The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Film Critique – An Adventurous Dose of Snicker-Inducing Silliness
Could those early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series enduring for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – alongside the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Zany Vibe
Kicking off with a festive short starring Paramount's other long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon settles into a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script acts as a family-friendly treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it finally allows him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.
The Adventure for Pirate Proof
SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the movie's visual style remains a charming mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, consistently highlighting satisfying, properly animated effects.
Whether its spitballing silliness will linger after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Notable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out somehow more rectangular than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.
The Verdict
In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the franchise – 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 students will probably be chuckling all over again.
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.
