Pictures of Fifi From the Peanuts Movie

9 /10

Possibly the first kids' movie I've seen that might just appeal more to the adults!

Charlie Brown is flustered. The cute little red-haired girl has just moved to town and is in his class. While he's desperately infatuated with her, he's convinced he needs to accomplish something amazing in order to get her attention.

When I was a little boy, I went to see "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" in the theater....and I bawled my eyes out. After all, Charlie Brown seemed about to really accomplish something and kids would stop mistreating him....and then he failed and things were back as they used to be...with him being a miserable nice kid. Because I grew up feeling so awful for him, as did most folks of my generation, then I think that "The Peanuts Movie" will really, really appeal to you. For once, Charlie Brown makes good...and the film seems like an excellent way to cap off the wonderful work of Charles Schulz. It's a shame he didn't live to see this delightful film.

So why is the film so nice? Well, it's not just that Charlie Brown finally finds happiness but the audience does as well--with lots of gentle nods to the old Peanuts animated specials and characters who were not updated too much. Lucy is still pretty awful, Linus still very thoughtful and the rest of the characters rather sweet. Overall, a delightful film that adults might just like and appreciate more than the kids. Sweet and well made.

By the way, the IMDb trivia says that the flying ship Fifi is stuck on resembles the Hindenburg. Well, it doesn't. Its shape is those of the WWI Zeppelins--the Hindenburg was fatter and with a much more rounded nose. In other words, the filmmakers got it right...and the ship should have been 1910s vintage, not that of a mid-1930s Zeppelin. Just a bit of trivia for aviation buffs!

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9 /10

Peanuts' return to cinemas is a winner on pretty much all levels

There were concerns about that it was in CGI (don't have anything against the style, just that whether it would feel too different to the traditional style fans, myself included, grew up with, and whether it would continue the trend of a lot of animated films recently of being brash, frenetic and over-reliant on pop culture references and immaturity.

However, as a Peanuts fan, despite the concerns, this reviewer gave it a chance. And she is glad that she did. Its only drawback is that some of the pacing at times did feel a little rushed, other than that 'Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie' was a winner on pretty much all levels and one of the better animated films of 2015.

'Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie''s animation is really beautifully done, and it is very clear that a lot of effort and heart went into rendering it. It flows beautifully, is very detailed with character designs that are cute and never ugly and contains wonderful vivid colours that leap out at you without ever feeling too much. That it was in CGI proved not to be a hindrance after all, and didn't prove to be a distraction. The music is whimsical in tone, complete with some catchy song choices that contains a refreshing optimism, some making reference to the film's message but it never comes across heavy-handedly.

Scripting-wise, Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie' will appeal to any age. It adopts a refreshingly gentle tone that is loyal in spirit to the Peanuts specials, but is also very funny and touching. The story similarly won me over and proves to be a wonderfully refreshing change from most animated films in recent years. It is very cute and charming, with the humour being genuinely funny without resorting to toilet humour or pop culture references (which would have been completely out of place if included), the nostalgic elements are pleasantly warm and cosy and the touching moments are suitably poignant without falling into mawkish sentimentality. There are some nice messaging and morals, which children and adults alike will identify with even if familiar, and the film doesn't make the mistake of ramming it down the throats or being preachy.

One may question which target audience it's aimed at. This reviewer didn't see as a problem, though it's more likely to be nostalgic adults who grew up with Peanuts. Make no mistake as children have also grown up with Peanuts, hence why it wasn't a problem for me. The characters are very engagingly written and true to character, all the child characters are ones that anybody can see themselves in, but my favourite has always been Snoopy, who is adorable and hilarious as ever. The voice acting is very well done.

In conclusion, excellent and refreshing animated film that really won me over, completely obliterating any concerns initially had. 9/10 Bethany Cox

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9 /10

Happiness is ...

Charlie Brown continues to be the hopeless blockhead. He can't fly a kite. Everything he does is wrong. Then the Little Red-Haired Girl moves in across the street. Charlie Brown is desperate for a fresh start but doesn't have the esteem to talk to her. Lucy advises him to be a winner first. After a mix-up with Peppermint Patty, he gets a perfect score in the standardized test. Suddenly, everything goes his way. Meanwhile, Linus brought in a model of the Red Baron plane for show and tell. It gets away and continues to cause havoc for the rest of the movie. Snoopy and Woodstock have imaginary adventures against the Red Baron as Snoopy tries to rescue Fifi.

