🔗 Share this article

Could those original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon finds a recognizably goofy groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that thrills him as it at last allows him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An early, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the finest modern American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a delightful mix of digital animation and hand-crafted components, forever showcasing satisfying, authentically cartoonish effects.

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

Notable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably squarer than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment sure to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable entry to the franchise – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those early students will probably be chuckling 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.