SpongeBob's Latest: Search for SquarePants Review – A Swashbuckling Helping of Snicker-Inducing Fun
Could those original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such staying power is partly due to its wide-ranging charm, amusing the sense of humor of grown-ups – possibly even those former students – as well as the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as unexpected as the memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.
An Established Goofy Vibe
Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film quickly finds a comfortably silly rhythm. Its script serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a detail that excites him as it finally allows him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An initial, psychedelic gag: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the twisting plotting.
The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof
SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-turned components, forever highlighting satisfying, properly animated effects.
Whether its spitballing humor will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Memorable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably squarer than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the younger audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the series – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early students will probably be chuckling all over again.
Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on December 19th in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.
