A Charlie Brown Valentine

source: A Charlie Brown Valentine

Moviecut—A Charlie Brown Valentine

If only they could air this on TV more often leading up to Valentine's Day. This early 2000s Peanuts special really holds a special place in me. With it's hilarious writing, cleaver jokes and just pure wholesome family friendly entertainment it's a special that I endear watching every year. Charlie Brown tries desperately to get a valentines card but to no avail. Either getting sidetracked with Marci and Peppermint Patty trying to go out with Charlie Brown or others coming to his aid. Such as Linus beating up a bully with his favorite blanket after the bully with annoying the little red haired girl. Or trying to return a pencil only for Lucy to return said pencil after the little red haired girl dropped it. Or even Sally wants to fall for Linus but gets rejected every time since she always calls him a sweet baboo. Even parts like Lucy asking Snoopy to come up with a good Valentine's Day card but every entry he gives her she just gets increasingly frustrated with it. (Dear angle food cake with seven minute frosting LOL). (You are breath and bread and water to me h aid and Chocolate chip cookies GOOD GRIEF). Thats amazing right there. That's the kind of stuff thats hilarious and just watching makes the peanuts very enjoyable. The story itself is kind of loose but warm-hearted at the same time. The animation is really stunning reflecting the classic Peanuts style and feel. The moment this special starts you feel like it was done in the 70s and the style that made Peanuts iconic.

The only thing I hate about this is Peppermint Patty being a rude b**** and not listening to Charlie Brown, and Marcie is no different. "How come you fell down during the dance?" What the h***?! Why would she think someone fell down on purpose?! I love peanuts and all, but I just hate Peppermint Patty!

Unfortunately, for them, pretty much all of it is unrequited in "A Charlie Brown Valentine". This is a 25-minute short film from almost 15 years ago and this was one made in the brief period after Schulz' death while Melendez was still alive. They could basically recycle some of the old stuff here for this one in terms of the story as the romantic preferences of the characters have been show in many films already. Charlie and his little red-haired girl is my personal favorite, but one girl's love for the piano virtuoso and the other one's for her little baboo are fairly entertaining too. All in all, another decent addition to this long-running franchise. We shall see how the topic of love is used are used in the new Peanuts film this year. We will certainly see a bit about these romantic connections in there as well. Until then, I recommend watching this one here. Snoopy's pranks are funny again too.

I love this Peanuts special, even though it came out six years before I was born, I still somehow saw it (I can also watch it on Dailymotion). But I noticed a goof (or should I say...A PRODUCTION MISTAKE!!!)... In the film; Charlie Brown and Linus are playing on the teeter totter, when Charlie Brown notices the Little Red-Haired Girl, he has Linus go over and talk to her for him. Linus explains to the Little Red-Haired Girl that Charlie Brown sits in the last row in school, but a few scenes later...Charlie Brown is seen sitting in front of Linus in class (which is not exactly close to the last row). So, why did Linus tell the Little Red-Haired Girl that Charlie Brown sits in the last row, when it clearly shows he doesn't?

It's Valentine's Day. Charlie Brown pines to be the little red-haired girl's valentine. He doesn't even have the courage to rescue her from a bully. Peppermint Patty also wants a Valentine. She sends one to Charlie Brown. Marcie also wonders if Charlie Brown likes her. Lucy is willing to settle for kisses and a hug from Schroeder. Sally wants Linus to be her sweet baboo no matter what he actually wants. There is something hilarious about the pathetic Charlie Brown. Poor Charlie Brown! It's also his essence. It's just simply funny. I like both Marcie and Peppermint Patty in this. They are a favorite duo of mine. Snoopy has a funny bit putting on a red wig but this is all Charlie Brown. He is completely hopeless and completely funny.

It may not be a classic but I still enjoyed it. It's interesting to note that this was the first special to air after Charles Schulz's death. The dialogue is what you'd expect from a Peanuts special. Witty comebacks and even biting commentary. The kids do a good job voicing their characters and the animation's pretty good. The special's about Charlie Brown trying to get the attention of the red-haired girl during Valentine's Day. Helping him out are his friends and his loyal dog Snoopy. Meanwhile his friends also celebrate Valentine's in their own way: Linus does his best to avoid Sally who keeps calling him her "Sweet Baboo", Lucy tries to get Schroeder to like her to no avail as he's more in love with Beethoven and his toy piano, Peppermint Patty tries to tell Charlie Brown that she likes him more than just a friend much to his confusion and as for Snoopy he does everything he can to improve his writing for Valentine's day while also having fun in the process. It plays out like you expect it in that Charlie Brown's uncertain about whether what he does will turn out right as well as people around him putting him down. But what makes this special different is that it's more upbeat than the previous Valentine's special which's 'Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown' in that it's much more upbeat and fun to watch. I really like the chemistry between the characters and the music played by David Beniot. It fits the theme of the special. A Charlie Brown Valentine is a great special and I highly recommend you check it out.

Valentine's Day with the Peanuts gang: Charlie Brown tries to muster up the courage to ask the little red-haired girl to the school dance, Lucy demands kisses and chocolates from Schroeder, Sally wants to make Linus her sweet baboo, Snoopy writes bad poetry, Marcie grapples with her crush on Charlie Brown, and Peppermint Patty wants Charlie Brown to take her as his date to the dance. Once again, this show offers Charles M. Schulz's trademark engaging blend of sharp humor (Snoopy's terrible stabs at poetry in particular are hilariously awful), well-defined characters, and bittersweet pathos (poor wishy-washy Charlie Brown's continual struggle with his low self-esteem and faltering attempts at getting the little red-haired girl to notice him are both funny and touching). The climactic dance is a total hoot, with Snoopy wooing all the ladies and even stealing the last dance with the little red-haired girl away from Charlie Brown. Linus' obdurate refusal to be Sally's sweet baboo likewise provides some good laughs and it's always a riot to see Lucy hitting on the blithely oblivious Schroeder. David Benoit supplies a nifty and lively revamp of Vince Guaraldi's classic theme music. Worth a watch for Peanuts fans.

Though it had the usual "Created and written by Charles M. Schulz" credit, this was the first animated special made after Sparky's death in 2000. It was also the second concerning Valentine's day and as such, there isn't the depressing vibe the first one had. In this one, Charlie Brown spends most of his time pining for The Little Red-Haired Girl who is usually an unseen character. But this one has her in a couple of scenes. Unlike the last one, Peppermint Patty and Marcie are also present both of whom think Charlie likes them and get disappointed when they find out otherwise. Add in Lucy still trying to get Schroeder's attention and Sally's ignoring her "Sweet Baboo's" protests of her love declarations and you have a pretty funny show lovingly directed, as usual, by Bill Melendez. But compared to the last Valentine one, it's not as effective...