Despite being a 3D CGI creation, it maintains its 2D style. In addition, it maintains its innocent tone from the comics. It takes the vast number of ideas from the decades of cartoon and creates a compelling cohesive story. This is pure Charlie Brown and pure Peanuts. There are great call-backs. Even the voices are reminiscent of the older cartoons. Peppermint Patty is probably the only one that is slightly off. Overall, this is such a refreshing reboot of the franchise. Unlike so many other franchises, this one is something new but it never forgets its origins.

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9 /10

Sweet and Charming

This is a taut film that stays in the spirit of the canon. Those films were done on much smaller budgets but still charm the heck out of us. This one has a simple plot. After showing us that Charlie Brown is still a mess, a little red-headed girl moves in across the street. It is love at first sight, and, of course, he is petrified to go near her. She is also in his class. There are a series of amusing scenes after it is thought that our hero has received a perfect score on a school pretest (something that has never been done before). He is treated as royalty, but he must deal with a dose of reality. Charlie Brown, for all his neuroses, is a kind and loving character. He is Everyman (or what Everyman would like to think he is). There is a lot of Snoopy, but at times I found his World War One story a little tiresome. But he also has some great shtick. What is most endearing is that the cast of characters are utterly true to what we have grown to love.

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6 /10

Still crushing after all these years

Warning: Spoilers

"The Peanuts" is one of the most seen and talked-about animated films from the year 2015. And it is also among the ones that received the most awards attention as it scored several nominations at the Annies, got in at the Globes and seems likely to be nominated for an Oscar. The film's director is Steve Martino and you may have seen his "Horton Hears a Who!" or "Ice Age 4". The Peanuts movie was written among others by Bryan and Craug Schulz, both sons of Charles M. Schulz, the man who created the Peanuts and was responsible for writing their cartoons for many decades. It all started in the mid-60s in terms of television for Charlie Brown and his pals. So last year was their 50th anniversary and this film is sort-of a gift to loyal fans.

Some people may have a problem with the animation style, but I was perfectly happy with it. I think they found the right balance between making them look like the old characters and giving them a new modern touch. Same can be said about the story in my opinion. They included many many references to the old cartoons, in terms of which character likes whom, how they talk to one another, the failed football-kicking, how Snoopy is typing on his doghouse and, most of all, how Charly is still so clumsy and miserable most of the time and (not so) secretly in love with the little redhead girl. I believe all these references make it probably a more rewarding watch for those who know about the old films and will put questions marks in the minds of new audiences perhaps, but even for them it's an okay watch. But there are also new moments, like Snoopy and Charly being much bigger friends, almost besties, compared to Melendez' old films.

I always liked the story with Charlie and his crush, the little redhead girl, so for me it is amazing to see them use it for this film here. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy the parts with Snoopy as an aviator flying to his true love at all. These were really weak and not memorable at all I felt. Of course they had the tough challenge of making a film that runs for considerably over an hour and not keep it at clearly under 30 minutes like these short films about the Peanuts, but i still wish they could have come up with a better story line for Snoopy. He was much more fun to watch in the scenes when he was supporting player to Charlie. Talking about the runtime, it is still a fairly short watch. It runs for 88 minutes roughly, but the end credits were really really long, so yeah, certainly not a film that will drag. In my opinion, it is easily among the better (maybe best) animated films of the year and a worthy continuation of the franchise with a refreshing modern touch. The only reason why I do not give this one more stars is because I have never been a huuuge Peanuts fan. If you have, you may consider this one of the best 2015 films, live-action or animation. i recommend the watch. Thumbs up.

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5 /10

Snoopy is back

Charlie Brown wants to impress the little Red Haired Girl who has moved into his street. However everything he does to impress her causes further commotion. He hopes to dance with her but trips and sets off the sprinklers at the school hall.

Meanwhile Snoopy has fantasies that he is on a biplane battling the Red Baron up in the skies.

Charlie learns a lesson that he should be himself. In his case being neurotic and getting things wrong.

The Peanuts Movie adds 3D animation but also tries to retain its charm and some nostalgia with its animation style.

However it is too long, too padded and falls flat.

I was not sure even who it was even aimed at. Young kids may not know Snoopy and older folks would find the film to be old hat.

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7 /10

FIRST THERE WAS WAR. THEN THERE WAS PEACE

Warning: Spoilers

This feature is similar to "You're in Love, Charlie Brown." It includes all the cliche bits we have seen a dozen times before. BTW I have never really warmed up to Woodstock which they insist on putting into every film.

I loved the old cartoons, and indeed they attempted to use similar voices. In that regard they did fairly decent except for Charlie Brown and Lucy, the two main characters. The film starts out in winter and seems days later it is the middle of summer. The film avoids all holiday or religious themes as Chuck does a book report on "Leo's Toy Store" by Warren Peace.

