The Spongebob Squarepants Movie Movie Review:


What is the whole phenomenon of SpongeBob? Why are kids electrified with a yellow sponge who wears cardboard pants? Well last weekend I took a journey to find out.

In the feature film version of the widely-popular cartoon series, SpongeBob and his friend Patrick have to embark on a long journey to Shell City where they must retrieve King Neptune’s crown and save their friend Mr. Krabs, who has been accused of stealing the crown.

Basically SpongeBob’s first feature film is a road movie as SpongeBob and his friend Patrick must overcome all sorts of obstacles to save their friend. It is as basic a premise as the cartoon series itself. But that is all you need to capture the warmth and innocence of the series.

There are some really clever scenes and some really disturbing ones. My favorite scene involved SpongeBob and Patrick’s stop at a biker bar where the bikers beat up anyone who will sing-a-long to popular kid’s song. SpongeBob and Patrick love the song and it symbolizes who they are so they must resist. It is hilarious when all of a sudden a biker screams and starts singing. It is juvenile but it shows the growth of these characters as they must do a very adult thing like saving their friend.

One of the more disturbing scenes is when SpongeBob and Patrick have to surf David Hasselhoff back to their town of Bikini Bottom. It is actually David Hasselhoff playing himself as the surfboard. There is a confrontation on the back of Hasselhoff between SpongeBob, Patrick and the evil bounty hunter Dennis (voiced by Alec Baldwin). It is way over the top, extremely odd and entirely goofy. I can’t say I have seen that one before.

If there is a message in SpongeBob it is that kids shouldn’t want to grow up so quick but to enjoy who and where they are now. It isn’t often that in a cartoon of this kind that you can actually see such growth in the characters and such a positive message hidden within all the goofy juvenile humor.

So Says the Soothsayer.



Dean Kish

Like the TV series that inspired it, this movie is almost blissfully silly, poking fun at movie formulae even as it indulges shamelessly in them. But it does keep us giggling helplessly.

In the undersea town of Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob (voiced by Kenny) is just too smiley and optimistic for words. He finally loses the plot when his cranky boss (Brown) fails to promote him to manager of the new Krusty Krab. But he gets a chance to prove himself travelling with his starfish buddy Patrick (Fagerbakke) to the dangerous Shell City to retrieve King Neptune's (Tambor) stolen crown and clear the boss' name. And don't forget the helpful princess (Johansson), the ruthless hitman (Baldwin) and the megalomaniac Plankton (Lawrence).

If there's a message here it's that old chestnut about valuing the kid inside you. SpongeBob and Patrick are uncontrollably juvenile, and they of course think they need to grow up in order to face the horrors of their epic quest. But the filmmakers refuse to get bogged down by this underlying message and instead focus on the warped and goofy humour that floods each frame.

Everything is wonderfully ridiculous, from the quirky and surprisingly well-defined characters to the textured animation and various live-action elements (a pirate framing story and a hilariously preposterous appearance by Hasselhoff). And there are fantastic touches such as Bob and Patrick getting "drunk" on ice cream, the king's oblivious vanity, the Bubble Party in the Thug Tug. It's just so deeply, utterly daft that you can't help but love it. And the characters are voiced with warmth and personality that balances the absurd designs perfectly.

It's the kind of film that children will love for the colourful craziness, while grown-ups revel in the astute spoofery and overall silliness. The story is just knowing enough in its satire and accurate enough in its themes to make it deeper than it looks. But the real point is to just have fun. And that's certainly enough.

Rich Cline

This was supposed to be the biggest day in SpongeBob’s (Kenny) life because Mr Krabs (Brown) was opening a second Krusty Krab restaurant and he was sure that he would be made manager. This should have been a really bad day for Sheldon J. Plankton (Lawrence), as his rival took more business from his restaurant, the Chum Bucket, but this time he had one more scheme up his sleeve ‘Plan Z’. He is going to frame Mr Krabs for a crime he didn’t commit and take over the restaurant business in Bikini Bottom. Only SpongeBob and his best friend Patrick Star/Fish (Fagerbakke) can save him.

Both children and adults rejoice, SpongeBob SquarePants has his own movie and he’s ready to take the big screen by storm.

The cult Nickelodeon cartoon that is a hit with both the kids and the so called grownups gets his first big screen adventure and on this evidence, it will be the first of many. The kooky, surreal world of Bikini Bottom transfers to the big screen with ease. Filled with slapstick, loads of gags, gratuitous butt shots and a couple of song and dance numbers, fans will rejoice as the feature length antics of their favourite sponge.

Playing more like an extended episode of the cult TV series, which isn’t a bad thing, the movie’s plot is a recipe for gags and highjinx. Essentially a road trip movie, SpongeBob and Patrick have to travel to the mysterious and deadly Shell City to complete their mission and save Mr Krabs in the process. The laughs and surreal humour come thick and fast but there is also an underlying message that makes the film have a slight bit of meaning for the younger (and some older) audience members.

All of the vocal cast from the TV series transfer their talents to the big screen. Tom Kenny and Bill Fagerbakke are as funny as ever vocalising SpongeBob and Patrick. In the longer format, the two of them can really let loose, throwing joke after joke at the fans as SpongeBob and Patrick have their high adventure. The rest of the vocal cast also have a lot of fun. Mr. Lawrence is fantastic as the diabolical Sheldon J. Plankton who plans to take over the restaurant empire and then the world. There also good performances from celebrity guest voices by Alec Baldwin as hitman Dennis, Jeffrey Tambor as King Neptune and Scarlett Johansson as his daughter, Mindy. Some fans may be disappointed with lack of screen time for Sandy Cheeks, Gary, Squidward Tentacles and Mr Krabs but we do get loads more SpongeBob and Patrick to make up for this.

‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie’ is really good fun. While the surreal humour might not be to everyone’s taste, fans of the show will rejoice at watching the feature length adventures of their favourite sponge. With a hilarious finale featuring a fight on the strangest boat you will ever see, this is a family movie that both kids and adults will love and fans will treasure.

Jamie Kelwick

 

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