believed I was watching the Peanuts and not some big scheme to make money. But I guess those things have to be addressed. I didn't much like the soundtrack as there was a little bit of modern music when I really would have preferred some Vince Guaraldi instead. But other than that everything here is pretty good. If you're looking for a good kids movie, The Peanuts Movie looks like a pretty good choice to me.

Thetath

Took my 11 year old to the 2D version. It was wonderful. It was sweet and nostalgic. Charles would be pleased! Plan to go back and see it in 3D. Truly an all ages film and for those over 40, a wonderful stroll down memory lane. My 11 year old really enjoyed it and even shed a tear! Has great lessons on the virtues of good character. I was hesitant to see the film as I grew up with the original Peanuts gang. The movie did not disappoint. Yes, its predictable but so what. The inclusion of original Peanuts comics really worked and helped bring back a myriad of memories. They really stayed true to the original characters. The red baron scenes are tons of fun! Only improvement is I didn't like the semi-poodle look of Fifi.

Katishi

A worry going in to The Peanuts Movie was simply this: in 2015, in a time where animation is all computer-animated and with super-sophistication but also lacking the sort of approach that came with the simple, quirky, edgy-but-cute style of the Peanuts cartoons from the past half century, how do you bring that world out and make it feel right? And there was an element of the story that made me raise an eyebrow, and reminded me of an issue I had with the recent 2011 return of The Muppets - a new character comes to the universe of the Peanuts. Would this character fit in? Would it be distracting if he or she looks different or acts un-Peanuts-like? And what does Peanuts-like mean, you might ask, by the way? It's that thing where, simply, kids think like kids, but with an extra level of sophistication in the writing. Let me put it this way: The Peanuts Movie is the only movie that kids will see which has a reference to Tolstoy's War and Peace (though it's not initially called that by Peppermint Patty).

But fears are assuaged as I return from seeing the movie and find the movie is very successful at what it aims to be. In short, this is at its best... just another Peanuts movie, but that's a sincere compliment. You watch some of those movies and specials, which have stood the test of time due to the wit of the writing and the beautiful (yes, beautiful) animation that does simply to bring Charles Schulz's comic to life, and those shows and movies (i.e. the best, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, but also Snoopy Come Home and Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown) with issues that kids deal with, whether or not they directly relate to the hero. In this story it's all about this new girl coming to school (we never learn her name, there's really no need to), and how good old Chuck can barely deal with his ridiculously nervous reaction. How can he even say hello to her, much less carry a conversation? What can he do to build up his confidence? Can Lucy with her Nickel-store advice and 10-step book help? Can he become a success in some way?

Whether you're coming to this as someone who has been watching Peanuts all your life, or if you have a little kid (or are one) and have never seen one of these and it's your introduction, it is a wholly delightful experience. Schulz's kids were co-screenwriters, which could have been great or not-so-great (one never knows if the purity will work or become too stifling, or if there are too many attempts to make it "hip" and "Modern", which means it won't age so well years down the line). All of the Peanuts characters we know and like are here - I couldn't find one major one who wasn't, and everyone gets a moment or two (I even forgot for a moment Lucy's crush for Schroeder, but it's here too). And of course Snoopy as the super rascal/charmer/adventurer of the lot who tries to do things like sneak into school as a teacher ("No dogs allowed!" duh) and spends his part time writing stories about being an ace pilot with the "Red Baron" plane.

With the exception of a couple of elements that, frankly, I could've taken or left, like some of the Red Baron bits (some are OK, some may drag unless you're a kid into the action-loaded visuals), and the inclusion of a couple of pop songs (not annoying ones, but they are of this time period) and a lack (not completely, but not enough) of Vince Guaraldi's irreplaceable jazz score, the movie really works. I cared about Charlie Brown on his journey through building up his confidence, through ups and downs that were not, and occasionally were, his fault. And along the whole way, there's that special thing that made Peanuts work, has always made it work, and will continue for many years to come: you want to see this guy win, and yet it's funnier/more realistic when he falls on his face. But maybe every Charlie Brown has his day in this case? Between the talent show, school dance, book report, summer pen-pal deal, can Charlie Brown say ONE word to this girl? Who knows.

They're all here and its spirit is pure. What else do you need to know? The Peanuts Movie is a blast of family entertainment in the young and old sense of the word, full of clever lines and visual-eye-pleasing slapstick and, (happy surprise) pathos.

Moogura

The Peanuts movie has everything a Peanuts fan could want. Snoopy as the WWI flying ace taking on the Red Baron to rescue his true love. Charlie Brown trying and failing to win the attention of the little red haired girl. And the rest of the Peanuts gang in classic situations . I liked this movie a lot. It made me smile all the way thru it. And made me feel like a kid again. If anything. Its true to the spirit of the classic Peanuts comic strip often lifting up things from it. Snoopy's daddy would be proud to have this movie based on his strip. And the amazing thing. Not one misstep. It all rings so true. And if you're a life long Peanuts fan like me. Then you see the movie unfold like the strip. And it makes you feel good while it does

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