The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – A Swashbuckling Dose of Giggle-Provoking Fun
Could those original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? This longevity is partly due to its broad charm, tickling the funny bones of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – alongside the very young viewers. Although it may not feature anything as surprising as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about having a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Zany Vibe
Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film quickly finds a recognizably silly rhythm. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a detail that excites him as it finally allows him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An early, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest modern American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.
The Quest for Swashbuckling Credentials
SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-turned elements, forever highlighting pleasing, authentically cartoonish effects.
If its freewheeling humor will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Notable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably more rectangular 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 subjected to never-ending dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie in years, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a saltily innuendo-laden catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.
Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.
