🔗 Share this article

Could those original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the franchise persisting for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? This staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, amusing the funny bones of grown-ups – possibly even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo 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. This proves anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film soon finds a comfortably silly rhythm. Its storyline acts as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it at last qualifies him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best contemporary American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Quest for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-turned components, consistently highlighting pleasing, properly cartoonish visuals.

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

Notable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably squarer than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the younger audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those original students will likely be snickering anew.

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