The theme is that Charlie Brown is a good man with good intentions under all of his "failures" and that is what is important. It was so much like what was already done, I was not overly entertained.

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8 /10

Old School

If you are or were a fan, this is a nice throwback to Charlie Brown and the others doing their thing. But even if you never heard of them and this is your first time, this is pretty fun and entertaining. It's not as sophisticated as most Pixar outputs, but not every animated feature has to go that route. You have to have diversity and keeping it "simple" does pay out in this case.

And it's not meant in a bad way of course, because the movie does exactly what it says it would do. It's about school, it's about first love, it's about being young and doing stuff you would never do, once you have grown up and it's about relationships in general. It's also about one of the smartest non-talking film dog out there. The animation style may be a put off for some, but it works and should not bother you at all

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7 /10

"Sometimes dreams do come true".

Warning: Spoilers

Gosh, how long has it been since I've seen an animated Peanuts cartoon? I bet it's going on thirty years or so. My earliest recollection would be "A Charlie Brown Christmas" going back a half century now when I would have been a teenager. So the great thing about this newest movie is that the film makers didn't mess with a good thing and gave us all those lovable and nostalgic characters in pretty much the same way prior generations saw them in the cartoon specials and comic strips. I remember them all (except one) and the one thing this picture did was help reinforce the characters for me, because I'd read the comic strip carelessly and never would remember who was who except the obvious characters like Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and Pigpen; he was easy because of all the dust flying around him. The only character I don't recall was Snoopy's dream gal Fifi, and I still don't know if she ever appeared earlier or if she's a recent addition. As I said, it's been a long time. I guess what I need to do is dig up some reprint editions of the comic strips and re-live Charles Schulz's wonderful Peanuts world. Closely followed by getting a copy of 'Leo's Toy Store' by Warren Piece, it looks like a winner.

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6 /10

Faithful Continuation

Snoopy embarks upon his greatest mission as he and his team take to the skies to pursue their arch-nemesis, while his best pal Charlie Brown begins his own epic quest back home to win the love of his life.

It is easy to expect the worst. After more than fifty years of comic strips and cartoons, a new "Charlie Brown" is a scary thought. Will they be faithful? Will the new methods of animation ruin anything? For me, i found it pleasantly enjoyable.

Calling this a "great" film is a stretch, and I can see why it got snubbed at the Oscars: there isn't much new here, just new ways of presenting old ideas. Anyone familiar with the characters have seen the catchphrases and various incidents multiple times. But it also seems like more than a rehash, like this is presenting an old friend to a new generation. If they plan on making more, I think that would be a good thing.

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6 /10

Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie

Warning: Spoilers

I may have watched the classic Snoopy or Charlie Brown cartoons a couple of times when I was a kid. It's a bit of a Marmite thing for me, I know peopke like it, but Charlie Brown is a depressing loser kid, at least Snoopy is likeable lol. I'd heard of the 60s short movie, A Charlie Brown Christmas, but this is the first full length feature film I'd seen featuring the characters from the Peanuts comic strip, also the first made in 35 years. Basically, Charlie Brown (Noah Schnapp) is the accident-prone child, with a long-running streak of failures. A Little Red-Haired Girl moves into the neighbourhood, Charlie Brown is infatuated with her, but worries his clumsiness will prevent her from noticing him. Lucy van Pelt (Hadley Belle Miller) says he should be more confident, so Charlie Brown decides to try a few activities, to find one that may get the new girl's attention. His first attempt is to participate in the school's talent show with a magic act, with help from his dog Snoopy (Bill Melendez, one of Peanuts' original animators), and his best friend, yellow bird Woodstock. But something goes wrong during the act of Charlie Brown's sister Sally (Mariel Sheets), he helps her out, humiliating himself in the process. Next he wants to impress the Little Red-Haired Girl, Charlie Brown signs up for the school dance and Snoopy teaches him some moves. At the dance, Charlie Brown gains positive attention for his skills, but slips and sets off the sprinkler system, the dance is cut short and all the other students look down on him again. Charlie Brown is partnered with the Little Red-Haired Girl to write a book report. He is initially excited to have the chance to be with her, but she is called away by a family illness, leaving Charlie Brown to write the report by himself. Charlie Brown decides to write a report on the intellectual novel War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. At the same time, following a standardized test, Charlie Brown finds he is the only student to get a perfect score. His friends and the other students congratulate him, and his popularity begins to climb. However, at an assembly to accept an award, he finds out that the test papers were mixed up, the high score belongs to Peppermint Patty (Anastasia Bredikhina). Charlie Brown declines the medal, losing all his new-found popularity. Then his book report is destroyed, and he admits to the Little Red-Haired Girl he has caused them to both fail the assignment. Before leaving school for the summer, Charlie Brown is surprised when the Little Red-Haired Girl chooses him for a pen pal. Linus (Alexander Garfin), Lucy's brother, convinces Charlie Brown he needs to tell the Little Red-Haired Girl how he feels about her before she leaves for the summer. He races to her house but sees that she is about to board a bus for summer camp, he thinks it is already too late. He takes a kite out of the Kite-Eating Tree, the string becomes tangled around him, and the breeze drags him in the direction of the bus. Charlie Brown's friends are amazed to see him flying a kite, something he has always failed to do, they follow him. When he reaches the bus, Charlie Brown asks the Little Red-Haired Girl (Francesca Capaldi) why shy chose him despite his various failures. She tells him that she admires his selflessness, determination and honesty, and the two promise to write to each other. In a subplot, Snoopy finds a typewriter and writes a story about the First World War Flying Ace, trying to save his love interest Fifi (Kristin Chenoweth) from the Red Baron. Snoopy uses the events and situations surrounding Charlie Brown as his inspiration to develop his story, coming across him and the gang many times along the way. Also starring Noah Johnston as Schroeder, A.J. Tecce as Pig-Pen, Rebecca Bloom as Marcie, and Marleik as Franklin. Charlie Brown is fairly likeable being the very unlucky but ambitious boy, Lucy is amusingly snappy, and the other supporting children are fun, obviously it is Snoopy the beagle that almost steals the show with his adventures involving his doghouse. The film does have three-dimensional characters and locations, but the style of animation sticks very closely to the original comic strips, from the character expressions to their cartoonish actions, it should make you laugh, and works well for both fans of Peanuts, and the new generation, a fun family computer-animated comedy. It was nominated the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture - Animated. Good!

