For those of you, like myself, who are not familiar with Peanuts, it is pretty much the greatest comic strip ever thought of in the history of the world. At its peak in the ’60s, Peanuts had won over 355 million hearts in 75 countries. It dominated the Sunday newspapers every week. What made it so popular?
Charlie Brown, the main character of the comic strip, was a failure. Anything he did turned out to be a failure. He never could kick a football, his baseball team always lost, he could never approach his crush, and above all, he could never fly a kite because the “stupid Kite-eating tree” always prevented him. He was a “blockhead,” as Lucy, his frenemy, so often puts it. Some days he’s excited and motivated with self-confidence, and others he’s cautious and pessimistic — not wanting to ruin his day with more failures. His character, simply put, is like everyone.
Overall, the movie felt like a bunch of mini-stories pasted into one movie — which makes sense, given that Peanuts was a newspaper comic strip. At the start, Charlie Brown is hopeful on the first day of winter to fly his kite. This time he can do it! Nope. After failing like always, he is debilitated and he reminds himself he’s a loser along with his peers.
However, a new girl moves into his neighborhood, and Charlie is optimistic that he can start over with a clean slate and make a real friend. After the new kid joins the class, Charlie is in love. It’s the “little red-haired girl” from the comic strip. However, he cannot work up the courage to talk to her. Throughout the story Charlie devises plans to impress her so he can talk to her. Through various schemes like winning awards and doing favours, he attempts to impress his crush. His integrity in these situations is questionable, but only he knows his true motivations.
But through honesty, compassion, and kindness, Charlie Brown proves himself a hero and ends up a winner. And what’s more? An equally compelling side-story of Snoopy as a flying ace trying to save the girl from the evil “Red Baron” is a perfect analogy of Charlie’s journey of resilience and self-belief.
The message was absolutely beautiful, and I felt my chest lighten seeing that there was finally a family movie teaching kids that being nice, compassionate, and honest is cooler than winning. That no matter what material or worldly failures meet you, if you are a good person you will end up a winner. And as the credits rolled, I realized I too would be a winner if only I remained a good person.
And thus, I had a new view on life (well, student life): GPA does not define me or you. What you think, what you do, how you behave everyday at home, on campus, and by yourself is what determines your success and your quality of life.
Megan Trainor’s “Good to Be Alive” was a perfect song to end the film that left me with a tingling feeling as the lyrics coursed through me: “Feels good, don’t it? Feels good, don’t it? You only got one life; live in the moment.” Heed this advice and go watch this movie with your friends and loved ones for a great laugh and an uplifting story.
