Sunday, April 5, 2015

Review of THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SPONGE OUT OF WATER: Wacky but Wanting

April 5, 2015



The first SpongeBob Movie (2004) was the first time I was formally introduced to the zany undersea world of SpongeBob Squarepants and his crazy friends. The complex plot recounted SpongeBob and Patrick accepting a mission to recover King Neptune's lost crown, while Plankton was hatching a diabolical mind-control plot to take over all of Bikini Bottom. It featured guest voices from Alec Baldwin (as the hitman Dennis) and Scarlett Johansson (as the cute Princess Mindy), and a hilarious cameo by David Hasselhoff (as himself). I loved it as much as my kids did for its quirky sense of humor and memorable one-liners. We would watch it over and over again on home video.

It was with so much anticipation that we watched "Sponge Out of Water," only the second SpongeBob movie for cinematic release in 10 years. Alas, I think we may have set our bar of expectation too high. My kids and I were rather disappointed with how this one turned out.

A pirate named Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas) reads a story written in a magically self-fulfilling book to his seagull audience. It was about the mysterious disappearance of the Secret Formula of the Krabby Patty that caused Bikini Bottom falls into wild apocalyptic disarray. Once the gang discovered the magic that made the formula vanish, SpongeBob and friends use it to launch a super-powered Avengers-like attack to recover that precious piece of paper and restore their beloved Bikini Bottom back to normal.

The trademark SpongeBob sense of wacky silly humor is still there and all, but I cannot help but compare this film with the first film and feel let down. For me, the problem is the very simplistic plot that was stretched out beyond its reasonable limit. Several side plots were employed to prolong the events, like time-traveling via a photo-booth and meeting Bubble the cosmic dolphin, which did not really lead anywhere. The funny parts only elicited smiles and snickers from us, not all-out guffaws we had with the first one. The superhero personas of the Bikini Bottom crew, which was the climactic fun highlight of this sequel, had too short of a screen appearance. The live actor guest star Antonio Banderas was no David Hasselhoff when it comes to self-deprecating humor. 

Overall, it was still a good time in the movie house for the whole family. I just wished the ten years that passed between the first movie and this sequel could have given creator Stephen Hillenburg and director Paul Tibbitt to come up with an original story with more sophisticated plotting, rather than this one with a conveniently easy "magical" device that lazily drove it towards the happy ending we all expect. 5/10.



23 comments:

  1. Ok, honestly I am a Spongebob fan. I know almost every episode and I love to watch it with my daughter. However, I have been very hesitant to see this movie in theaters. I mean, really? Spongebob? I think of it more as a "bored-at-home" type of thing. Now that I've read this, though, I'm seriously thinking about it. You did say you would watch it over and over, so if it's that good I could give it a chance. Thanks for the review!

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    1. The one I said I could watch over and over was the first SpongeBob film 10 years ago. That was the real gem. This one is still quite fun, but not at par with the high standards of the first film, in my opinion.

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  2. excited to watch this!!. i'm lowering my expectations now because of the 5/10 rating you gave.. but overall, i think it's still a feel good movie worth watching in the movies right?

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    1. If you love SpongeBob, this is still worth watching in the theaters. I just gave this one an average score because in comparison the first film was just SO good!

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  3. The good thing about watching cartoons and movies like Spongebob is that it's light on the mind and lots of fun. I'll try to find time for this one.

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  4. My tuition kid was telling me about this, and I was telling her there's No way I'm paying to watch this!

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  5. I love Spongebob but the chances of great movie sequels are rather slim. The first one is always the best. Not really thinking about watching this one. Thanks for the review.

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  6. So many animation movie lately. Not a fan of Spongebob though. Nice review!

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  7. I am a big fan of spongebob after i read your review I am not sure should I go for the movie or not. Still thinking about this. By the way, thanks for your honest opinion.

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  8. My daughter is big fan of SpongeBob. I will surely watch this movie.

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  9. I wanna watch this! Sponge bob and Patrick is the best team :) I love 'em! They make my morning extra fun.

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  10. I have watched almost all Spongebob episodes with my kids since it first came out, but admittedly I’ve never attempted to watch the movie. One of these days perhaps I’ll try viewing it with them.

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  11. My friend watched this yesterday and she said it was a lot of fun especially for kids who were all laughing inside the cinema. :) Antonio Bandera is such a cool guy for doing this movie!

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  12. This is wonderful and thanks for sharing it ! My son is a big fan of spongebob so I am sure we are going to watch it.

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  13. I watched Spongebob with my daughter last week and I enjoyed it. Cant forget the TEAMWORK or TMwork as Plankton pronounced it. And yes, Antonio Banderas as the pirate is so awesome

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  14. An animated cartoon is funny and entertaining. It gives a touch of one's imagination that inspired movie goers to imagine and create. I am not a SpongeBob fanatic, but my two girls love him so much specially Sandy.

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  15. I've seen the trailer in the cinemas and I find it cute. However, because I'm no longer into cartoon movies, I don't think I'd want to spend my cinema ticket for this one. Maybe if I have a younger cousin with me, then maybe I would.

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  16. I am not a fans of spongebob but I do like watching it before i went to school years ago. Thanks for the review, but I don't think I will watch it in the cinema. Just not my type of film. nice review btw.

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  17. Me and my apo have seen the trailer of this film, and this early he is begging me to bring to a movie house to watch this film. Have seen the first film with my apo's mother .. Ha,ha,ha... how time flies. But We will see this one only because of Antonio Banderas.

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  18. I guess you can't really expect anything too satisfying from the premise of SpongeBob but if I were younger I'd probably watch it too! :D

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  19. I love SpongeBob so I was hoping this would get a better review. It's all cool. Kids will still see it.

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  20. Looking forward on watching this on big screen with the kids. Thank you for the review

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  21. I'm actually not a spongebob fan, but because of all the hype, I might actually watch it. Your review is a bit discouraging though.

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