The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Dose of Snicker-Inducing Silliness
Would the original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such staying power is partly due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature has no qualms about having a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Goofy Vibe
Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's other weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon settles into a recognizably goofy groove. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it at last allows him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, psychedelic gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest contemporary American animation, the real thrill ride is the twisting plotting.
The Quest for Pirate Credentials
SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, properly cartoonish effects.
If its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Memorable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to delight the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.
The Verdict
Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original students will probably be snickering all over again.
Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.
