Really, really hot Peanuts
Thanksgiving is over, which means the holiday season has officially begun. Expect to be bombarded with advertisements capitalizing on one day of gift-giving and to hear “All I Want for Christmas is You” on loop in the grocery store. While most people look forward to the end of December all year, I dread it.
It may seem sacrilegious to admit I hate the holiday season, but it’s true. I cringe every time I hear another Christmas song, and I think overly decorated houses are tacky. There are some things I enjoy about Christmas (and Hanukkah), such as spending time with family and friends after being completely burnt out by finals. But, on the whole, I think the holidays have turned into a big, hokey gimmick that comes off as an insincere marketing tactic.
Maybe it has to do with having a Catholic father who didn’t carry on any of his Christmas traditions with our family. Maybe it has to do with having a Jewish mother who gave up on Christmas after too many cries of “This isn’t what I wanted!” and who lights the menorah on half of the eight nights of Hanukkah. There aren’t any siblings storming down the stairs to unwrap presents or ceremonious decorating of the tree. Basically, I blame my parents for my indifference.
There’s only one thing I love about the holidays: A Charlie Brown Christmas. Every Dec. 25, I dedicate 30 minutes of my evening to watching Charlie Brown attempt to discover the meaning of Christmas (and seeing Snoopy dance and ice skate).
There are thousands of Christmas movies, ranging from the beloved classic It’s a Wonderful Life to the shenanigan-filled Home Alone series to the adorable and hilarious Elf. But of all the movies I have enjoyed in the past, A Charlie Brown Christmas is the only one that gets me in the “holiday spirit” (OK, and the Chrismukkah episode of The O.C.).
Maybe it’s because I feel like Charlie Brown sometimes. The plot follows a forlorn Charlie Brown as he engages with his friends and expresses his depression regarding the holiday season. He doesn’t feel excited by the holidays, unlike his friends, who are planning the nativity, play, and Snoopy, who’s busy decorating his dog house to win a contest. I can relate — the holidays might be fun and all, but expectations are too high, which can leave you feeling more lonely and empty than fulfilled.
If anything, the aesthetic of A Charlie Brown Christmas (which first premiered in 1965) is enough to charm all audiences, children and adults alike. The simple animation is refreshing in a world dominated by CGI imagery, and Vince Guaraldi’s tinkering soundtrack conjures up images of gray, snowy days and Christmases of years past.
Charlie Brown tries to find a solution to his blues by directing the nativity play, as his peers are more concerned about having fun and dancing around than staging a functioning production. They care more about presents (Sally makes Charlie write out her Christmas list to Santa), flashy lights and tinsel than discovering the true meaning of the holidays. And poor Charlie Brown, who chooses the dinkiest tree for the play, ends up being ridiculed by his friends for not picking one of the flashier aluminum trees. But after Linus reveals the true meaning of Christmas, the group rallies together to decorate the tiny tree and show Charlie Brown that Christmas is more than shallow consumerism. My only gripe with the film is that it gets a little too religious toward the end, but seeing all of the Peanuts gang come together to celebrate love and friendship is pretty heartwarming — even for those who hate the holidays.
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