The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Helping of Giggle-Provoking Fun
Could those early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have predicted the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the very young viewers. Although it may not feature anything quite as surprising as the memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature has no qualms about making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
A Familiar Goofy Groove
Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon settles into a recognizably silly groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that thrills him as it finally allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best contemporary American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the twisting narrative.
The Adventure for Pirate Proof
SpongeBob's quest to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-crafted elements, consistently highlighting satisfying, properly animated visuals.
Whether its freewheeling humor will resonate after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Notable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.
The Verdict
In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original fans will likely be chuckling anew.
Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, December 20th in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.
