User reviews

This is the only Charlie Brown full length motion picture I have ever watched, but I believe I have seen it at least 20 times by now. I caught it on Thanksgiving Day afternoon on channel 7 in Washington DC around 1983 or so, and have been compelled to stop and watch it every time I see it, ever since.

The plot centers around the Peanuts gang going to a summer camp, where a group of punk kids and a nasty, mangy cat are intent on humiliating the other kids, and winning the raft race. The Peanuts gang competes in the race, with the guys (Charlie Brown, Schroeder, Linus, and Franklin) sharing one raft, the girls (Lucy, Sally, Peppermint Patty, and Marcie) sharing another raft, and Snoopy and Woodstock having their own raft. Of course, mishaps ensue and the gang ends up working together to defeat the bullies.

This movie really has what a lot of real life movies don't have. Perfect comic timing. There's so many hilarious scenes... Snoopy rides in the abandoned tire, the debate over cold cereal for breakfast, Charlie Brown is promoted to leader of the gang but can't get a word in edgewise due to Peppermint Patty ("That's IT CHUCK!!! You're LEADING!!! BOY WHAT A LEADER!!!!! LEAD ON CHUCK!!!!"), Lucy's insistence on doing things democratically ("The question before the group is... Do we have the boys join us? Marcie! Prepare the secret ballots!!!").

Highly entertaining. Charles Schultz has done his characters proud.

This is a positive, enlightening film that, until recently I almost forgot about. It's significantly less static than most other Charlie Brown films and programs such as The Great Pumpkin, even though it has been edited and is less static now. Charlie Brown is actually now a kid who has a solid ego. It is after he discovers the cabin and spends the night is where he develops his most significant leadership qualities. This is not a commonly shown movie and other movies maintain the stereotype that Charlie Brown is a sorry sucker. This is a great movie for kids to watch because of it's character and originality. The movie doesn't a bad soundtrack, either. The songs are lively and pompous. In short I think this is one of the best family/kids movie I have ever seen and I'd recommend it to any fan of Charlie Brown movies.

Says, THE ENDING MAN

Regardless of all the cartoons appearing on television and video in the 1980s, I was always stuck on this delightful Peanuts feature. Wonderful animation and a great story make for the best Peanuts feature ever produced. 10/10

Charlie Brown and the gang head to summer camp, where they run into a group of nasty bullies and their cat (which is the size of a bulldog). They all compete in a big river raft race where our favorites run into lots of obstacles, including sabotage from the bullies. The third Peanuts film is enjoyable enough, but not one of the best. For one thing, the great Vince Guaraldi had passed away before this so this was scored by Ed Bogas. His music choices are uninspired and forgettable. There are a lot of physical gags in this one, especially once the race starts (and it takes up the majority of the film). There are also some funny character bits, such as Peppermint Patty's pushing for a vote for everything. Sally also has a number of cute lines ("I wasn't even born in 1800!"). Snoopy and Woodstock also get some amusing stuff to do but the boy characters, like Charlie Brown and Linus, have few memorable funny moments. Charlie Brown does get to step up and be the hero in the end, and the scene where he stands up to pushy Patty was very awesome, but he doesn't get much in the humor department. Also, the bully villains are pretty one-note. They're very obnoxious and easy to root against but it would've been nice to see them have a sliver of character. They don't even have names. The voice work is decent. The animation is solid with nice colors and well-done action scenes. It's not one of my favorite Peanuts cartoons, full-length or short, because there's really not a lot of meat on the bone here. But it is fun and the characters are quirky and colorful as ever. It's definitely better than most of the Peanuts cartoons put out from the '80s onward, but just not up there with the very best earlier stuff.

