The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Film Critique – A Swashbuckling Dose of Giggle-Provoking Fun
Would the original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such staying power is in part due to its broad appeal, amusing the sense of humor of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – as well as the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as surprising as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
A Familiar Goofy Groove
Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon settles into a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script acts as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An early, trippy gag: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest modern American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.
The Adventure for Swashbuckling Credentials
SpongeBob's mission to obtain the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a charming bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, authentically cartoonish effects.
If its spitballing humor will linger after the credits is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.
Notable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably more rectangular than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the younger audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will likely be chuckling all over again.
Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.
