The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – A Swashbuckling Helping of Giggle-Provoking Silliness

Would the early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise persisting for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything as surprising as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Groove

Starting with a holiday short starring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film quickly finds a comfortably silly groove. Its storyline acts as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that excites him as it at last allows him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a charming mix of digimation and hand-turned elements, consistently showcasing satisfying, authentically animated effects.

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

Notable scenes include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to delight the younger crowd: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the franchise – and arguably the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.

Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.