Definitely the best Charlie Brown film ever. Chuck and the whole peanuts gang are off to summer camp. Superb animation sequence with Snoopy and Woodstock arriving by motorcycle. As usual Peppermint Patty wants to be in control of everything, but this is a movie were everyone gets to do their bit. Linus standing up to the bullies is particularly funny. ( amazing what he does with that blanket). The music is brilliant and the songs will have your kids singing along. I don't want to give to much of the plot away but suffice to say Chuck really saves the day. He's what we all know he really is "a hero". Your children, like mine, will watch this film over and over again. DELIGHTFUL. Will be buying DVD version when released.

Yeah, it's been 40+ years since this was released, but it has a soft spot for me, because they would show this around autumn to Christmas time, so a lot of nostalgia to be mined.

I got a chance to watch it kids during a kiddie matinee (actual film print) so I wanted to gauge their reactions.

Overall, the theme of Charlie Brown attempting to learn leadership tends to fall on their deaf ears. They are there to see Snoopy and Woodstock and their physical shenanigans. Which makes the deeper ideas of learning to work together in adverse conditions much more poignant to a slightly older crowd, who aren't that cynical.

Here Charlie Brown and Company decide to go on a camping trip. There he is asked what his purpose of going to camp was. And his answer is to learn to be more of a leader. It speaks more about creator Charles Schulz's send of insecurities and self-esteem. In the flick, Charlie Brown is confronted by a bully gang who challenges him and his friends to the rafting competition (well, really, it's the camp). Through many side adventures, they eventually conclude that Charlie learns that he has the goods when it comes to making decisions when adversity occurs.

This has always been the core of these movies. Pushing through when life gets tough and having faith everything will work out.

The landscape of the camp doesn't have any logical sense (they are in the desert and then in the forest. How long were they on the school bus (?). Things you never think about when (at the time I was 6) you are young. To adults that seems a bit distracting. Or, obviously the rules of the camp contests. Or how some characters pop in and out. The expanded universe of Peppermint Patty, for instance, has only three other girls in it who actually have voting status.

I digress, this movie is for young kids who like to see colors and some loud noises.

As I do get older, I find Snoopy to be a distracting. Not sure why I always hated the humanizing of animals. Snoopy seems to be more human than the humans that own him. He rarely acts like a dog. So it does get puzzling as to some logic flaws with him, as well. It could be frustrating to a lot of older people who discover it later in life.

Either way, it does have a background noise quality to it. It's not like you need to pay close attention to the plot. They kept it simple.

And we should be grateful for that.

I watched this classic film tonight from eons ago and was entertained just like I was in childhood when I viewed it back then. It reminded me of how it was "relative" to what a kid goes through when they're adjusting to the ways of life and constantly curious about the world. Growing up in a small Northern town and later in Calgary, made me see how kids were in a different world compared to adults.

There was the bullies in elementary school, the assaults in the playground and the "gang wars" that erupted every now and then. Back then, there was no worry about charges for assault. We were too young for that.

Adults were also depicted in these Peanuts cartoons as alienated with a garble in how they talked towards the kids. Clearly showing the dividing line between them.

Yeah, there was another world kids were in compared to the older folks and there was a lot of adventure to be had in that. This movie accurately portrays that.

Charlie Brown and the gang compete in a raft race against a team of malicious bullies with a vicious cat who has a spiked collar and sharp fangs. Every dirty trick was played in the race to deter the good kids from winning.

Let's see, there are deflated rubber rafts, snow in the summer and wicked rapids to overcome in order to win the race. It doesn't help matters either when the bad kids are constantly ahead and change the direction of the signs to direct the good kids to the hazardous areas.

It reminded me of my times as a kid whenever the gang of bullies raided the playground. They'd chase us around and beat us up if they caught us. That was unforgettable.

Yeah, we were in our own world back then and it sometimes felt like a dangerous war zone. This Peanuts movie accurately captured that and it sure captures what kids go through. It wasn't easy, but still there was a strong feeling of adventure throughout it all, like a knight declaring war on a neighboring Kingdom.

