'Who Are You, Charlie Brown?' is about the life of Peanuts creator, Charles "Sparky" Schulz. Overall its a good documentary, but I feel the animated segments are what holds this film back at times.
I did not know a lot about Charles Schulz going into it, but this movie did a really good job at displaying and explaining Sparky's life and actions. I don't agree with some of the other reviewers here as I think that the documentary parts were pretty good for the most part as it showed how the Peanuts were impactful in so many different peoples lives and how they interpreted the characters. My only complaint for the interviews was that they seemed short and lacking passion at times.
And maybe I'm biased but I found the animated story to be a good idea, but the animation itself seemed very "corporate" and a little out of touch than previous specials even from as recently as the early 2000's.
In conclusion, this is a good but not great documentary. Great for those who have been impacted by Sparky and the Peanuts. Very inclusive and welcoming of all Peanuts fans! If you want to learn a little more about the creator of the Peanuts then give it a watch!
Who Are You, Charlie Brown?
2021
Action / Animation / Biography / Documentary
Who Are You, Charlie Brown?
2021
Action / Animation / Biography / Documentary
Plot summary
A documentary about Peanuts and its creator, Charles M. Schulz. Famous fans—including Drew Barrymore, Kevin Smith, and Al Roker—share its influence on them, and a new animated story finds Charlie Brown on a quest.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
June 26, 2021 at 01:46 AM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.WEB 1080p.WEBMovie Reviews
Good Documentary But Sometimes Lacking Passion
Checkpoint Charlie
In keeping up my record of watching all the movies on Apple TV, I landed on "Who Are You, Charlie Brown?" a documentary about Peanuts and its creator, Charles Schulz. Generally, I thought it was fine, but unlike other documentaries I couldn't overcome my disinterest in the subject matter to make the viewing worthwhile.
Charlie Brown (Tyler James Nathan) is asked to produce a piece of homework, a 500-word essay on "who he is". Sent into an introspective funk, he asks his friends and schoolmates what they think of him. These animated sections are intercut with a documentary about Charles Schulz, utilising archive footage, with new talking head style interviews with his friends, family and pop culture fans to explore who he was.
The biggest issue I had with this documentary was me. I know who the Peanuts characters are, and I've maybe seen that Halloween animated film a few times - but as Kevin Smith says "Peanuts is ingrained into American Pop culture" and I'm not American. What I'm saying is, I didn't approach this with much in built affection for his creation and, capable as though this documentary was, it never really inspired much within me.
It's well made though. The conceit works, with the looping narrative of Charlie Brown exploring who he is, mixed in with the information we get about his creator. The talking heads are a mixed bag, some seeming like Peanuts had a genuine effect on their life and others, who I don't recognise, who seem prepared to say that they liked it and not much else. The insights from the family are best, and the footage of Schulz himself. It's quite emotional when he talks about giving up the strip as he's dying of colon cancer.
It's an affectionate look at his life and work, mixed in with a new cartoon. Apart from the odd moment though, it's not honest or surprising enough to stick with me or convert me to an uberfan.