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Fun movie! Has all the things we remember about the 'Peanuts' comic strip.

We watched this at home on DVD from our local public library.

I've been alive for quite a long time, I grew up reading 'Peanuts' in the Sunday newspaper. And as I grew into an adult in the daily paper.

This movie uses CGI rather than conventional (old) animation techniques. It works very well and is a very nice animation.

The core of the story here has the 'Little Red-haired' moving to Charlie Brown's neighborhood and Charlie immediately having a crush on her but too bashful to even talk to her. But several of Charlie's actions which demonstrated his integrity won her over in the end.

It also has many of the old familiar themes, like the kite-eating tree, Lucy pulling the football away, and Snoopy sitting on his doghouse typing stories of him chasing down the Red Baron.

Young boys and girls, most seem about 9 to 11, voice the young characters and in many cases the actor has a remarkable resemblance to the cartoon character. Both girls who voice Peppermint Patty and the 'Little Red-haired Girl', have red hair themselves.

It is a cartoon movie, lots of fun and entertaining.

Edit: We watched it again February 2019, on BluRay this time, remarkably good picture and sound.

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8 /10

clichéd to say but true: absolute fun for the whole family

A worry going in to The Peanuts Movie was simply this: in 2015, in a time where animation is all computer-animated and with super-sophistication but also lacking the sort of approach that came with the simple, quirky, edgy-but-cute style of the Peanuts cartoons from the past half century, how do you bring that world out and make it feel right? And there was an element of the story that made me raise an eyebrow, and reminded me of an issue I had with the recent 2011 return of The Muppets - a new character comes to the universe of the Peanuts. Would this character fit in? Would it be distracting if he or she looks different or acts un-Peanuts-like? And what does Peanuts-like mean, you might ask, by the way? It's that thing where, simply, kids think like kids, but with an extra level of sophistication in the writing. Let me put it this way: The Peanuts Movie is the only movie that kids will see which has a reference to Tolstoy's War and Peace (though it's not initially called that by Peppermint Patty).

But fears are assuaged as I return from seeing the movie and find the movie is very successful at what it aims to be. In short, this is at its best... just another Peanuts movie, but that's a sincere compliment. You watch some of those movies and specials, which have stood the test of time due to the wit of the writing and the beautiful (yes, beautiful) animation that does simply to bring Charles Schulz's comic to life, and those shows and movies (i.e. the best, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, but also Snoopy Come Home and Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown) with issues that kids deal with, whether or not they directly relate to the hero. In this story it's all about this new girl coming to school (we never learn her name, there's really no need to), and how good old Chuck can barely deal with his ridiculously nervous reaction. How can he even say hello to her, much less carry a conversation? What can he do to build up his confidence? Can Lucy with her Nickel-store advice and 10-step book help? Can he become a success in some way?

