Film Review — The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants

The SpongeBob Movie: Search For Square Pants
Director: Derek Drymon
Paramount Animation, Nickelodeon Movies
In Theaters: 12.19.2025

Not every movie can be reviewed on the same terms, because not every movie has the same goals, nor is it geared toward the same audience. It’s with this in mind that I’ve enlisted my nephews, YouTube critics Timmy Gibbs (age 10) and Peter Gibbs (age 6), to be my co-reviewers for The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, in hopes that we can give an overview of the film that makes sense both to people who are in target demographic (Timmy and Peter) and people who are substantially less so (me).

SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) and his Bikini Bottom pals dive into their biggest adventure yet. After waking up a few clams taller, SpongeBob believes he’s finally a “big guy,” ready to prove his bravery to Mr. Krabs (Clancy Brown, The Shawshank Redemption) and ride the legendary Shipwreck roller coaster. But when fear gets the better of him, Krabs reminds SpongeBob that real courage isn’t about height — it’s about heart, recounting his own swashbuckling days alongside the ghost pirate Flying Dutchman (Mark Hamill, Star Wars, Batman: The Animated Series). Inspired, SpongeBob accidentally summons the Dutchman, who believes SpongeBob’s pure heart may be the key to breaking his curse. Joined by his enthusiastic if not especially bright starfish pal, Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke, Coach), SpongeBob sets sail on a perilous, hilarious journey to the deepest depths of the sea, discovering what it truly means to grow up.

Even for this particular franchise, Search For SquarePants is not putting coherent storytelling or sophisticated humor at a premium. It’s loud, frequently very obnoxious and recycling a lot of the same things we’ve seen before, and I found a lot of it to be pretty tedious. Timmy and Peter, on the other hand, were very pleased by the consistency of the humor. “The movie was very funny at times,” Timmy notes, while Peter astutely adds “Yeah, there was some butt jokes.” Timmy also got into the dramatic elements, finding the moments where Patrick felt ignored or undervalued to be quite sad. Peter was pleased by the character arc of Mr. Krabs, who uncharacteristically puts friendship ahead of money and expresses a surprising amount of tenderness toward SpongeBob. They were also pleased by the wry references aimed at both fans of mythology — as Timmy puts it, “We all know the Flying Dutchman. If you don’t, then you don’t,” — as well as references for SpongeBob fans, including a callback to the character of Burger Beard. 

The voice performances are energetic, with the standouts being Brown and Hammill. Fagerbakke is always a highlight of any SpongeBob movie (and I’m not just saying that because my name is Patrick, because truthfully I’ve had a love/hate relationship with sharing a name with the bumbling Starfish). The character is underused this time and has a disappointing dearth of memorable moments. One thing that Timmy and Peter strongly agreed on was a fondness for Barb (Regina Hall, Support The Girls), The Dutchmen’s underappreciated sidekick. As a big fan of Hall, I’m pleased to say that the three of us were on the same page there.

The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants is definitely a movie for kids and for die hard fans of the franchise. Parents aren’t likely to be overjoyed to sit through it, though anyone familiar with the show should have a pretty good idea of what to expect. I felt that this was sub par SpongeBob, much preferring the more recent entries The Sandy Cheeks Movie and Plankton: The Movie, but even if I didn’t love this one, I really love my nephews. In the end, the kids are why you’re going to this one, and they’ll be quite happy with it. —Patrick Gibbs, Timmy Gibbs and Peter Gibbs

Read more film reviews by Patrick Gibbs:
Film Review — Avatar: Fire and Ash
Slug Magazine Presents: 31 Days of Secondhand Givings