The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Film Critique – A Swashbuckling Dose of Snicker-Inducing Fun
Would the original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series persisting for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything as unexpected as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature has no qualms about having Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Zany Vibe
Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon finds a recognizably silly groove. Its script acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a fact that thrills him as it at last allows him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An early, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.
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 spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted elements, consistently highlighting satisfying, authentically cartoonish visuals.
If its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty sure to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the franchise – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will probably be chuckling all over again.
Coming to Theaters: 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.
