The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Dose of Snicker-Inducing Fun

Would the original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a 25 years, following experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such staying power is in part due to its broad charm, amusing the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as surprising as the memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Zany Groove

Starting with a festive short featuring Paramount's alternative weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon finds a comfortably silly rhythm. Its storyline acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's quest to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted elements, forever highlighting satisfying, properly animated effects.

Whether its freewheeling humor will resonate when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably squarer than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to delight the younger audience: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the franchise – and arguably the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those original fans will probably be snickering all over again.

Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.