If there were common themes uniting the four Peanuts movies, I would most readily point out two of them: a going-against-the-odds theme and an adventurous spirit. For the other three movies, those themes were accompanied by a theme of darkness. In fact, one couldn't help but feel lonely as Charlie Brown spent the night studying in a big city in "A Boy Named Charlie Brown"; as Snoopy got kicked out of place after place in "Snoopy Come Home"; or as Charlie Brown and Linus encountered a dark, daunting chateau in "Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown."

And so it was great to see that for this movie, they decided to lighten it up. The result is bright and delightful! Part of the way the mood is set in the other movies is the use night and isolation; that can create the scene for adventure, but there is always a scary side there. Although there is a little of that in this movie, one remembers it more for the scenes of the Peanuts gang interacting and encountering fun/peril on the rapids or making the best of a bad situation while lost in the woods. This one has more comedy and action than any of the other Peanuts movies, and it all makes for an enjoyable ride.

Perhaps the best part of the movie is that fact that you finally get to see all the major members of the Peanuts gang play off of each other (the other movies each concentrated on a few of the characters). They antagonize a lot, and then learn to stick it out together in the spirit of teamwork. Few things are as fun as taking a group of extreme and different personalities, forcing them together, and watching them go. Some of the funniest scenes are when the girls' team wrangle over the strategies involved in the raft race. It's hilarious!

This is easily my favorite of the Peanuts movies, and, for me, one of the great examples of what kinds of great comedic/dramatic situations one can draw from a diverse cast of characters. Not nearly as dark in mood as the others, Race For Your Life is punctuated with gags and back-dropped against the sun and nature. Perhaps one of the only major drawbacks of the movie is the evident proof of Schulz's own claim that he can't draw cats!

"Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown" is the third of four feature-length movies based on the beloved comic strip "Peanuts" by the great Charles M. Schulz. It precedes "Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and don't come back!!!) and follows "Snoopy, Come Home" and the marvelous, underrated classic "A Boy Named Charlie Brown." For the third film, the animation quality was taken down a notch, but the real charm of "Peanuts", the comic strip and the specials, was never in the visual look. It was all in the story, in the characters, in the gags, and dignity of everything that Schulz created. And this short and delightful little movie captures that effectively.

A common recurring theme in the "Peanuts" universe is summer camp, where Charlie Brown, Peppermint Patty, and sometimes others go to the remote woods and uncover fall into challenges, predicaments, and situations, all to the amusement of the audience. Here's a feature-length movie based on that. Charlie Brown and all of his pals are sent to summer camp and are pitted against a group of bullies and their rascally pet (I wasn't sure if it was a dog or a cat) in a river raft race. The race consumes most of the movie's running time as Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, and the others make their way through the wilderness and as usual, our round-headed protagonist, is trying to find a way to stand up for himself and prove that he's not a born loser.

The story for "Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown" could have been done effectively in a half-hour short, as it very well may have been originally intended. Even at a feature-length running time, it still comes off as very amusing. The charm of "Peanuts" was its ability to never fail at amusing you, delighting you, charming you, and making you grin positively from ear to ear. And I was grinning and laughing all the way through. The voice acting is considerably good as well. The only real complaint that I do have about the movie is that the animation quality has been taken down a notch from the previous two movies and the animated specials. It seems a little incomplete, a little sketchy to me and a little rushed. At times, for example, Linus's head would be of the appropriate proportion to his body, but at other times, it would seem to oversize itself.

From an effective opening to a most effective ending, "Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown" is another example of the countless charm that rectifies Charles M. Schulz as one of the true creative geniuses of all time. Well-directed by Bill Melendez, this is a sweet little family movie that will charm and engage adults at the same time it works its wonders on children.

