🔗 Share this article

Would the original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most surreal of narrative twists? This staying power is partly due to its broad appeal, amusing the sense of humor of grown-ups – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Groove

Kicking off with a festive short featuring Paramount's other weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon settles into a comfortably silly groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version 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 laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's quest to obtain the legendary pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, properly animated visuals.

If its freewheeling humor will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably squarer than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early fans will likely be chuckling all over again.

Coming to Theaters: 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.