Despite being sweet and occasionally funny, The Peanuts Movie relies too heavily on unnecessary nostalgia and slapstick to support its affectionately straightforward plot. The film can be summarized as 30 minutes of main plot (enough for a TV special) and 60 minutes of filler (enough to qualify for the usual theatrical release). The film’s plot is deceptively simplistic: Charlie Brown wishes to appear exceptional to the little redhead girl, yet continuously “screws up” every goal set. Meanwhile, Snoopy gets into various antics (mostly involving the Red Baron) while the other Peanuts get their share of appearances, gags and slapstick.
When a film adaptation fails to receive well with its target audience, it often has to do with a sharp deviation from its source material (i.e. Dragon Ball Evolution, Super Mario Bros, most live action Doctor Seuss, etc…). The Peanuts Movie presents a rare case of the opposite, using excessively from its source material to the point of staleness and near plagiarism. References to the comics are abundant: the kite-eating tree, the little red haired girl, Snoopy’s typewriter, kicking the football, it’s all used. Yet it’s when the film involves the TV Specials—namely Christmas, Halloween and Thanksgiving—does the fine line between heavy nostalgia and plagiarism begin merging together. Here’s just a few scenes The Peanuts Movie directly rips from the specials:
- Snoopy dragging Linus and crew around on the ice. (Christmas)
- Lucy exclaiming how she loves “nickels, nickels, nickels” at her roadside psychiatrist stand. (Christmas)
- Peppermint Paddy saying, “you’re holding my hand Chuck, you sly dog.” (Thanksgiving)
- Charlie Brown mentioning how he can only make toast. (Thanksgiving)
- Drastic color schemes and background changes when Snoopy faces the Red Baron. (Halloween)
- Snoopy pretending to cross enemy territory. (Halloween)
- Children singing “Christmas Time is Here” with the exact 1965 audio. (Christmas)
- Snoopy silently mocking Lucy. Lucy exclaiming “I outta slug you” before getting licked. Lucy exclaiming, “Ugh! I've been kissed by a dog! I have dog germs! Get hot water! Get some disinfectant! Get some Iodine!” (Christmas)
At least the Halloween special had the decency to change the latter running gag’s lines—here, The Peanuts Movie copies it word for word. I’d estimate around 85-90% of The Peanuts Movie is from a former Peanuts’ media, the most noticeable deviations being the addition of Snoopy’s love interest Fifi (who is in truth imaginary, so technically non-canon) and the small reveal during the film’s finale. It’s as if Blue Sky Studios was too scared to deviate from the Peanuts source material, worried about experiencing the wrath of ticked-off nostalgic viewers. Perhaps such choice was for the best, seeing how Blue Sky doesn’t hold the best record when it comes to innovative plots (save for the undisputed masterpiece which is Rio 2)—yet by playing it entirely safe, the film misses any chance at distinguishing itself among the animation masses produced on a yearly basis.
It’s a shame too since there’s promise in The Peanuts Movie. For one the film does an excellent job in animation, finding a pleasing balance between CGI and 2D styling. The lack of deviation does breed some good, with most of the Peanuts cast staying true to their comic book personalities. Linus for example, is kept near-identical to his comic strip counterpart as the wise, caring friend to Charlie Brown—which surprised me since it would have been so easy marketing his Great Pumpkin obsession (who, by the way, is not once referenced). Lucy, on the other hand, has been flanderized to a stubborn, bullying near-antagonist for Charlie Brown. Sure Lucy could be a jerk in the comics, particularly when it involved football, but she was never this obnoxious. The best character in The Peanuts Movie is also the most important, Charlie Brown. If I can say one great thing about The Peanuts Movie, it’s how beautifully the writers capture Charlie Brown’s determination and kind-hearted spirit.
Sadly such spirit can be distractingly dominated by the Peanuts’ second most iconic character (if not tied with Charlie Brown for the most), Snoopy. Just from viewing the trailers, it was clear The Peanuts Movie was going to cash in on all the Snoopy they could use. Perhaps a more fitting name would have been “A SNOOPY Peanuts SNOOPY Movie SNOOPY”, since that’s precisely how it felt watching the film. There’s an overreliance on Snoopy slapstick, particularly involving his fictional battle with the Red Baron. Main plot only 30 minutes long? Why not add a whole bunch of Snoopy WWI filler, disruptively placed in-between various parts of the main story. While fun to watch, the imaginary subplot became irritatingly distracting from several emotional scenes. There’s one very heart-breaking scene for Charlie Brown which respectfully deserved a moment, but is instead interrupted by an entirely inappropriate sequence concerning Snoopy infiltrating German territory. The scene is inflated and needlessly lengthy, tarnishing the emotional impact of Charlie Brown’s lowest point with explosions and cartoon antics. The Red Baron subplot shouldn’t have been a subplot at all, but instead a one-shot scene involving Snoopy’s typewriter—making it a fun, quick homage without distracting excessively from the main plot.