The year was 1977. Dino Dellaurentiis' KING KONG gets "King Cloned". There was a UFO that can communicate with music? We were introduced to STAR WARS. And Charlie Brown is standing up for what he wants, and gets leadership. We finally see CB get into action! And for the first time in the film series, we get to see villains. These 3 bullies are Charles Schultz's answer to The Three Stooges. They have a mean cat with them. And for the first time, we get to hear adult voices. None of this muted trumpet voices like in SNOOPY COME HOME (1972). Sally is whiney, and Peppermint Patty gets to do some democratic business. There are some morals in this film. No one likes a cheater, look before you leap, and no matter how big or small you are, you can do mighty things like winning, plus get tough, and take action. Also never give up until you do. Parents show this film to your kids. This teaches them to be brave, leadership, and get assertive. Now there is something about the cat. He appeared cameo in SNOOPY: THE MUSICAL (1988), but was he The Cat Next Door? Or a speices of cat whose scientific name is "felinius destructivus horribillis". The waterbed sequence with Peppermint Patty and Snoopy was edited into the opening sequence of THE CHARLIE BROWN AND SNOOPY SHOW (1983-1985). It seems to me, that watching the Peanuts films is like watching the specials. The closing credits were different form the previous Peanuts films. It looks like something a bit Terry Gilliam-esque, mixed with psychadellic. This film should be released on DVD, with commentary by Lee Mendleson and Bill Millendez, theatrical trailer, TV ads, and when you click on "play movie", you see the 70's "Our Feature Presintation" clip before the picture starts. Plus trailers to other Peanuts films. Or better yet, a box set with the 4 theatrical Peanuts films. I don't to got to camp, because, it is not my gig. I'd rather go to the disco.

Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown was the third feature film that starred the Peanuts gang. In this one, the gang goes off to summer camp, where they instantly run into trouble with a trio of ruthless bullies that continuously dominate the camp competitions with the dirtiest tricks in the book. As you may have guessed, the gang gets their rears handed to them early, and it all comes down to a river race that is the basis for the entire plot.

The first problem in the movie is that the bullies are written as the biggest one- dimensional tools on Earth. They have no other character outside the cocky jerks that say the same "We're #1!" trash talk in all their dialogue. I should also mention that they have no name for their gang. They don't even have names for themselves. Each bully character is literally credited as "Bully". That's how big of one-dimensional antagonists that we're dealing with. Another thing that bugged me in the writing was the girls. They form a democracy and take votes on everything. I understand that the Peanuts franchise has emphasized feminism several times with its characters and story lines, and this movie is trying to show that girls can be independent. But this democracy stuff?????? One of their votes was to decide on letting the girls stay inside the cabin for the night or having the boys sleep outside the cabin, which they found first on their own, and they don't even let the boys vote. That is something I'd expect Republicans to do.

So the writing is not as strong as the Peanuts' best work, based on those two things, as well as the repetition in dialogue and editing. But the rest of the stuff in there does hold up from my memories of seeing it as a kid. It still has a lot of plot structure, clever comedy, entertaining moments, neat animation, and valuable lessons that the Peanuts franchise is always best at.

It's Deliverance, Charlie Brown! You get to play the game, Charlie Brown! Now squeal like the pig you are, Charlie Brown!

The Sixties were the Golden Age for Peanuts lovers. By 1977 The magic was clearly fading, as both the daily strip and the feature films shifted from introspection and genuine emotion to slam-bang action and cheap external conflicts with various cardboard characters.

Charlie Brown and his gang go white-water rafting, and end up in the middle of nowhere. Just like Deliverance! A gang of creepy outsiders starts to pursue them. Just like Deliverance. Brown and his soft city kids show unexpected courage. Just like Deliverance! At the end the bullies are humiliated and the city kids win. Just like . . . Well, you get the idea.

So where were the banjos?

Typically cute, charming - if not inspired - Peanuts feature film sees the gang go to summer camp and participate in a sometimes hazardous raft race. Charlie Brown (voice of Duncan Watson) is immediately targeted by a swaggering trio of bullies who won the race the past two years, but seemingly can't succeed without cheating.