Whether you're coming to this as someone who has been watching Peanuts all your life, or if you have a little kid (or are one) and have never seen one of these and it's your introduction, it is a wholly delightful experience. Schulz's kids were co-screenwriters, which could have been great or not-so-great (one never knows if the purity will work or become too stifling, or if there are too many attempts to make it "hip" and "Modern", which means it won't age so well years down the line). All of the Peanuts characters we know and like are here - I couldn't find one major one who wasn't, and everyone gets a moment or two (I even forgot for a moment Lucy's crush for Schroeder, but it's here too). And of course Snoopy as the super rascal/charmer/adventurer of the lot who tries to do things like sneak into school as a teacher ("No dogs allowed!" duh) and spends his part time writing stories about being an ace pilot with the "Red Baron" plane.

With the exception of a couple of elements that, frankly, I could've taken or left, like some of the Red Baron bits (some are OK, some may drag unless you're a kid into the action-loaded visuals), and the inclusion of a couple of pop songs (not annoying ones, but they are of this time period) and a lack (not completely, but not enough) of Vince Guaraldi's irreplaceable jazz score, the movie really works. I cared about Charlie Brown on his journey through building up his confidence, through ups and downs that were not, and occasionally were, his fault. And along the whole way, there's that special thing that made Peanuts work, has always made it work, and will continue for many years to come: you want to see this guy win, and yet it's funnier/more realistic when he falls on his face. But maybe every Charlie Brown has his day in this case? Between the talent show, school dance, book report, summer pen-pal deal, can Charlie Brown say ONE word to this girl? Who knows.

They're all here and its spirit is pure. What else do you need to know? The Peanuts Movie is a blast of family entertainment in the young and old sense of the word, full of clever lines and visual-eye-pleasing slapstick and, (happy surprise) pathos.

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10 /10

The Peanuts Movie was a nice trip back to my childhood of enjoying Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the rest of the gang

tavm 8 November 2015

As someone who grew up watching the Charlie Brown animated specials as well as reading the comic strip "Peanuts" in my local paper and also in various book compilations, I highly enjoyed this movie immensely. What's to like? Well, how about an adult "voice" being represented by a trombone doing that "wah-wah" sound? Or Vince Guaraldi's music score occasionally being sprinkled throughout like the unofficial theme of "Linus & Lucy"? And then there's the various unrequited love pairings of Sally & Linus, Lucy & Schroeder, not to mention both Peppermint Patty and Marcie liking Charlie Brown who doesn't even notice? Speaking of whom, here he once again has a crush on a Little Red-Haired Girl who's depicted here as the new kid in town and school. Creator Charles Schulz never had her drawn in his strip nor given her a name though I remember one of the animated specials-"It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown"-had her animated and called Heather there. I don't think she spoke there, though. Here, she's not named but she does speak and is seen quite a bit. Since Schulz' son and grandson wrote the screenplay, I don't think he would have objected one bit especially when we hear what she says to Charlie Brown at the end. Also enjoyable was Snoopy's active imagination when playing the World War I Flying Ace and his battle against the Red Baron and his attempted rescue of Fifi. In summary, The Peanuts Movie is a wonderful tribute to the comic strip and the animated specials produced by Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez whose vintage voice tracks as Snoopy and Woodstock were provided here as well. Really, all I'll now say is go see The Peanuts Movie if you like entertainment that is both funny and touching and makes you look fondly back at your own childhood.

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So disappointing

This film is about Charlie Brown who is insecure and lacks self confidence. He becomes respected after getting full marks in a school test, which helps him to get back on his feet, thereby getting closer to the girl of his dreams.

After just ten minutes, I was already thoroughly bored by it. I find the story too silly. It's seemingly aiming at very young children, hence characters fall or trip over every four seconds. Jokes are repetitive and tiring, and there's very little plot at all. The side story involving Snoopy is far fetched, and completely unconnected with the Charlie Brown story. There's nothing to engage adults. Snoopy used to be one of my favourite cartoon characters, but this film is so disappointing.

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5 /10

Charlie Brown, you are a winner...this time!

Warning: Spoilers

If for any reason this movie was made; it must be recruiting a multitude of younger and new fans to the Peanuts gang. Of course Charlie Brown and Snoopy are really who people care about and both have their share of the story line.

Snoopy and his co-editor Woodstock(both voiced by Bill Melendez)are writing a story about hero Snoopy in his flying dog house fighting the Red Baron and rescuing a new romance in his life, Fifi(Kristin Chenoweth).

Lucy(Hadley Belle Miller) is still brow-beating Charlie and selling psychological advise for five cents. Schroeder(Noah Johnston)is still knocking out the only classics he knows.

