As we embark towards the end of the 2023 fall season, once again we approach the annual celebration of Thanksgiving, where millions of families gather to eat good food and reflect on the things that we should be grateful for in our lives. While we celebrate the holiday, eating turkey and arguing with distant family, there are films that bring us into the spirit of this special occasion and time of year. Infamous for its holiday specials for over fifty years, Charlie Brown in “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” is a timeless feature, and a fan favorite all over the country every Thanksgiving for rewatches.
This cartoon special follows a simple story of friends gathering together on Thanksgiving and preparing the huge meal that everyone will eat together. Of course, the special is filled with goofy moments like the typical Peanuts episodes are which makes them perfect to share in viewing with younger kids. Peppermint Patty, one of Charlie Brown’s friends with questionable social skills, invites herself and all of her and Charlie’s friends to his house for Thanksgiving dinner even though he is supposed to be traveling to his grandma’s house later in the day.
Instead of the typical turkey, cranberry and potato filled meal all his last-minute guests are expecting, Charlie and Snoopy work to make buttered toast, popcorn and candy to serve in their poorly put together Thanksgiving table, any kids dream meal now and fifty years ago. We get to see Charlie and Lucy bicker and play football, a scene famous all around the world when she rips the ball away the second before he kicks it, Snoopy and Birdy as a chaotic duo decorating the house and the gathering of all the beloved characters at the dinner table reflecting on the things that are important.
The special takes all the things that make Thanksgiving the way that it is but puts the mask of childhood innocence over it which makes for a lot of laughs, the feeling of holiday magic and anticipation that you only truly feel in your childhood. The timelessness of this magic that “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” captures is what makes it a Thanksgiving staple.
Many adults today tune in to rewatch every year due to the pure nostalgia and joy that the special is infamous for bringing to its viewers, and the memories and joy are then passed to the next generation of kids. There aren’t a lot of Thanksgiving films to begin with, so if you’re looking for a film to get yourself excited for the holiday, or just experience a bit of childhood nostalgia and fun, “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” is the perfect movie to watch.
