🔗 Share this article

Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise enduring for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such longevity is partly due to its wide-ranging charm, amusing the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a comfortably goofy groove. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that excites him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the movie's aesthetic 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 up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those early fans will probably be snickering anew.

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.