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A Charlie Brown Christmas Reviews

1965
0 hr 30 mins
Comedy

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As incredible as it seems, CBS head man James Aubrey originally vetoed his network's presentation of the animated A Charlie Brown Christmas on the grounds that Charles M. Schultz's round-headed protagonist was a "loser" who wouldn't attract an audience! The story proposes that Charlie Brown is convinced that the true meaning of Christmas has been forgotten by his Peanuts friends, not to mention the rest of the world. "Psychiatrist" Lucy advises Charlie Brown to get into the holiday spirit by directing the kids' upcoming Christmas play. Despite his utter lack of control over his cast, Charlie Brown takes his job seriously, even setting out to find a genuine Christmas tree to decorate the set instead of the usual aluminum job. But Charlie Brown's tree is a scrawny, pathetic thing, and all seems lost. That is, until the rest of the Peanuts gang decide to pitch in and decorate the woebegone tree. An instant hit when first telecast December 9, 1965, A Charlie Brown Christmas has been rebroadcast virtually every year since. It was produced by Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez, the latter providing the squeals and growls of Charlie Brown's hyper-intelligent dog, Snoopy.

Reviewed By: Craig Butler

"Peanuts" was already a phenomenally popular comic strip when A Charlie Brown Christmas first aired, but there was no guarantee that a short animated film based upon the strip would work. Over the years, as many strips had been poorly adapted ("Li'l Abner," "The Little King") as successfully transferred ("Popeye," "Superman") to the six-minute cartoon format, and "Peanuts" was a strip whose appeal was based more on subtlety, nuance, and character development than straight gags. But Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez, working from a witty and insightful script by creator Charles M. Schulz, managed to make a film that was always true to the subdued spirit of the strip. Using "real" children rather than veteran child actors for the voices resulted in some occasionally stilted line readings, but it also captured the innocence and heightened naturalness that is so much a part of the strip's appeal. Although the plot is essentially a number of incidents strung together around a general idea, the looseness works to its benefit. The animation, while not up to Disney standards, has an appeal all its own and effectively translates the characters to the screen. A delightful blend of poignancy and humor, A Charlie Brown Christmas is a treasure to be enjoyed during any season.