Nervous and often pitiful Charlie Brown(Noah Schnapp)gets the chance to get away from his past and recreate himself as a new kid moves into the neighborhood. There she stands her first day at school, so pretty with that long, red hair. Charlie Brown is smitten with the Little-Red-Haired-Girl(Francesca Capaldi). Charlie will chock, squirm and sweat before getting her to notice him, as he takes great pride in keeping her lost pink chewed on pencil safe.

Color and animation on par. Although I'm afraid the story begins to grow monotonous.

Other characters voiced by: Rebecca Bloom, Alexander Garfin, Mariel Sheets, Anastasia Bredkhina and Venus Schultheis.

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9 /10

The Peanuts Movie

Warning: Spoilers

While "The Peanuts Movie" was released in early November (I had plans to see it then, almost upon release), I'm glad I watched it with my kids during the Holiday season of December. It just felt right. It was just the three of us, me and the daughter and son, in the theater on a quiet Tuesday afternoon after I got off work. Couldn't have asked for a better time to see it.

I liked everything about it. I grew up with the cartoon strip in the funny paper section of the daily newspaper, reading them thanks to my grandmother who would save them for me when I came over to spend the night on the occasional Friday. Charlie Brown and gang were a childhood mainstay. I think that is why adults of my generation will perhaps enjoy this as much as our kids do.

Charlie Brown crushes on a red-headed new girl (her name never revealed; she is always drawn and developed as a distance character, admired by Chuck from afar) who moves across the street, but he's so shy and considers himself so insignificant, he isn't able to approach her. So he spends the whole movie trying to find ways to do so. The winter dance is coming so he gets help from Snoopy, his loyal pet dog, on how to bust a move. Another opportunity comes when he draws her name from a bowl for a book report (War and Peace is his selection), putting it together while she's away tending to a sick grandma. When Charlie supposedly makes a perfect score of 100 on a big test, he becomes a school celebrity, but this could be a case of mistaken success as his paper and Peppermint Patty's got mixed up as they rushed to turn it in on the teacher's desk. Meanwhile, a companion to Chuck's travails with trying to earn the attention/affection of the new girl is the dreamed up fantasy of Snoopy, typing away on a found typewriter in a garbage (he is tossed in there by Lucy who orderly informs him that no dogs are allowed in class with the students) bin about his attempted rescues of a foxy fighter dog as The Red Barron (at the school, a toy red baron plane is flying loose, at one point ruining Chuck's book report which he stayed up all night to prepare!) poses a threat. Woodstock, the bird buddy of Snoop, often critique's the dog's work much to its dismay.

Set mostly in winter, I think this is the ideal December family movie to see with your kids. I thought our little three person viewing in the lone theater of it was wonderful and the animation, use of the Peanuts characters (so endearingly developed, as if the spirit of Schultz was alive and well as they come in and out of Chuck's life during his day to day struggle to appeal to the girl next door), satisfying conclusion where Charlie starts to have some good things happen to him (his kite mishaps result in success when he shows a smaller boy how to fly it) after a great deal of misfortune (the opening introduces Chuck as we'd expect: he has some clumsy and unlucky bumps that finds him roped by kite string, hanging upside down in a tree, with snow from said tree dumped all over him!), and inspired montages between Charlie and Snoopy as they share a specific period of time growing up. You get Lucy at her "psychiatric stand charging 5 cents", Pigpen actually getting rained on and cleaned up (!), Shroder enduring Lucy's forlorn affections (and his piano playing is cleverly used for music purposes amusingly), Linus (and his blanket) enduring Lisa Brown's affections, poor brainy Marcy enduring tomboy Patty's sports "unnecessary roughness", and Charlie Brown making some good decisions that often hinder his plans to charm the girl of his dreams (the realization of the perfect score and stepping up to admit it isn't his and the assistance to his sister during a talent show are nice moments) are just some highlights. The sky scenes where Snoopy imagines himself a fighter pilot (the dog house of course his plane, as Woodstock assists him) going after the Red Barron in order to save his girl are a delight. What a splendid end-of-the-year entertainment. The idea that despite repeated bouts with enduring a struggle CB doesn't surrender, rings so genuinely...I think Schulz would be proud.

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8 /10

After all these years, he's still the Charlie Browniest.

You have to feel bad for poor old Charlie Brown (voice of Noah Schnapp). Nothing ever seems to go his way. But still he soldiers on. One day, Charlie Brown spots a new neighbor: a Little Red-Haired Girl with whom he falls hopelessly in love. Often helped (and prodded) by his faithful dog Snoopy, he tries a couple of schemes to win her favor. When he appears to have attained a perfect score on an achievement test, he becomes something of a hero to the other kids who have previously mocked or insulted him. Meanwhile, Snoopy finds a typewriter and is inspired to regale us with his heroic exploits of fighting his arch-nemesis The Red Baron.

