Would the original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the franchise persisting for a 25 years, following experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? This staying power is in part attributed to its broad charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything as surprising as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of having a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while handing out payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Zany Groove
Starting with a festive short featuring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie quickly finds a recognizably goofy rhythm. Its script serves as a family-friendly exploration on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced 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 laugh: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, like the best contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the twisting narrative.
The Quest for Pirate Credentials
SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted elements, forever highlighting pleasing, properly animated visuals.
If its spitballing humor will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Notable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.
The Verdict
In the end, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.
Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.
