The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water

My assumption is people just say new spongebob sucks and automatically assume it sucks. Quite the contrary. They'd be pretty surprised to probably learn the original creator and writer came back to help make this movie. They used a lot of older humor and elements in general that made it feel like something from seasons 1-3. It was enjoyable to watch, and much better than I had expected.

There are a couple of factors that come into play when TV cartoon characters have their big screen appearances. The biggest one being that the cartoon became so popular, a movie needed to be made. Sometimes it also signals the end of the series. The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (2004) was originally creator's Stephen Hillenburg's finale to the TV series. However, after exceeding box office predictions, Spongebob was renewed for several seasons later. One would think after that showing would also warrant another big movie to be made soon after. Well it came,...surprisingly really late compared to how well received movies get a green lit sequel so quickly afterward. Sometimes, though the time is worth the wait and this can be said for Spongebob's 2nd big screen entry with some of the usual flaws (most obvious being continuity).

Like many other Spongebob episodes and the movie before this, Plankton is up to his old tricks again; attempting to steal Mr. Krabs' secret Krabby Patty formula. Except this time, there's more going on involving the secret formula than even Plankton knows. Out of nowhere, Krabs' secret recipe vanishes among the city of Bikini Bottom when a mysterious individual named Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas) enters the picture. With that, the city of Bikini Bottom descends into chaos, so Spongebob decides he needs to find a way of getting the recipe back in order to restore his hometown into a tranquil society. The writing headed by Glenn Berger and Jonathan Aibel who were also the brains behind Kung Fu Panda (2008) and Monsters Vs Aliens (2009) accomplished what most fans of the series should enjoy. And although Stephen Hillenburg is not directing this time, his right hand man Paul Tibbitt is.

As an overall presentation there aren't many issues with this production. One of the most notably different things about this movie is that it doesn't exactly stay in line with the previous story of the last film. It's really difficult whether to classify this is a sequel or not. It feels like more of a reboot (for those who are debating). Nonetheless this is a minor flub. All the memorable voice-actors from the TV show return once again to voice their undersea counterparts and that's always important. Antonio Banderas as Burger Beard was certainly an interesting choice only because who could've thought Banderas could play such a convincing pirate? He proved himself of that and for his age, he still gets around quite well (which was also proved in The Expendables 3 (2014)). The dialog also leads to number of funny moments, all of which each main character gets even screen time to make a funny. Many of which these moments break the 4th wall.

This also can be a weak point unfortunately in the screenplay because being silly is fun, but the comedy sometimes goes a bit overboard. What the first film has that this one doesn't is a sense of realism. Here, some scenes get a bit nonsensical to where it denies the universe that The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (2004) established. The reasons behind these frivolous events are explained, which is appreciated, but this is what detaches this entry from its last and what makes it questionable to whether it is a sequel or not. Then again, with these outlandish ideas come alternative animation visuals. For Spongebob's traditional animation sequences, the scenes are perhaps even more honed than the first entry; it looks crisp, clear and bright. Yet, what stands out even more is the live-action animation (also directed by Mike Mitchell, best known for directing Sky High (2005)). The character textures and 3D renderings look very well unified in their own right. Spongebob and friends almost look touchable and that's awesome.

Next in line with that are some very entertaining action sequences. This is more of the focus when the story hits its third act but it's worth the wait. Honestly for a Spongebob feature, seeing this much action never seemed like a possibility or interest the producers would ever want. Case in point, that was an incorrect assumption. A number of action sequences actually become quite inventive with how the conflict ensues. Well done. Phil Meheux's cinematography for the live-action scenes are also well constructed. Seeing that he was also the guy with the eye in The Mask of Zorro (1998),...which also had Antonio Banderas, seems only fitting. Much of the camera shots are well lit and wide enough to get a clear view of the scenery. John Debney, a composer who has previously scored multiple family comedy and action related films maintains his style by making the scenes appropriate where they need to be while including the Spongebob theme. Although there is one scene that doesn't belong to Debney which is where the film crew directly takes a snippet of Ennio Morricone's music from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). This is still fun though.