The classic comic strip gets introduced to the current generation with endearing results. Given that two of the credited screenwriters are Craig and Bryan Schulz (son and grandson of franchise creator Charles M. Schulz), it's clear that there will be great affection and respect for the characters, with little in the way of modern updates. While longtime devotees of the strip may be somewhat dismayed by the use of computer generated animation, the filmmakers are thankfully faithful to the original designs of these characters that we know and love so much. While this viewer would have somewhat tightened the extended sequences with Snoopy vs. The Red Baron (they seem mostly for the purpose of showing us just how far animation has come over the decades), overall the movie is genuinely charming and often hilarious. The gags sometimes come fast and furious, and the script gives us some pleasant rehashes (or variations) on classic Peanuts imagery and lines of dialogue, which really hits the old nostalgia button.

A lot of the wonderful Vince Guaraldi music is appropriately reused, with a few new touches like that "Better When I'm Dancing" song. The animation is admittedly pretty slick (this is from the same folks who gave us the "Ice Age" series). One uproarious touch is to once again use wacky trombone noises to indicate the voices of adult characters. The youthful voice-over actors are very well cast. Snoopy and his feathered friend Woodstock (archive audio of animator Bill Melendez is used for their vocalizations) often steal the show.

Appealing, good-natured fun with appreciable messages about perseverance and self- esteem, "The Peanuts Movie" is a worthy primer for veteran Peanuts fans to show their offspring.

Eight out of 10.

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8 /10

Cute, charming and completely in the spirit of the original Peanuts

A little red-haired girl has moved across the street from Charlie Brown. He sees her and falls in love. He wants to ask her out or impress her but everything he tries fails. Meanwhile Snoopy is in his doghouse plane fighting the Red Baron for cute little poodle Fifi.

I was expecting the worst when this was announced. I'm glad to announce that I was wrong. This is a charming, amusing and excellent update of the Peanuts. Actually there's no updating of the characters and their world. They still use phones and typewriters, No computers, cells or such exist here. The animation is now all CGI but manages to retain the charm of the hand-drawn originals. The aerial battles between Snoopy and the Red Baron are VERY well-done. The voices are now done by actual children and not adults like the previous ones did. Also there's no crude humor or violence--this is VERY G rated. Even better it has messages that say be yourself and don't give up no matter what. And of course it has a big old happy ending! Warm, amusing and perfect for the whole family. Recommended.

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9 /10

Unmodified & Unmodernized Charlie Brown & the Peanuts Gang

From the Creators of "Ice Age" (2002), this Faithful Adaptation of the Popular Culture Icon, Charlie Brown and the "Peanuts" Gang, is a Nostalgic Trip for Old Time Fans that Purposely Refrains from "Updating" or otherwise intruding on the Legacy.

It's a Bold Effort in this Age of High-Style Computer Graphics and Cynicism prevalent in most Kids Animation. Simplicity and Understatement Reign and even maintaining a Scratchy, Pencil Drawn Style that was the Source Material.

The Charles Schultz Family was Completely Involved in the Production and Their Insistence on going for Authenticity and Remembrance of Characters is a Welcome if "Iffy" Composition. Will Moderns Embrace the "Primitive" Style and Display of an Elementary Education Void of Handhelds, Tablets, and Desktops?

Snoopy actually uses a Manual Typewriter as He Composes His Dream Novel involving the Infamous Red Baron. Charlie Brown's connection to "The Little Red Haired Girl" is a Lead Pencil. How's that for Retro.

Overall, the Laid-Back Tone and Uncomplicated, yet Profound Messages that was the "Strip" is there for a New Generation to Enjoy, Embrace, and Appreciate for what it is, or not. It's up to Them and is Offered as an Alternative to the Hyper-Kinetic Mayhem of "Online" Behavior and Thinking.

"Peanuts" is what it is and will not be brought Kicking and Screaming to the New Millennium. Although there Remains a Lot of Kicking and Screaming in the Charlie Brown Universe, it's mostly Sub-Conscious and Subtle.

In Today's Environment it's a Needed and Welcome Throwback take on the way Things Used to Be and Beneath the Surface of the Post-Internet Playground, the way Things Still Are.

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9 /10

Exceeded my expectations -- I loved it!

