Product: A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Rating: 5.0
Truly an evergreen...
...and I'm not talking about Charlie Brown's tree.I really can't remember when I first saw this special. Couldn't have been the debut year of 1965, as in those pre-cable days, our antenna couldn't pull in a CBS station. More likely would've been circa 1971 or 1972, long enough for this to have been firmly established as a holiday staple.At that age, eleven or twelve, I would've been well past the age where I might've sat in toddler awe at some of my favorite comic strip characters coming to life. And celebrating my favorite holiday, no less.Despite my "advanced" age, I still thoroughly enjoyed the show, even if my ability to appreciate it was substantially limited to Snoopy's antics and Schroeder's exasperation in finding a version of "Jingle Bells" suitable to the reigning fussbudget, Lucy Van Pelt.As my age truly advances, it becomes even more enjoyable to find more layers to the cartoon. Much as the Warner Brothers classic cartoons were not truly written for children, but for the writers' own amusement, a more adult view of Charles Schulz's work reveals that this really isn't kiddie fodder.In a way, Vince Guaraldi's score illustrates the point perfectly. Out in front is the "Linus and Lucy" theme, a bouncy tune to which any age can be-bop along. Contrast that with "Christmastime Is Here"; the lyrics are cheerful, joyful, perfectly descriptive of a child's delight at the season's arrival.And yet, the tune belies the sentiment. It is nearly hopeful, yet somber, knowing it's missing something but not sure what that might be. Just like Charlie Brown's dilemma throughout everyone else's festivities.The only real disappointment on this disc would be the bonus feature "It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown", which looks more like a series of largely unrelated continuity-independent vignettes from the 1980's Saturday morning "Charlie Brown and Snoopy", slapped together to form the illusion of a featurette, than a coherent story deserving of co-starring with the original.Nonetheless, having the original on DVD alone is worth the investment. Definitely a must-have.