My entire family has been SpongeBob fans for more than a decade, and the 2004 SpongeBob Squarepants movie is a family classic. Without question I was looking forward to the next SpongeBob sequel. The first movie follows SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) and his starfish crony, Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke), on a journey to recover King Neptune’s crown. Ironically, the duo came up for air and onto land for a zany animated quest. While we didn’t see much of the Bikini Bottom ensemble in that feature, SpongeBob and Patrick shared the limelight with guests like Scarlett Johansson.
Considering the recent flood of 3D-CGI animated action films, it never crossed my mind to transform SpongeBob, Patrick and the rest of Bikini Bottom characters. Unfortunately, my fandom curiosity had to wait more than half the movie before I was able to see the results. SpongeBob: Sponge Out of Water features all of the hijinks pranks you find in the animated series. The ensemble is hysterical. Someone’s out to steal the Krabby Patty formula from Mr. Krabs (Clancy Brown). But this time, the script is flipped, and SpongeBob is paired with the brilliantly witty villain, Plankton (Mr. Lawrence). Now this crazy duo is on a quest to find the Krabby Patty formula. Above land, a mysterious Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas) holds a book containing secrets about SpongeBob.
Antonio Banderas is Burger Beard in THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SPONGE OUT OF WATER, from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies.
While this movie has a number of comedic moments, it also lulls underwater in certain scenes. It resonates with a feeling of several episodes entangled together, where each contains its own storyline. Nevertheless, in live action I enjoyed seeing characters like Squidward (Rodger Bumpass) and Sandy the Squirrel (Carolyn Lawrence), whose habitat is a bio-dome encompassed with air in the ocean. Here’s what Samara, my 15 year-old, had to say about watching the film:
“I thought Sponge Out of Water was a rewind to my childhood. But, I felt it took too long for them to get out of the water. All-in-all, it was a fun movie. I’m still a lifelong SpongeBob fan,” she says. “It brought animation to a new level. It was really funny,” Samara giggles.
My 7 year-old loved the film. “I really liked it when SpongeBob came out of the water! It was really funny,” says Ananda. “I recommend it to kids ages 13 and younger because SpongeBob appeals more to that group,” says Samara, my teen daughter. I agree with her. Children seemed to have enjoyed the film the most during the film.
SpongeBob: Sponge Out of Water
Rated: PG
Time: 93 minutes
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