Happiness Is a Warm Blanket Charlie Brown [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Here are a few important things to know about Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown:

* There are no pop culture references or cheery pop songs. The music isn't rehashed or remixed Vince Guaraldi tunes -- it's warm, reminiscent and composed by Mark Mothersbaugh of DEVO fame.
* The Peanuts gang has not been "rebooted," "rebranded," or remodeled in 3D CGI. The hand-drawn characters are a seemingly clever blend of Schultz's originals and Melendez's specials. The camera moves are subtle, with a few clever twists that seem perfectly fit into the narrative (including a Snoopy vulture point-of-view).
* The Peanuts do not fight social ills, or attempt to grow an organic garden or welcome a strange newcomer to town. There are no self-congratulatory messages about the kids being "special" or needing to build their "self-esteem." (Not that any of these things are wrong in their own right, but the messages in the film, as in Schultz's strip, are subtle, gentle and belong to the viewer, not the creators)
* The film is an absolute pleasure to anyone who values Schultz's work, the Melendez specials, and/or their childhood from the 1960s through 1970s. And the really cool thing: hip preschoolers dig it too (at least mine did).

For the life of me, I cannot figure out how Warners let this get made. It's counter-intuitive to every decision entertainment executives have made in the last twenty years regarding children's entertainment. They most have lost a bet, or taken a dare, or something. But here's my message to the people who got this DVD produced: thank you. I sincerely hope there's more to come.

Happiness Is a Warm Blanket Charlie Brown was highly anticipated, and it does not disappoint. If you're looking for a light, fun animated Peanuts special in line with all of the holiday classics, Happiness Is a Warm Blanket Charlie Brown is NOT it. It is, however, perhaps the most true reproduction of Schulz' Peanuts comic strip I've seen in animation.

Cartoonist Stephan Pastis' (Pearls Before Swine) writing is very much felt in the darker more melancholy mood of some of the scenes in this film. This reflects the darker tones present in the Peanuts comic strip in a very honest way that hasn't been done in any of the previous Peanuts animation.

Perhaps the most impressive feature of this film is the painstaking efforts to harken back to Peanuts golden age, effectively freezing the characters as they looked and sounded in 1964. The beautiful way in which this was accomplished almost makes this film a period piece.

One hopes that there will be many other new Peanuts animated productions of this caliber from the Craig Schulz/Stephan Pastis production team.

Another peanuts special has been produced and is now coming to DVD (and Blu-ray for those interested in that). Happiness Is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown is a great new special for those who love Peanuts specials or those who love wholesome family entertainment. While, admittedly, nothing can capture the magic and pure simplicity of the original specials (from the 60's and early 70's) this new special comes awfully close and comes highly recommended.

The story:

Linus learns his Grandma is coming to visit and plans to rid him of his blue security blanket. As her visit draws closer Lucy and the rest of the Peanuts gang try to help Linus learn to cope without his blanket. Lucy attempts to use her psychiatric service and good old Charlie Brown tries to help in his own way but can't stand to see his best friend Linus suffer. While all this is going on our favorite beagle has motives to obtain the blanket for himself. In the end Linus realizes that everyone has their own "security blanket" and isn't a little security is a good thing?

A great story based on a Charlz Schultz original.

The Specifications:

Anamorphic Widescreen (1:78:1 Aspect Ratio). English Dolby Digital 5.1 sound or Spanish Stereo

The Special Features:

Deconstucting Schulz: From Comic Strips to Screenplay - How the Peanuts comic strip was made into a special

Happiness is...Finding the Right Voice - Meet the stellar new voice cast (Peanuts Specials, for those who may not know, have always employed children actors for the voices).

24 Frames Per Second - Drawing and Animating a Peanuts Special

Deleted Scene with an Introduction by Director Andy Beall

I'm very pleased with the amount of special features to be found on this release. For those not normally so excited about buying a release with only one Peanuts special, this one being 46mins and including so many special features certainly makes it worthwhile. Not only is there a lot of content, the bonus features are actually interesting and very relevant to this release. If they could just start producing this much bonus material for the classic specials being released, though I know they do try, but this is the best they've done yet.

So there is a new Peanuts special to enjoy for those of us who have worn out the ones already available. If it doesn't quite completely recapture the magic of those originals (honestly what could) it certainly serves up a nice warm helping of Charlie Brown happiness. The Peanuts specials are like a security blanket for those of us who grew up on them, this special adds a worthy patch to that quilt. 5 stars for the special itself and 5 stars for this DVD and the amount of material you're getting as a purchaser.

PS I Love the artwork on this release and for anyone interested in owning other Peanuts specials new to DVD there is another recommended release coming out, Happiness Is... Peanuts: Snoopy's Adventures