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You're a Rat Bastard, Charlie Brown
The setup
The premise
Here’s the bit.
A commercial for a New York Actor's Studio stage production recasts the Peanuts Christmas story with celebrity impressions. Al Pacino's Charlie Brown snaps at everyone, Edie Falco's Lucy offers him a menu of anti-anxiety pills, Larry David's Linus bickers about whether Christmas is for him, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, Forest Whitaker, Kristin Chenoweth and Michael Keaton fill out the gang. Fran Drescher supplies the muffled voice of Charlie Brown's mother, Lucy's football gag ends in a bleeped tirade, and shots of shocked children in the audience punctuate the show before the announcer explains why it will never open to critics.
The funny people
Meet the cast. 10
Say it with us
Highly quotable.
I'm out of eggnog? You're out of eggnog! This whole party's out of eggnog!
Oh, so, so, so, so I'm just supposed to accept what you say?
In previews now and forever, so they can never review it.
Script
Automatically generated script; wording may contain errors. Speaker labels are inferred.
- 00:00
Speaker 1
Are you tired of family entertainment with no edge, no grit? Then let the New York Actors Studio show you a new twist on an old classic. It's You're a Rat Bastard, Charlie. Starring Glen Gary Glen Ross' Al Pacino.
- 00:16
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Christmas is coming, but I'm not happy.
- 00:19
Speaker 1
Philip Seymour Hoffman as Pigpen.
- 00:21
Philip Seymour Hoffman (as Pig Pen)
You know, I think the whole Christmas experience is overrated.
- 00:24
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Pigpen!
- 00:25
Philip Seymour Hoffman (as Pig Pen)
Charlie.
- 00:26
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
You look like .
- 00:27
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
You smell like .
- 00:29
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Well, you're my friend, Pic-Man.
- 00:31
Speaker 1
With Edie Falco as Lucy.
- 00:33
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
Charlie Brown, what the heck do you think you're doing? This is Christmas. You can't just be moping around. It's not right.
- 00:40
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
I know.
- 00:40
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
I know what you need.
- 00:42
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
What?
- 00:42
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
I have Ativan. You want that?
- 00:44
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Oh, yeah!
- 00:45
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
Little Valium?
- 00:46
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Oh, yeah!
- 00:47
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
You like a Klonopin?
- 00:48
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
I want something taking me sky high!
- 00:52
Speaker 1
It's Charlie Brown by Way of Brooklyn with Larry David as Wallace.
- 00:57
Larry David (as Linus)
I don't know this whole Christmas thing. It's a whole to-do, you know the parties and the presents and the decorating. It's not for me
- 01:04
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
We mean Christmas is not for you. Don't tell me it's not for you. I say it's for you Then it's for you.
- 01:09
Larry David (as Linus)
Oh, so so so so I'm just supposed to accept what you say
- 01:12
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
You know what? You don't know what the hell you're talking about you, Linus.
- 01:16
Larry David (as Linus)
me?
- 01:17
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Yeah.
- 01:18
Larry David (as Linus)
Why don't you go yourself Charlie Brown
- 01:21
Speaker 1
That's the whole peanut game. Like Forrest Whitaker as Franklin
- 01:25
Forest Whitaker (as Franklin)
Charlie, what's the meaning of Christmas?
- 01:28
Speaker 1
Kristen Chenoweth reprises her Broadway role as Sally.
- 01:32
Kristin Chenoweth (as Sally)
Dear Santa, how was your summer? Did y'all have a swell little...
- 01:39
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Stupid.
- 01:41
Speaker 1
Michael Keaton as Schroeder.
- 01:43
Michael Keaton (as Schroeder)
You want to get peanuts? Come on! Let's get peanuts.
- 01:47
Speaker 1
And all the adults.
- 01:49
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Nobody likes me, Ma.
- 01:51
Fran Drescher (as Charlie Brown's Mother)
Wah, wah, wah, wah, wah, wah.
- 01:53
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Oh, you're killing me, Ma.
- 01:55
Speaker 1
Voiced by the incomparable Fran Drescher.
- 01:58
Fran Drescher (as Charlie Brown's Mother)
Wah, wah, wah, wah, wah, wah, wah, wah.
- 02:00
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Oh, that's like a knife in my heart! Ah!
- 02:07
Philip Seymour Hoffman (as Pig Pen)
Charlie, you're out of eggnog.
- 02:09
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
I'm out of eggnog?
- 02:09
Philip Seymour Hoffman (as Pig Pen)
Yeah.
- 02:11
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
You're out of eggnog! This whole party's out of eggnog!
- 02:15
Speaker 1
It's all the iconic Charlie Brown moments you remember from childhood.
- 02:20
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Lucy, you gonna hold the football?
- 02:22
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
Yes!
- 02:23
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
You gonna hold that football?
- 02:24
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
Yes!
- 02:25
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
All right, here I go!
- 02:27
Charlie!
- 02:29
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Wow! Oh, you bitch!
- 02:32
Edie Falco (as Lucy)
Oh, my God. Calm the down. Charlie Brown.
- 02:39
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
Get the out of here!
- 02:41
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
It's good. It's soft.
- 02:45
Al Pacino (as Charlie Brown)
All right, we're gonna take animation real quick.
- 02:48
Speaker 1
You're a rat bastard, Charlie Brown.
- 02:51
Speaker 1
In previews now and forever, so they can never review it.
- 02:55
Larry David (as Linus)
It's, uh, pretty, pretty, pretty good.
The rabbit hole continues
One more couldn’t hurt.
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