Review of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966) by Philip S — 26 Oct 2011

When it comes to the holidays and movies, there is no name more synonymous with said time of the year than Good 'ole Charlie Brown. And one of the most beloved of the Charlie Brown specials is It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Peanuts specials have been made for Christmas, Thanksgiving, Valentines Day, Easter, and even Arbor Day. But next to the original Peanuts Christmas special--Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown--It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is one of the most well known and respected of any holiday special, Peanuts or otherwise.

The same thing that makes Garfield's Halloween Adventure such a special Halloween feature, makes this and the rest of the Peanuts features so special; nostalgia. It takes older audiences back to their own childhoods. From the animation, to the family friendly nature of the special, to the message of faith (of sorts), it's no wonder why It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown has transcended generations for forty-five years.

It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown made its small screen debut forty five years ago to the day today. Since that time, it's entertained generations of kids and parents alike. It's still such a favorite to this day first and foremost beccause of the nostalgia factor. It takes older audiences back to their own childhoods. It's a reminder of when things were better; when they didn't have anything to worry about. Younger audiences today enjoy it because as they are younger, they can relate to the anticipation of Halloween. There's something magical (for lack of better wording) about the whole process of dressing up and getting all kinds of sugary goodness, hanging out with good friends and family at the same time. That goes back to the feeling of nostalgia for older viewers, too.

The nostalgia isn't all that makes It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown such a standout Halloween special. Much like Garfield's Halloween Adventure, the animation of this (and all the Peanuts specials) gave it its own identity. It stood out among the crowd then. And it stands out even more today, as so few animated features are really hand drawn. Most are done on computers today. That gives it that much more substance and soul.

The animation and nostalgia make It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown a wonderful piece of movie history. There is one more factor that makes it so enjoyable. That factor is directly tied into the nostalgia factor. Lucy and the rest of the gang laughed at Linus for believing in the Great Pumpkin. Yet he still believed. He had that blind faith. On one level, that could be tied into Charles Schulz's religious background. But on a more secular level, it also serves as a reminder to older audiences of the days when we had that blind faith. As we get older, those rose colored glasses slip from our eyes, only to show us a cold world without any much magic to it, if any. So seeing Linus' innocent faith is one of those things that renews our faith in the world, if only for a little while. It gives us that warm feeling that we all need all year long. That feeling, combined with the general nostalgia of the special, and the originality of the story and animation make It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown one of the greatest Halloween movie/specials ever crafted. And if the specials on tv today are any indication, odds are it'll be among the greatest specials for another forty-five years, and then some.