Parker Lewis I was just thinking it's been over 50 years ago since A Charlie Brown Christmas was screened. I read some folk were concerned about the overt Christian message, and it's definitely overt as you have Linus reading from Luke 2: 8-14 (from the King James Version, but not the NIV as that would have been quite radical to some Christians especially in Independent Baptist Churches.A Charlie Brown Christmas also takes gentle aim at consumerism and the lust consumers have for it at Christmas time. This is so true now, where retailers rejoice at the $$$ they can rake in at Christmas, and it's sad that retailers push Christmas as early as possible, like November!!!

Dalbert Pringle After watching this adorable, animated, feature film (from 1965), yet again, it's so easy to see why it's rated as the second most popular and successful Christmas special, ever, next to Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, of course.Created by cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, "A Charlie Brown Christmas" has the entire Peanuts Gang excitedly preparing themselves for the up-coming Holiday Season.As our story opens we find that onion-headed, little boy named Charlie Brown in a very depressed state of mind all because of the way that Christmas has been so over-commercialized these days.Even good, old Snoopy is getting into the act when he decides to decorate his doghouse, all glitter and glitz.I guarantee you - "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (which is all voiced by children and contains no laugh-track) is one of the sweetest movies that you're ever gonna see, no matter what age that you might happen to be.

Eric Stevenson I almost never review stuff that I've already seen before but I will make an exception if it's something that I rewatch because this is the only thing that I consistently rewatch. In fact, given my current state of movies, it might be the only thing period that I watch over and over. I am so glad to have kept this VHS all this year and I'll never let go of it. This is my pick for the all time best Christmas movie ever. Okay, it's not really a Christmas movie as it's only 25 minutes long. It's a Christmas special or whatever. Christmas related media, I think that works too. It's the only thing I consistently watch every year, at Christmas.This actually wasn't quite the first animated appearance of the "Peanuts" characters. They actually first appeared in the late 1950's in Ford commercials. This is obviously the first TV special they ever did. I think this even set a record for most follow ups on this entire website. I counted 51 last time! Well, none are direct sequels, but you get the idea. I've seen this dozens of times and can probably repeat the entire thing word for word. If real life is ever like "Fahrenheit 911" and we burn stuff, this is the work I'm able to recite. It's gotten to the point where I've noticed every single detail about it.I can even point out every animation error! When we see Lucy's psychiatrist stand, the word "Real In" is sitting on the bottom of the screen in a closeup. When the screen changes, we clearly see that the sign is right next to the other words. When Snoopy first appears on his doghouse, he isn't wearing his collar! I know every inch of this cartoon and am proud of it. What makes this so amazing is that there's just no attempt to be elaborate. Looking at most Christmas specials, they're big with Santa Claus imagery and the like. Instead, we get the most sincere Christmas related thing ever created. Charlie Brown even himself complains about the commercialism that we see relatively little of in the whole thing! Having seen nearly all the other "Peanuts" cartoons, this is the best as the first and it will never be surpassed.The best part is obviously when Linus talks about Jesus' birth. That is the true meaning of Christmas. Even if you don't believe it, just remember that it's all done for the sake of love. It's weird looking back at all the "Peanuts" comics and realizing what jokes they took from them. We're so familiar with this version. They did however invert it when it actually had Linus' famous speech being reused in a 1966 comic strip, actually. The weird thing is that if you think about it, we never really do find out what happens to the Christmas play. I guess we've reached the point where we don't care. Everyone has seen this already, but I'll never get over how great it is. It will last forever. ****

Hitchcoc Unlike simple video presentations, this timeless Christmas offering is bit of comfort food as much as it is a piece of Americana. Charile Brown searches for the meaning of Christmas, running into the utter commercialism we all deride (yet we fill up the shopping malls anyway). Charlie (who is abused at every turn) takes on the role of the director a Christmas play, much to the disdain of his peers. They continually refer to him as a blockhead. Even his dog enters a Christmas lighting contest, turning his doghouse into a showplace. As time passes, the din of the season overwhelms our young hero to where he can't stand it anymore. He must seek out the true meaning of the holiday. This is a precious offering, utilizing one of the most recognizable soundtracks in all of cinema, and seems to give us a little boost at the holiday season. See it an grab a little childhood.