Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!)
Traveling abroad can be exciting because of mysteries waiting to be discovered. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) is an animated film featuring the beloved "Peanuts" gang, including the eponymous Charlie Brown. Along with Linus, Peppermint Patty, and Marcie--as well as Snoopy and Woodstock, of course--Charlie Brown participates in a student exchange program taking him to France, where he is invited to the Château du Mal Voisin (House of the Bad Neighbor) under mysterious circumstances by a girl his age named Violette Honfleur.
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Continuing in the tradition of earlier "Peanuts" films--like Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown--Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) takes Charlie Brown and the gang and places them in precarious circumstances, testing their resourcefulness and adaptability to new environments. Like the preceding films, it speaks to the "Peanuts" gang growing up and being challenged to mature in the process. The film is still filled with the innocent charm that has made the prior films and source material so endearing, but also acknowledges that audiences of the previous works would have grown up somewhat and can appreciate the more complex and intriguing narrative of this film. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) opens with a prologue that foreshadows the mystery of the Château du Mal Voisin, where the Baron lives with his niece, Violette. It also establishes key locations featured later, like the chateau and the cafe where Snoopy frequently visits later in the film. The chateau is a complex location, and several key elements of it become familiar when Charlie Brown and Linus eventually arrive at the mysterious locale. This includes the wooden bridge leading to the manor, the stone wall surrounding the medieval mansion, and even the flickering candle in the upstairs window where Violette inspects a memento bearing the name "S. Brown", with its significance revealed later. These ambiguous mysteries are the focus of the second half of the film, and give Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) a more "grown up" feel.
Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) does not abandon its colorful, childlike charm exclusively for mystery and intrigue. Although most of the film focuses on these young adventurers and their sojourn across the Atlantic for two weeks, other members of the "Peanuts" crew show up early on to see off their classmates at the airport--Lucy gets to bark the addendum to the movie's title at Charlie Brown with a smile as he makes his way to the plane. Many of the characters get wonderful comic lines to deliver that fit their personalities, notably Marcie's bon mots which always comes across as unintentional, and Charlie Brown's iconic, self-deprecating irony. Consider when Charlie Brown discovers--just after Linus' announcement to his class--that he's been recruited to participate in the student exchange program, and puts it to Snoopy that he's been "chosen to leave town". Marcie's dry wit predominantly comes across when she is making observations about Peppermint Patty's foolishness, who claims that her "motto" is that she "travels light" (as she tries to forcibly close a suitcase that is bursting), and Marcie comments on that being a good idea after it collapses on top of her. Like in the previous films, Patty's arrogance shows through and at times has her openly criticizing Charlie Brown rather than take any blame for her own shortcomings. Patty is so ignorant to her behavior, that she's convinced that a boy named Pierre--who she calls "Pete"--who she and Marcie are staying with likes her instead of Marcie. There is also the absurdity of Snoopy being the most qualified to operate the rental car--almost as unlikely as that there is no one waiting for the students at the airport to take them to their temporary lodgings. Marcie comically displays her knowledge of French when several bad drivers rear-end their car, leaving English-speaking audiences wondering just what she said and whether it might compromise the film's "G" rating. Snoopy enjoys some of the most outlandish moments of comedy, like when he takes advantage of his membership at Wimbledon while passing through London before embarking across the English Channel by hovercraft, or when he dresses up like a World War II soldier and visits the local cafe, showing how capable he can be at putting away mug after mug of root beer while taking his own "sentimental journey". One of the most delightful comedy scenes involves Charlie Brown's difficulty with spatial awareness, after he is tasked to procure a loaf of bread from a nearby boulangerie (bakery) so the gang can make sandwiches while Snoopy repairs the rental car. Charlie Brown receives a baguette, and carries it sideways through the narrow bakery door, with predictable and hysterical results, in a scene that feels like a send-up to the comedies of Jacques Tati.
