The Peanuts Movie is a Delightful Trip Back to Our Childhood

The Peanuts Movie: Rated “R“ (1 hours, 45 minutes)

Starring: Noah Schnapp, Bill Melendez, Hadley Belle Miller, Rebecca Bloom, Anastasia Bredikhinaoria

Directed by: Steve Martino

Charles Schultz drew the Peanuts characters for 50 years until he retired and passed away in February of 2000. Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy Van Pelt, Snoopy, and the whole gang have been beloved icons for over half a century, appearing in numerous TV specials, on stage, comics, cartoons, and on all sorts of merchandise. We love these characters, so when we heard that they were coming to the Silver Screen in a new, computer-generated adventure, we were very excited.

Having grown up reading Peanuts as a kid, as well as an adult. We still enjoy him and his pals, and fondly recall the TV specials. So we want to say right off the top that yes, this episode of the lives of Charlie Brown and his friends totally measures up to what we best remember of the crew. So, yep, Peanuts are back in town and are here to deliver yet another heartwarming story to us all. At the onset of this family-friendly tale, it is winter and there is a fresh layer of snow on the ground, causing a snow day. With all the kids off from school, they all go skating. Charlie Brown wants to fly a kite. As we all know, he gets it up in the air, only to have it eaten (once again) by that darn tree.

What follows is a fairly typical episode in the life of the Peanuts crowd. Charlie practices baseball, Snoopy fights the Red Baron from atop his “flying” doghouse, Woodstock and his bird buddies are there, Linus is carrying his blanket and sparring with his sister Lucy, runs a “Dr. is in” kiosk, and entices Charlie Brown to kick the football, Charlie Brown’s sister, Sally, continues to refer to Linus as “her Sweet Baboo,” Peppermint Patty and Marcie pal around, Pigpen is as dirty as ever Schroeder plays Beethoven on his toy baby grand piano and attempts to avoid Lucy’s affections, Violet, Franklin, Sherman and all the rest of the gang — including, by-the-by, the little Red Headed girl that Carlie Brown loves so much.. Yeah, we totally loved this film (Hey, there was even a “dance” scene that mirrored the one from the Christmas Special.)

So, yeah, while we do get to see the Peanuts kids doing all of the things that we have come to expect to see these kids do, there is also a story here. A new family moves into town, and yes, it is the family of the little Red Headed Girl, and (as we already know), Charlie Brown falls head-over-heals for her. He is completely smitten with her, but is also completely tongue-tied when in her presence. From the moment he first lays eyes on her he does what he can to try to impress her, in order to make her think that he is a winner, but — as usual — Charlie Brown just can’t seem do anything right. While this is going on, Snoopy is writing a love story about a beautiful dog he just met. However, Charlie Brown’s luck seems to change, when he apparently gets a perfect score on his standardized test.

Using his new-found celebrity, Sally attempts to monetize the situation, while Charlie Brown gets partnered up with the Little Red Headed Girl for a book report, only she is away for the weekend at her grandmothers, so Charlie Brown determines that he wants to do the report on the greatest book ever written, and do it all by himself over the weekend. All of this and more happens in this delightful animated film and if you ever read a Charlie Brown comic strip, seen one of his specials, or ever crossed paths with him you will absolutely enjoy this film, we know this because we have, and we did. Now it is your turn.