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| Courtesy of 20th Century Fox |
I
have to admit I feared the worst when I saw an early trailer for this new take
on Charles Schulz’s beloved characters. The old-school, simplistic animation
style looked weird juxtaposed against all the CGI elements, there was far more
focus on Snoopy than the human characters and the whole thing was scored to a generic
modern pop song.
Luckily,
the finished product is a charming introduction to Schulz’s work for a new
generation of young viewers. It’s much closer to the classic stuff than I
would’ve ever imagined. The Peanuts Movie doesn’t have anything new to say
about the characters most of us have known for decades, but – thank heavens –
it also doesn’t try to dramatically reinvent them for the modern era.
To
be honest, there’s really not much of a plot at all. Instead, the film comes
off as a greatest hits medley of the most iconic elements of Peanuts history.
Charlie Brown’s decent nature and sad-sack demeanor are quickly established, as
is his infatuation with the Little Red-Haired Girl. Sally is his adoring little
sister; Linus is his mellow, analytical buddy; Lucy is domineering and has a
big crush on musician Schroeder; you get the picture.
The
slight story focuses on Charlie Brown’s efforts to get the Little Red-Haired
Girl to notice him by following his classmates’ contradictory advice. Playing
out alongside this comic strip-style narrative is Snoopy’s personal adventure:
writing a novel about a brave pilot (Snoopy, of course) who takes on the Red
Baron in an attempt to rescue his beloved Fifi.
Overall,
the film is slighter than I would’ve liked – you’ll probably forget most of it
before you get to the parking lot – but it could’ve been so much worse. I
appreciate how the screenplay doesn’t forget the melancholy tone of the old
strips and television specials. I’m sure it helps that it was co-written by
Craig and Bryan Schulz (the Peanuts creator’s son and grandson), along with
Cornelius Uliano.
I
was also surprised how much I ended up enjoying the animation style, which
blends modern CGI with the traditional hand-drawn look. I’m guessing director Steve
Martino sanded down those rough edges from the trailer during postproduction.
And that pop song I complained about earlier? It actually works within the
context of the movie. Plus, most of the score is a throwback to those classic
television specials.
I’m
happy to report that The Peanuts Movie breathes new life into characters who
are celebrating their 65th birthdays. They look pretty good for their age. If I
had to guess, I’d say the film’s big success at the box office last weekend
means we’ll be seeing Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the gang for years
to come. We’ve got a new franchise on our hands.
The Peanuts Movie is rated G.
Grade:
B
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