The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Film Critique – An Adventurous Dose of Giggle-Provoking Silliness

Could those early viewers who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a 25 years, following absorbing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such staying power is partly due to its wide-ranging appeal, amusing the funny bones of grown-ups – possibly even those former students – alongside the youngest viewers. While it can't claim anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Groove

Starting with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie quickly finds a comfortably goofy groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best modern American animation, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a charming mix of digital animation and hand-turned components, forever showcasing satisfying, properly animated effects.

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

Notable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the younger audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original students will probably be chuckling anew.

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