Rating of
3/4
The Peanuts Are Back
Chase - wrote on 11/26/15
This is certainly a very interesting movie to say the least. First of all, I haven't talked to anyone who doesn't know and like the Peanuts and all of the characters associated with it. Each one is memorable in their own way. Usually when a studio get a classic material like this, they would find some way to ruin it and do a half lazy job on it, whether they would modernize it or try to make it "hip" or "cool" to a certain demographic. Thankfully, Blue Sky treated the source material with as much as respect as possible and they turned it into a good product. The story is quite simple as Charlie Brown has a crush on the new girl in town simply known as the Red Haired Girl. He wants to find a way to win her heart while trying to overcome his own incompetence. This is a really enjoyable movie. I would be lying if I say that I didn't have a smile on my face the majority of the time. It has a great sense of humor and it's very charming. All the classic characters that we know and love (except maybe for Lucy) are here and they haven't changed one bit. They are classic characters for a reason and the filmmakers did a great job portraying them. But what I really like about this movie is that it actually does feel like the classic Peanuts cartoon that I use to watch. It also helps that they use the CGI animation in a way that it complements the material. The visuals is simply revolutionary and I applaud the animators for their innovative work. The only negatives that I could think about is that there are some side stories that just seem to be there to pad the run time, such as Snoopy's Red Baron stories. Even if the segments were entertaining, they just feel a little bit out of place. Plus, there are some moments where they try to do some call-backs to the show that just felt a little bit tad forced. Although, I think one important thing to note is that it's not really a story that you would expect something great since the story and the characters are simple. It's supposed to be something that everyone can really enjoy, both young and old, and I think that it really works well to its advantage. If you like the Peanuts in general, you'll definitely like this film. It's really enjoyable and I had a lot of fun.
