The Peanuts Movie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Peanuts Movie |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Steve Martino |
| Produced by |
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| Screenplay by |
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| Starring |
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| Music by | Christophe Beck |
| Cinematography | Renato Falcão |
| Editing by | Randy Trager |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | November 1, 2015 (New York City premiere) November 6, 2015 (United States) |
| Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $99 million |
| Money made | $246.2 million |
The Peanuts Movie is a 2015 American computer-animated comedy film. It is based on the famous Peanuts comic strip created by Charles M. Schulz. The movie was made by Blue Sky Studios and released by 20th Century Fox.
This film is the fifth full-length Peanuts movie ever made. It was the first new Peanuts film in 35 years! Steve Martino directed the movie. The story was written by Craig and Bryan Schulz (Charles Schulz's son and grandson) and Cornelius Uliano.
The movie features the voices of Noah Schnapp as Charlie Brown. You'll also hear Bill Melendez as Snoopy and Woodstock, using old recordings. In the film, Charlie Brown tries to get the attention of the Little Red-Haired Girl. Meanwhile, Snoopy imagines himself as a brave World War I Flying Ace. He tries to save his love, Fifi, from the Red Baron.
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Making the Movie
Work on The Peanuts Movie started in 2006. This was six years after Charles Schulz passed away and the comic strip ended. Charles's son, Craig Schulz, came up with the idea for the film. He worked with his own son, Bryan Schulz.
Bryan Schulz made sure they had full control over the movie's creative choices. This helped keep the film true to Charles Schulz's original work. In 2012, 20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios announced they were making the movie. Steve Martino was chosen to direct because he had done a great job with another animated film, Horton Hears a Who!.
The filmmakers included many classic parts from the comic strip. You'll see Charlie Brown's ice skating pond, his house, "the wall," and Lucy's advice booth. They even used the original voice recordings of Snoopy and Woodstock by Bill Melendez.
Release and Success
The Peanuts Movie first showed in New York City on November 1, 2015. It was released in the United States five days later. The movie was very successful around the world. It earned $246 million, which was much more than its $99 million budget.
It became the 7th highest-grossing animated film of 2015. The movie received mostly positive reviews from critics. People praised its animation, the voice acting, and how well it stayed true to the original comics. The film was nominated for several awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film.
Story of the Movie
When the Little Red-Haired Girl moves into the neighborhood, Charlie Brown really likes her. But he worries that his many failures will stop her from noticing him. Lucy tells him he needs to be more confident. So, Charlie Brown decides to try new things to get the Little Red-Haired Girl to notice him.
He tries to be in the school's talent show. Snoopy and Woodstock help him. But he stops his act to help his sister, Sally. To impress the Little Red-Haired Girl with his dancing, Charlie Brown signs up for the school dance. Snoopy teaches him some cool moves. At the dance, Charlie Brown dances well, but he slips. This causes the sprinklers to go off, ending the dance early. Everyone looks down on him again.
Charlie Brown is paired with the Little Red-Haired Girl for a book report. She has to leave for a week because of a family illness. Charlie Brown decides to write the report by himself. He chooses a very hard book called War and Peace. At the same time, Charlie Brown gets a perfect score on a standardized test. His friends and other students congratulate him, and he becomes popular.
However, when he goes to get a medal at a school assembly, he learns there was a mistake. The test paper actually belonged to Peppermint Patty. Charlie Brown tells everyone about the mistake and doesn't take the medal. He loses all his new popularity. To make things worse, his book report is ruined by a Red Baron model plane. He tells the Little Red-Haired Girl that they both failed the assignment.
Meanwhile, Snoopy writes a story on his typewriter. It's about the World War I Flying Ace. He tries to save Fifi from the Red Baron. Woodstock and his friends help him. Snoopy uses events from Charlie Brown's life to inspire his story. He acts out his adventure, often running into Charlie Brown and his friends. Snoopy defeats the Red Baron and saves Fifi from an airplane. When Lucy reads his story, she says it's silly. Snoopy then licks her face!
Before summer vacation, Charlie Brown is surprised. The Little Red-Haired Girl chooses him as her pen pal. Linus tells Charlie Brown he needs to tell her how he feels before she leaves for summer camp. Charlie Brown races to her house. He sees she is about to leave on a bus. He tries to chase the bus but can't reach it.
Just as he is about to give up, a kite falls from the Kite-Eating Tree. The string wraps around his waist and carries him away. His friends are amazed to see Charlie Brown flying a kite and follow him. When he reaches the bus, Charlie Brown finally asks the Little Red-Haired Girl why she chose him, even with all his failures. She explains that she admires how selfless and determined he is. She calls him honest, caring, and kind. The other children cheer for him as a true friend and lift him into the air.
Characters and Voices
- Noah Schnapp as Charlie Brown
- Alex Garfin as Linus
- Noah Johnston as Schroeder
- Bill Melendez as Snoopy and Woodstock (from old recordings). Woodstock and his bird friends are part of Snoopy's Beagle Scouts. They help Snoopy (the Flying Ace) fix his plane.
- Hadley Belle Miller as Lucy
- Micah Revelli as Little Kid
- Venus Omega Schultheis as Peppermint Patty
- Mariel Sheets as Sally
- Madisyn Shipman as Violet
- AJ Teece as Pig-Pen
- Marelik "Mar Mar" Walker as Franklin
- William "Alex" Wunsch as Shermy
- Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews as Miss Othmar and the Little Red-Haired Girl's mother. Andrews' trombone made their "wah-wah" voices, like other adult characters in the film.
- Rebecca Bloom as Marcie
- Anastasia Bredikhina as Patty
- Francesca Angelucci Capaldi as the Little Red-Haired Girl and Frieda. Francesca said about the Little Red-Haired Girl: "She's very nice and kind and has a great heart. She really does like Charlie Brown, but he has no idea, because he's shy and awkward."
- Kristin Chenoweth as Fifi, Snoopy's girlfriend. Kristin made special sounds for Fifi's "language." She used Snoopy's sounds as a guide but made them sound more feminine.
Snoopy's siblings also appear during the end credits of the movie.
Music in the Movie
In October 2014, it was announced that Christophe Beck would create the music for the film. Beck grew up watching the old Peanuts TV specials from the 1960s and 70s. He loved the music by Vince Guaraldi.
Beck said they wanted to include Guaraldi's classic jazz music in the film. They used parts of his music and even re-recorded some of his songs. The movie's music is more like an orchestra, which is different from Guaraldi's original music that used a small jazz group. Jazz pianist David Benoit also helped with Beck's music.
On July 28, 2015, it was announced that Meghan Trainor would write and sing a song for the movie. The song is called "Better When I'm Dancin'". The soundtrack album was released on October 23, 2015. It has 20 songs, including Meghan Trainor's song, "That's What I Like" by Flo Rida, and classic songs like "Linus and Lucy" and "Skating" by Vince Guaraldi. It also has 15 songs from Christophe Beck's original music for the film.
Video Game Fun
A video game based on the movie was released on November 3, 2015. It's called Snoopy's Grand Adventure. You can play it on Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. Activision published the game.
What's Next?
The Peanuts Movie was a big success. Many people thought there would be a sequel, meaning another movie. However, Fox only had the rights to make one Peanuts film. Charles Schulz's widow, Jean, said that a sequel isn't planned right away. She mentioned that this movie took eight years to make, so it might be a while before they talk about another one.
See also
In Spanish: The Peanuts Movie para niños
