🔗 Share this article

Could those original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such longevity is in part due to its broad charm, amusing the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as surprising as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's other weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon finds a comfortably silly 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 detail that excites him as it at last allows 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 twisting narrative.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever highlighting satisfying, properly animated visuals.

If its freewheeling humor will linger after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the younger crowd: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early students will probably be chuckling anew.

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