You can never really go wrong with Charles M. Schulz and his characters. There are enough pleasant and funny moments here to make "Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown" quite agreeable. Now, not all of the humor quite worked for this viewer - the running gag about the girls always voting on things wears thin - but the traditional hand drawn animation is engaging, the subplot about Snoopy and Woodstock getting separated is rather touching, and it's nice to see Charlie Brown actually stand up for himself and, in general, be a stronger character than usual.

One thing you definitely miss is the jazz style music that Vince Guaraldi would have provided, but his untimely death put the kibosh on that approach. The music by a man named Ed Bogas is a little more traditional, and it's not quite the same. There are some very annoying songs that pop up, but they're over appreciably quickly.

A straightforward story (with an endearing ending), a theme of people working together for the common good, decent laughs and thrills, and a funny gag involving Charlie Brown having to hitch a ride with Snoopy on the latters' motorcycle all help to make this nice entertainment for Peanuts fans.

Seven out of 10.

Charlie Brown and company go to summer camp and then have to compete with some bullies on a river-rafting trip. Most "Peanuts"-based movies are pure comedy, but "Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown" does turn a little more serious when Snoopy and Woodstock get separated during a storm. But for the most part, it's pure humor (partly owing to Peppermint Patty's insistence on voting, no matter how trivial the issue). It goes to show that Charles Schulz (who would've turned 90 last week) never lost his touch. To be certain, this movie allows Charlie Brown to find his inner strength when he becomes the leader.

No, it's not a masterpiece, but it's definitely fun. Some scenes look thrown in for comic relief, namely the water-bed, and Snoopy's motorcycle ride. Pretty neat.

Charlie Brown specials and movies have always been a big part of my childhood, this film is another one of my favorite Charlie Brown films.

The animation is great as usual because it stays true to the hand drawn style from the strip which is fine by me I wouldn't want it any other way. The music is great also there are plenty of memorable tunes though my favorite is the theme song which is really catchy.

But of course what powers it is it's story and characters. I really like the plot where the Pennuts gang are in a competition against this rival gang whom are all complete blow holes that are so obnoxious as they act like they own the camp and everybody, and they continually brag about their so called victories, but by their nature their complete hypocrites as they cheated to get those wins which really shouldn't of counted (where the hell was the ref at those moments). We even see their boat is motorized with some sophisticated tech which isn't fair but also shows that their also rich fraks which makes them even worse. From the amount of crap they dish out to Charlie Brown and the Pennuts gang it just makes you all the more want the Pennuts gang to win just to rightfully knock them off their butts.

I really like how the film is somewhat different from the usual Pennuts specials we see because here this is an adventures. It's interesting and a bit thrilling just seeing the Pennuts gang river rafting and getting though some pretty sticky situations along the way.

As usual the stuff with both Snoopy and Woodstock is cute and great from seeing both of them ride wicked fast on a motorbike that looks like something from the film "Easy Rider". To even touching or sad moments when both get separated and both search for each other.

The film has good messages about what true leadership and sportsmanship is about, one of the things is of course not giving up. Charlie Brown realizes how hard things have gotten which at times almost makes him cave into doubt as he sees only failure ahead, but as Rocky Baboa once said, "Life isn't about how hard you hit, it's about getting hit but keeping on coming up." and those words are true despite how hard things get they have to push on forward no matter what because it's really the only thing they can do as their survival depends on it and that's true about life itself.

But also about friendship and stepping up when one should. I like how we see a contrast between both the Penuts gang and the Rival gang. The Rival gang we see don't really get along, work together when they should, but we also see that their not really individuals as they all where the same t shirts and have the same rotten attitudes. We like the Pennuts gang because they are individuals and winning isn't everything to them, in fact it's not their whole life; as we see in one scene their dancing in a cabin having fun together.

Charlie Brown actually has a very good character arc and it's great when we finally see him step up, from the amount to crap he has to endure it then finally comes to the final straw. It's sort of the old saying "Some days you just gotta say Frak This!" and that's what Charlie Brown does when he realizes certain things aren't working like the girls so called democratic system which doesn't amount to jack squat in wilderness survival.

