The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Helping of Giggle-Provoking Silliness
Could those original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series enduring for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is in part attributed to its wide-ranging appeal, amusing the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those former students – alongside the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.
A Familiar Goofy Vibe
Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a recognizably silly rhythm. Its storyline acts as a family-friendly treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that thrills him as it finally qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, as in the best contemporary American cartoons, the true rollercoaster is the corkscrew narrative.
The Quest for Pirate Credentials
SpongeBob's quest to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted elements, consistently highlighting pleasing, authentically cartoonish visuals.
Whether its freewheeling silliness will resonate after the credits is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.
Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty sure to resonate with the younger crowd: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
In the end, Search for SquarePants is a solid entry to the series – and arguably the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will likely be chuckling anew.
Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.
