🔗 Share this article

Would the original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise persisting for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such longevity is in part attributed to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything quite as surprising as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of having 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 Vibe

Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon finds a comfortably silly groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated exploration on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it at last allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic gag: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, as in the best contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the twisting narrative.

The Quest for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure 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 ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-turned elements, forever highlighting pleasing, authentically cartoonish visuals.

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

Memorable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out somehow more rectangular than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop 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 is 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 suggestive saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original students will likely be snickering anew.

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