SpongeBob's Latest: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Helping of Snicker-Inducing Silliness
Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such longevity is partly attributed to its broad charm, amusing the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about making a veteran voice actor 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 holiday short starring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film quickly settles into a recognizably silly rhythm. Its script acts as a PG-rated exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest modern American animation, the real rollercoaster is the twisting plotting.
The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof
SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted components, consistently showcasing satisfying, properly animated effects.
Whether its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.
Notable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to delight the younger audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.
The Verdict
In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily innuendo-laden catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early fans will likely be snickering all over again.
Release Dates: 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.
