"The Peanuts Movie" Review

Title: The Peanuts Movie

Directed by: Steve Martino

Screenplay by: Brian Schulz, Craig Schulz, and Cornelius Uliano

Year: 2015


The Peanuts is something very special to a lot of people, myself included. I grew up with the cartoons and I would occasionally read the comics. The magic of the Peanuts was to appear simple and innocent on the surface, while actually dealing with some heavy themes. It has been 35 years since the last feature length Peanuts film. Does The Peanuts Movie recapture what made the originals great, or does it fall as flat as the characters were drawn?

The beloved Peanuts characters are all back in this latest feature. A new girl moves in across the street from Charlie Brown, who instantly gets a crush on her. Desperate to impress her, Charlie Brown, with the help of his faithful dog Snoopy, discovers what it means to be a winner.

I was very wary going into this film, as it was made by Blue Sky Studios, which is not exactly a powerhouse when it comes to animation, to say the least. But The Peanuts movie is, hands down, the best movie the studio has ever made. A lot of this comes from the absurd attention to detail and dedication put into this project.

The original films always had child actors lending their voices to the characters, and The Peanuts Movie follows this tradition. All of the kids do a fantastic job reading and delivering the material. However, the filmmakers did not just hire children, but ones that actually sounded like the characters did in past iterations. The new Linus sounds just like the old one, for instance. This dedication and recreation goes a long way and provides a warm welcome for fans. Another nice addition was the voice of the late Bill Melendez as Snoopy and Woodstock. Though he died a few years back, the movie uses old voice clips from previous films, and this is a very nice touch.


The new animation style is very unique and fits Peanuts well. The characters seem like two dimensional clay-like models with three dimensional backgrounds. It is hard to describe exactly but the textures are incredibly detailed. The frame rate is another example of a little thing going very far. The movie runs at a lower frame rate than most movies usually do. This is to emulate the cartoons of old and this aspect is nailed perfectly. Blue Sky Studios has succeeded in creating a new animation style unlike any other.

Like most Peanuts films, the plot is simple, but finds complexity in the themes. Charlie Brown has a crush on the new girl and wants her to notice him. The film is essentially divided into three segments, each one having Charlie Brown doing something different to impress her. I was floored by the surprising amount of emotional heft contained within this film. There are a number of moments that are fiercely touching despite the superficial simplicity.

The Peanuts Movie is a comedy riot. There are laughs to be had every minute and Snoopy steals the whole darn show. The comedy is clever but pure and innocent. The humor works for both children and adults and the purity of it all is admirable. The picture is absolutely hilarious with plenty of standout jokes and well done slapstick.

The music is very reminiscent of the classics as well. Listening to Vince Guaraldi's "Linus and Lucy" through the speakers easily transports you into the film. The new arrangements are also very good. But there are two modern songs thrown into the mix: Meghan Trainor's "Better When I'm Dancin'" and Flo Rida's "That's What I Like." For some odd reason, these two songs fit perfectly in their respective scenes, and I genuinely have no idea how this was pulled off.

Speaking of modern, the filmmakers handled this film very faithfully to the original material. The time period is never specified, but it feels like the 1950's or 60's. The kids all play outside, they still go to the library, Lucy still offers psychological help for five cents. The movie does not do much different aesthetically and that is commendable. The film has met with some criticism for not being ambitious or trying anything new. But think about it. The creator, Charles Schulz, passed away. Would you really want to tamper with his tried and true formula, especially without his say so? True, the film does not bring much new to the table, but it did not need to.

If I did have a major gripe with the film, it would be the Red Baron scenes. Once again, Snoopy takes to the skies and fights the Red Baron to rescue his beloved Fifi. The animation is gorgeous during these segments and the sweeping camera shows the true beauty and scope of it all. However, there are about five scenes of the flying ace and they interrupt the pacing often. The Red Baron scenes are good, but the stuff with Charlie Brown is much more interesting and engaging, so you cannot help but feel a bit annoyed whenever Snoopy flies his dog house. They often feel out of place and give the picture a disjointed feel.

The Peanuts Movie is nothing groundbreaking, aside from the fantastic visuals, as it plays out similar to other Peanuts movies. But the faithfulness and amazing attention to detail is to be admired. The voice cast is perfect, the visuals are beautiful and singular, the music is wonderfully fitting, and there is a surprising amount of emotion. The countless amount of humor makes it the funniest movie of 2015 and the jokes never get old. The film suffers from a few out place scenes, but this is a tremendous treat for both kids and adults.

Grade: A-