MOVIE REVIEW: “Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie” Is the Best Tribute to Charlie Schulz

Many among my friends and family who loved the Peanuts comic strips and cartoons were both excited and in fear when it was reported that Fox will be developing a new movie of Schulz’s works. In fear because 20^th Century Fox’s track record wasn’t so good at bringing beloved comic strip characters in cinematic form (Garfield, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and most of the movies that made Dr. Seuss roll in his grave). It  would be another losing streak for 20^th Century Fox if it was another case of corporate cash grabbing, but did this at least hit a home run for good ol’ Charlie Brown and friends? Read on and find out!

Plot Summary:

Charlie Brown has been down on his luck when it comes to getting the other kids to like him; he wants to start over with a clean slate as he develops a crush with the new kid. With the help of his dog, Snoopy as he is determined to turn to become the kind of person the red-haired girl would like, a winner.

You’re a Winner, Charlie Brown!
This would’ve easily been another cash grab for Fox and “ruin our childhoods” all over again but they treated the source material with the best care. They didn’t use any gimmicks or trends just to be cool to the young audience it is targeted to; Suffice to say, you won’t see Charlie Brown flipping out a smartphone, Lucy making a YouTube Self Help vlog, or Schroeder playing a recent smash hit single with a turntable. Instead, these kids and their values make it a reminder that kids should remain playful and imaginative as they can get. This is ultimately the best tribute for Charlie Schulz’s works as the characters and the small world we have known and loved are still the same as if they have never aged a day.

They do touch on familiar territories from the jokes, the tropes, the storytelling structure, and even making references to the older cartoons and its long history. One could make that a flaw but if we hadn’t learned anything from last year’s Creed and Star Wars when it comes to bringing back a long-dead franchise, It would be that the best way to continue the franchise is to make them remember the best things it had brought to them and as they pay tribute to the legacy in the most respectable way before they could jump into anything new.

They do make new things out of this movie, but they act more of as an extension for the characters and the basis of how we knew them, without being insulting to the lore. It’s a good marriage between change and playing the same beats in one movie. The filmmakers understood what Peanuts was all about and it continues to show the growth of the character, Charlie Brown in the most relatable way more so going to some quirky adventure. The film has an honest message about being a compassionate person towards yourself and others makes you the best person around. As a Peanuts fan, it is great to see these characters come to life again (props to the people who casted the kids who sounded A LOT like the kids in the cartoons) and I was consistently entertained throughout the movie because of them. I’m entertained at Charlie Brown’s many attempts to be less of a pushover, and how other characters work off each other, even Snoopy and Woodstock’s mini adventures and how well that blended with the plot.

The animation was quite clever; most of the time, when we focus on Charlie Brown they have this illusion of how it is animated in 2D blended with CG. It’s like watching the old cartoons with better animation and rendered backgrounds. They made some interesting choices like these characters and the world itself are rendered in 3D but they made characters’ faces look as if they were drawn on to make them look like how Schulz traditionally designed them. The way they moved around made it look like it was side scrolling although when it cuts back to Snoopy’s flight scenes against the infamous Red Baron where they really do the showcase the 3D animation in full force.

Conclusion:

Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock, and the rest of the Peanuts gang are back as if they never left at all. This is a delightful modernized continuation of Schulz’s legacy as this will guarantee to make fans of the older cartoons or comics take a great trip to memory lane while a new generation will fall in love with Charlie Brown and its other characters the same way we did.