Despite the perils Charlie Brown and Linus face during their stay at the chateau, Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) speaks to the importance of travelling and experiencing the world. There is a scene where Charlie Brown takes the train to Dover and stares out the window at the English landscape passing by. A song that plays on the soundtrack speaks of how important these memories are and how they should stay with him, and underscores Charlie Brown's introspective nature as he soaks up all of these memories into his heart for safe keeping. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) boasts some beautiful backdrops that depict the countryside in England and France, as well as the cities the gang passes through. Their trip across the Atlantic by plane reveals the age in which the film was made--consider the ashtrays in the armrests--yet captures the excitement of a child traveling across the world for the first time. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) is also a rare "Peanuts" movie that depicts adults as more than just incoherent giants without faces, but as real people that don't look that different than Charlie Brown and the gang, as if the gulf between child and adult were diminishing faster and faster as a result of their experience and maturity.
Recommended for: Fans of a delightful and kid-friendly globetrotting adventure featuring the beloved characters from Charles Schultz's "Peanuts" comic strip. Like its predecessors, the film remains whimsical and mostly light-hearted, even with a few spooky scenes at the chateau to add tension.
Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) does not abandon its colorful, childlike charm exclusively for mystery and intrigue. Although most of the film focuses on these young adventurers and their sojourn across the Atlantic for two weeks, other members of the "Peanuts" crew show up early on to see off their classmates at the airport--Lucy gets to bark the addendum to the movie's title at Charlie Brown with a smile as he makes his way to the plane. Many of the characters get wonderful comic lines to deliver that fit their personalities, notably Marcie's bon mots which always comes across as unintentional, and Charlie Brown's iconic, self-deprecating irony. Consider when Charlie Brown discovers--just after Linus' announcement to his class--that he's been recruited to participate in the student exchange program, and puts it to Snoopy that he's been "chosen to leave town". Marcie's dry wit predominantly comes across when she is making observations about Peppermint Patty's foolishness, who claims that her "motto" is that she "travels light" (as she tries to forcibly close a suitcase that is bursting), and Marcie comments on that being a good idea after it collapses on top of her. Like in the previous films, Patty's arrogance shows through and at times has her openly criticizing Charlie Brown rather than take any blame for her own shortcomings. Patty is so ignorant to her behavior, that she's convinced that a boy named Pierre--who she calls "Pete"--who she and Marcie are staying with likes her instead of Marcie. There is also the absurdity of Snoopy being the most qualified to operate the rental car--almost as unlikely as that there is no one waiting for the students at the airport to take them to their temporary lodgings. Marcie comically displays her knowledge of French when several bad drivers rear-end their car, leaving English-speaking audiences wondering just what she said and whether it might compromise the film's "G" rating. Snoopy enjoys some of the most outlandish moments of comedy, like when he takes advantage of his membership at Wimbledon while passing through London before embarking across the English Channel by hovercraft, or when he dresses up like a World War II soldier and visits the local cafe, showing how capable he can be at putting away mug after mug of root beer while taking his own "sentimental journey". One of the most delightful comedy scenes involves Charlie Brown's difficulty with spatial awareness, after he is tasked to procure a loaf of bread from a nearby boulangerie (bakery) so the gang can make sandwiches while Snoopy repairs the rental car. Charlie Brown receives a baguette, and carries it sideways through the narrow bakery door, with predictable and hysterical results, in a scene that feels like a send-up to the comedies of Jacques Tati.
Despite the perils Charlie Brown and Linus face during their stay at the chateau, Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) speaks to the importance of travelling and experiencing the world. There is a scene where Charlie Brown takes the train to Dover and stares out the window at the English landscape passing by. A song that plays on the soundtrack speaks of how important these memories are and how they should stay with him, and underscores Charlie Brown's introspective nature as he soaks up all of these memories into his heart for safe keeping. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) boasts some beautiful backdrops that depict the countryside in England and France, as well as the cities the gang passes through. Their trip across the Atlantic by plane reveals the age in which the film was made--consider the ashtrays in the armrests--yet captures the excitement of a child traveling across the world for the first time. Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) is also a rare "Peanuts" movie that depicts adults as more than just incoherent giants without faces, but as real people that don't look that different than Charlie Brown and the gang, as if the gulf between child and adult were diminishing faster and faster as a result of their experience and maturity.
Recommended for: Fans of a delightful and kid-friendly globetrotting adventure featuring the beloved characters from Charles Schultz's "Peanuts" comic strip. Like its predecessors, the film remains whimsical and mostly light-hearted, even with a few spooky scenes at the chateau to add tension.