🔗 Share this article

Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob escapades have predicted the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most lysergic of plotlines? This longevity is partly due to its broad appeal, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as unexpected as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Vibe

Kicking off with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon settles into a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script serves as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it finally qualifies him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An initial, psychedelic gag: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American animation, the true rollercoaster is the twisting narrative.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-turned components, forever showcasing satisfying, authentically animated effects.

Whether its freewheeling humor will resonate when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Memorable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early fans will likely 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.