A charming, warm-hearted film that manages to update the Peanuts characters without spitting on everything that made them so great. I was dreading this for months because I was afraid it would be Peanuts in-name-only with a focus on drawing in kids of today with questionable humor, celebrity cameos, and littered with music from pop stars. There is one forced pop song in this but accepting that was a small price to pay to keep the rest of the movie in line with the spirit of Charles Schulz's classic comic strip and cartoons. It's funny and sweet with great voice work, nice animation, and a wonderful script that blends many key Peanuts moments while telling the timeless story of Charlie Brown's crush on the Little Red-Haired Girl. I just loved this movie. It made me smile like few movies in recent memory have. If you are a longtime Peanuts fans who was concerned this wouldn't be in line with the comics or cartoons you grew up with, give it a shot and I'm sure you'll be pleasantly surprised. It's really good!

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7 /10

Sweet, fun movie

The Peanuts gang - Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock, Sally, Linus, Lucy, Marcie, Peppermint Patty, Schroeder, Franklin and Pigpen - are back. Some stories from the lives of these children, including Charlie Brown's infatuation with the Little Red Haired Girl and Snoopy vs The Red Baron.

Sweet, fun movie. Captures the spirit of the original cartoon reasonably well. Some great stories, and a pretty moral to it all at the end.

Not quite the Charlie Brown I remember though. The cartoons, while suitable for children, often had very clever adult-orientated witticisms in them. This movie feels a bit dumbed-down, like it is meant more for kids than adults. The rather plastic music of the soundtrack reinforces the view.

Overall, still a good movie and ideal for all ages.

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7 /10

This flick reveals that the key to "acing" standardized tests . . .

Warning: Spoilers

. . . is to sign the answer sheet of the person (here, Peppermint Patty) who correctly guesses which connect-the-dots animal represents a perfect score on that day's fill-in-the-bubble sheet. As THE PEANUTS MOVIE implicitly documents, test graders obviously are much too busy to scan scores of individual answers on hundreds of bubble answer sheets one-by-one, especially if there is no visual pattern formed by correct answers. If a 100% perfect test effort neatly depicts a zebra or a giraffe, this makes it much easier for graders to detect genius at a single glance (obtained serendipitously by Charlie Brown through his test sheet Switcheroo). This also makes it possible for a well-trained test proctor to eyeball an imperfect score sheet, and assign it a "ballpark" final score depending upon how much it deviates from that day's "lucky" platypus or wallaby, as the case might be. Again, this method of coming up with standardized test results is far superior to unrealistically expecting scorers to stay awake and alert while checking thousands upon thousands of randomly filled-in "bubbles," which have no geometrically intrinsic reason to be either "right" or "wrong."

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9 /10

Wonderful adaptation of the classic cartoon

Warning: Spoilers

THE PEANUTS MOVIE (2015) ***1/2 Voices of : Noah Schnapp, Alexander Garfin, Hadley Belle Miller, Venus Schultheis, Mariel Sheets, Rebecca Bloom, Anastasia Bredikhina, Francesca Capaldi, Madisyn Shipman, AJ Tecce, Marleik Mar Mar Walker, William Wunsch, Michah Revelli, Kristin Chenoweth, Bill Melendez. Wonderful animated big-screen adaptation of the universally beloved comic strip by the late, great Charles Schulz (whose relations, Bryan and Craig co-wrote the screenplay with Cornelius Uliano) features perennial loser Charlie Brown (Schnapp) facing his big insecurity in welcoming possible flame The Little Red Haired girl (Capaldi) with help from loyal pet Snoopy and the gang. Capturing the spirit of the classic TV specials with digital state-of-the-art glossy graphics the film wisely has child actors as the voices and filmmaker Steve Martino uses the strips' many plots and featured story lines strung together in a winning, welcome way.

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8 /10

Nicely realised

Warning: Spoilers

Charlie Brown, full (as ever) of self-defeating pessimism, embarks on a series of positive ventures in order to try to impress the red-headed girl who has moved into the neighbourhood: they do not go well. Snoppy, meanwhile, takes to the skies in pursuit of the Red Baron and in order to rescue his love interest Fifi.

Peanuts was a 3-panel daily newspaper strip which recounted the adventures of Charlie Brown – usually disastrous – and his whimsical beagle Snoopy and the fantasy world he inhabited. The supporting cast were all memorable and well thought out, and all of them feature in this movie.

So how do you translate a 3-panel newspaper strip into a full length movie? The answer is – just like they have done it here. The story is slight, but it is perfectly strong enough to hang a string of incidents on, none of which would have been out of place in the daily strip. The kids' voices are all cast well, with Noah Johnston doing a terrific job as Charlie Brown.

And I was very impressed with the way Schulz' style has been captured in 3D CGI. The film looks great, it is warm and engaging, and it brings Peanuts to a modern day audience in a most pleasing way.

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Pictures of Fifi From the Peanuts Movie

Source: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2452042/reviews

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