The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Film Critique – An Adventurous Helping of Giggle-Provoking Fun

Could those early viewers who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise enduring for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? This longevity is partly attributed to its broad charm, amusing the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of having a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Groove

Kicking off with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a comfortably silly groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it at last allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the best contemporary American cartoons, the true rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's quest to secure the legendary pirate license 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 grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-turned components, forever highlighting satisfying, properly cartoonish effects.

If its spitballing silliness will linger after the credits is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow more rectangular than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the younger audience: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid entry to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original students will probably be chuckling anew.

Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on December 19th in the US, December 20th in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.