SpongeBob SquarePants Review
by Johnny Betts (johnny_betts AT hotmail DOT com)November 22nd, 2004
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SpongeBob
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Rating: 3 (out of 5)
PLOT
SpongeBob is up for a promotion at work, and the fact that he's convinced he's gonna get it makes him the happiest little square-panted sponge in the ocean. Plankton, on the other hand, isn't so jovial. His restaurant, the Chum Bucket, has hit a dry spell thanks to Mr. Krabs' wildly popular Krabby patty. Plankton decides to steal King Neptune's crown, frame Mr. Krabs, and then steal the Krabby patty recipe. In an effort to prevent King Neptune from killing Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob and his friend Patrick Star head off towards Shell City in search of the stolen crown. An underwater adventure of goofy proportions ensues.
JOHNNY'S TAKE
This is a movie about an animated sponge that wears square cardboard pants. So there you go, you can't go to the movie and claim you didn't know what kind of humor to expect. It's goofy, it's silly, and it can be downright strange. But I can't call those negative attributes considering the fact that all of the above can also be used to describe me at times.
I've never seen the SpongeBob TV show, so I went into the movie without much of an idea of what I was in for. I must say that while I won't rush out and buy the DVD, I walked away fairly entertained.
Expectedly, a lot of the humor is directed towards children, but there's enough here to keep the adults snickering. I may be nearing 30, but I'm not ashamed to laugh at a sponge wearing square whitey tighties! Oh, and for those of us who never cease to mock David Hasselhoff - he has a cameo. I've gotta give the guy credit - he's very aware that the entire country is laughing *at* him, yet he's completely willing to join in.
The children at the screening loved the movie, singing along to songs and everything. One of the funniest things was when Patrick the starfish first appeared on screen and the kids erupted in applause. It was like watching an episode of Seinfeld when Kramer makes his first appearance of an episode and the studio audience goes crazy. I briefly thought about booing just for the fun of it, but the thought of a bunch of tiny little hands pattering me upon my face didn't sound too fun.
But let's go back to the whole "singing along to songs" bit. I think it's only fair to warn parents that this may start to drive you crazy after the movie. Good luck trying to keep your kid from singing, "I'm ready, promotion! I'm ready, promotion!" or "I'm a goofy goober, you're a goofy goober, we're all goofy goobers" over and over and over again. I had to bribe my 9-year-old brother with cold hard cash to knock it off with the "I'm ready, promotion!" song.
Speaking of my brother, I asked him after the movie which he preferred - SpongeBob or The Polar Express. To my surprise, he said SpongeBob because it was "funnier." I suppose this is a lesson that children aren't quite as impressed with fancy animation as adults are.
But he's right, SpongeBob is a funny movie in its own quirky, original way. I'm not dying to see it again, and I don't think I'll be glued to the TV set every time it's on, but I enjoyed it, and I'm not gonna waste my time or yours by picking apart what I didn't like. The target audience should be pleased with the end result, so mission accomplished.
THE GIST
If you're a fan of the TV show, then you should definitely get a kick out of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. This movie isn't exactly for everybody though. If you've never heard of SpongeBob, then there's quite a bit here that may humor you. But if you hate all things silly, goofy, and immature, then this isn't for you.
Johnny Betts
The Movie Mark
http://www.themoviemark.com
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