🔗 Share this article

Would the early viewers who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film soon finds a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated exploration on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American animation, the true thrill ride is the twisting narrative.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-turned components, forever highlighting pleasing, authentically animated visuals.

If its spitballing silliness will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones gag and a cheekily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will probably be chuckling all over again.

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