The only bad things for me about the film is Peperment Patty, in a way this film is kinda justifying why she's one of my least favorite characters in the Pennuts bunch. Don't get me wrong I like her but lets face it she can be a real b.... sometimes and it really became a bit much in the film; sorry that sounds bold but oh man if you had to endure the bossiness, denseness in wilderness survival, let alone small sexism she spills out that could push anyone over the edge; though this was all the more reason I wanted Charlie Brown to step up and tell her who's the boss. Another is that voting joke was really redundant after a while.

Overall this was a very good Charlie Brown film, it's a ride worth taking.

Rating: 3 and a half stars

The Peanuts gang heads off to summer camp. They battle bullies in boat race down the river. I know times are different back in the 70's but this is still rather ridiculous. These kids are almost killed multiple times and no adults are ever in sight. It's the gang. I don't think I know the bullies. It's Peanuts at its 70's best.

Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown (1977) is a movie I recently watched with my daughter on Amazon Prime. The storyline follows Charlie Brown and friends heading off to summer camp when they meet some bullies who win at every camp event. Charlie Brown and friends break into teams determined to beat the bullies at the final event, a river race of epic proportions.

This movie was codirected by Bill Melendez (A Charlie Brown Christmas) and Phil Roman (Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown). The voices are provided by Duncan Watson (You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown), Stuart Brotman (It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown), Gail Davis (Coffy), Jimmy Ahrens (A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving) and Melanie Kohn (Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown).

The storyline for this is very fun and the depiction of the settings and circumstances are excellent. The bullies and their cat were hilarious as was Sally's mouth getting Charlie Brown in trouble. The songs were a bit dated but the animation is timeless and still very entertaining. The entire boat race is legendary and I also thoroughly enjoyed every scene with Snoopy and Woodstock.

Overall this is an underrated anime classic that is an absolute must see. I would score this a 9/10 and strongly recommend it.

I was rather surprised by the fact that I liked this movie. It was simply some brainless fun, and although it isn't the least bit memorable, it was still funnier than ninety percent of the films that are released as "comedies". I know many people are hesitant to watch children's features, especially if they are animated, but I had a really good time with the "Peanuts" gang. It's nothing but silly fluff, but the next time you're in the mood for some inoffensive humor, give this film a chance.

As a long time fan of Peanuts there is hardly a movie,TV show or special I don't like from them.

And Race for Your Life,Charlie Brown is no different the gang are heading to camp and it all leads to a Adventure for Charlie Brown,Lucy,Linus,Sally Snoopy and the gang

This is easy one of my most favorite Peanuts movies I have good memories of this film from my childhood.

This film has something for everyone it still holds up well after all this time.

The animation is very strong and when you watch the Peanuts films you can always expect strong animation and this film has very well done animation I like how the animators took the time to focus on the art work to make sure it is up to the standard

The voice acting is very good and the writing has a lot of humor.

I got a lot of good laughs at the comedy scenes that I replay over and over they actually knew how to make us laugh as well as moments where you care for the characters.

However there were some moments that I didn't think work for the movie but still The films does great there are a lot of twist in the film That you wouldn't expect to have in a peanuts movie but this one does it well

The music is very good and it makes the story more interesting

Overall I'm sure all Peanuts fans will enjoy this classic film and this is a very good movie

I give Race for Your Life,Charlie Brown an 9 out of 10

I grew up watching cartoons and many had impact on me, the peanut gang didn't. I remember seeing the one about the pumpkin and actually looking forward to it around Halloween.

This is nowhere near being that good, this is very boring and pointless. Nothing to make you smile or laugh or feel anything other than bored, with the exception of Snoopy. Snoopy rules and his sidekick Woodstock isn't that bad either, why these were often named with Charlie Brown in the title I don't know - they should have all been just Snoopy cartoons and kept the rest of the gang out of it. 1 out of 4 stars - because of Snoopy