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Released by: Warner
Released on: 10/5/2010
Director: Larry Leichliter
Cast: Wesley Singerman, Serena Berman, Corey Padnos, Megan Taylor Harvey, Chrystopher Ryan Johnson
Year: 2002
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The Movie:
Charles Schulz creations have endured for decades and show no sign of going anywhere any time soon. Any kid who sees a Peanuts special at the right time will get that 'burn' in their psyche that'll stick with them through adulthood that forces them to bust out the Peanuts holiday specials once a year. A Charlie Brown Christmas is, in many people's minds, the best animated Christmas special of all time, embodying what's important about the season without getting too preachy and delivering it all with a great sense of humor. Follow ups, like It's Christmas Time Again, Charlie Brown and I Want A Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown followed suit and while they didn't quite hit it out of the park the way the first one did, they're worth follow ups.
And then there's Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales, one of the few Peanuts specials made in the new millennium and a rare Peanuts special that doesn't quite hit all the right notes. It's not a bad watch, and at only eighteen minutes it goes by fast enough that even if it's not quite 'right' it goes by fast enough that if you're not paying really close attention you probably won't notice. You can't really fault the special for having different voice actors than the original. Time can be a problem in that regard and not everyone lives forever or wants to do cartoon voiceovers forever for that matter. The fact that Sally doesn't sound like the Sally I grew up with isn't necessarily a deal breaker, it's just something you notice, something that doesn't quite sit right, like when you take a bit out of some food that's just passed its expatriation date. It doesn't make you sick, and it won't hurt you, but it's not quite the way it should be.
At any rate, this most recent of Peanuts Christmas specials, which was supposedly written by Sparky himself but never really manages to feel that way, doesn't really have the cohesive plot that makes most of the Peanuts specials so good. Instead, it's a collection of five short vignettes in which five different characters have what I guess you'd describe as a Christmas moment. Sally learns the truth about the importance, or lack of importance, of gift giving and receiving while Lucy tries her hardest to be nice to people around the holidays while still dropping hints about gifts she expects to get. Charlie Brown and his sister stay up late in hopes of catching Santa while Linus tries to write the perfect letter to the fat bearded one while dealing with a crush he has on the girl who sits behind him in class.
Everything that makes a Charlie Brown holiday special just that is there, but it never gels right. The sentimentality is obvious but we can't connect with it. The moral is there but it's more heavy-handed than it has been in the past and the important themes of friendship and caring are laid on pretty thick instead of coming up on you without really realizing it. It's as if Schulz had some leftover ideas he wasn't quite sure what to do with and so he just sort of jumbled them all together and out popped this remarkably and surprisingly mediocre special at the last minute.
Nothing lasts forever, we all realize this, but if this is what modern Peanuts holiday specials are to be like, maybe we're better off just enjoying the ones we've already been treated to rather than hoping that past glories will return once more.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Everything on this disc shows up in 1.33.1 fullframe, just as it should be. The quality is pretty good and it appears that the feature has been restored to a certain extent as it's cleaner and better looking than it previously was on DVD. Colors look nice and bright without appearing overcooked and there are only minor instances of any noticeable serious print damage (just specks here and there). Some mild grain is visible in some spots but that's completely forgivable, it just looks more film like. There aren't any problems with compression artifacts or edge enhancement to complain about and overall the material looks quite good. That said, the image is interlaced and there are spots where the motion stops where stair stepping is painfully obvious.
The English language Dolby Digital Mono soundtrack is clean and clear and as simple as it's always been. Dialogue is always nice and easy to understand and there aren't any problems with hiss or distortion. Levels are properly balanced and everything sounds fine. Optional subtitles are supplied in English, and French.
Extras include a bonus Peanuts feature, Is This Goodbye, Charlie Brown? Made for TV in 1983, this is a look at what would happen in Peanuts land if one of the core members, say, Linus, were to move away. Sally is, of course, devastated while Charlie Brown tries to adjust. It's hardly the best of the Peanuts specials but for a later era entry, it's not bad. Aside from that, look for some static menus and trailers for a few other DVD releases available from Warner Brothers.
The Final Word:
While this one pales in comparison to the original, and still the greatest, Charlie Brown Christmas special it's entertaining enough in its own right. The fact that it was made in 2002 obviously reduces the nostalgia rush that most of us get from the first one but even if some of the voices have changed the tone and style are right. The transfer, stair stepping aside, is pretty decent and the inclusion of the second special helps to make up for the lack of any other real extras and the brief running time of the main attraction.
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