Spongebob's second big screen outing is rightfully made bigger and more profound. The animation is more spot on, the returning voice-actors / live-action performance from Banderas, action and comedy all work hand in hand to make a fun ride. Occasionally though, it does go out into left field a bit more than its predecessor.

Summary: This movie was so messed up... but I liked it anyway. 70/100 (B-)

Even though it's not even close to the awesomeness of the first movie, still a good movie. The animation was great and the jokes were funny enough. The whole audience was dying of laughter! There were a lot of strange and messed up moments in the movie, there was also a reference to "The Shining" and I was like: What the hell am I seeing? Anyway, this movie is anything but boring. I couldn't take my eyes of the screen, I was so entertained the whole running time. The first SpongeBob movie was already surreal and weird, this one... *sigh* has crossed the line.

The 3D was incredible, well done and eye-popping. There's a great action sequence near the end of the movie with the pirate involved (performed by Antonio Banderas), and it was so damn funny and fast-paced. On the downside, some repetitive jokes become tiresome as the running time goes, the above-water stuff was way too short and well... actually the whole movie was very short to me, I don't know why, this movie should be longer! Again, the whole above-water stuff that you can see in the trailer was actually 20% of the movie, seriously WTF, I wanted more.

I left the theater a bit unsatisfied. I felt like I just watched a movie that's 50 minutes long. Also, another of my issues was the ending, the songs in the ending were unnecessary and a little bit annoying. In addition, another issue was the villain. Antonio Banderas was great, but his character is not very well developed, he was a quite uninteresting villain. Leaving aside its flaws, I noticed one thing, the editing is really well done and even though it has some messed up moments the movie is never confusing because its premise is so short and easy to follow.

The editing makes the whole film more dynamic and easy to understand. So, in conclusion this SpongeBob movie is not even close to the 2004 film, but it has enough visuals and clever gags to satisfy the audience in general. The above-water sequences are so damn enjoyable, the 3D looks fantastic and there are a lot of moments in the movie that are so damn surreal and messed up! Think of an animated version of Interstellar. Also, I don't want to spoil it, but I'm just gonna say that first scene with the dolphin was so strange.

I'm pretty sure that a lot of people will dislike this film, mainly because of the ending, some annoying songs, the strangely uncomfortable moments and the shortness of the film. But to me, it is not a bad movie at all. I highly recommend it, especially if you're fan of the TV show. If you're going to see it, you must see it in 3D and on a huge screen. It is a pretty good spectacle. It is great that the movie took advantage of its 3D format, it looked great. Also, do not forget to see Squidward's dancing in the end credits, it will remind you to the old times. (B-)

Let me start off by saying, before I saw this movie, based on the trailers, my expectations were as low as they could possibly be. I was expecting this movie to be the nail in the coffin for the Spongebob franchise, and I was legitimately concerned that I would never see a good thing come from the series ever again. Boy was I wrong. Sponge Out of Water is an absolute TREAT for both old and new fans of the series alike, and the movie kept me entertained to the very end. The 2D animation is the best animation I have seen in a LONG time. I found every frame enjoyable, and it almost has a Ren and Stimpy like feel to it which made me appreciate it so much more. (If you ever watch/re-watch this movie, take a good look at the facial animations during the 2D parts, they're absolutely brilliant). Not only this, but the jokes and gags are hilarious, and only occasionally fall short, but when they do, they make sure to make up for it. (Listen for the "my leg!" recurring gag!). Also this movie is sure to leave you wondering "what will happen next?!" As you can never quite predict what the writers will throw out at you (others have compared this movie to an acid trip, and I don't want to spoil anything, but I found it a rather enjoyable one) The only thing I did not like was the "superpowers" part, (this was the part that turned me off in the first place) as I felt some of them tried "too hard" to make the audience laugh, and it just didn't feel like Spongebob. Thankfully this part only lasts about 20 minutes, and moves onto one of the greatest movie endings, tying it up all in a bow with a nice rap battle that came out of nowhere (Creators of Epic Rap Battles of History), and some interpretative dance from Squidward that parodies his famous dance moves from a previous episode. All in all, this movie would have been a 10/10 if Spongebob stayed anchored, and never had left the water. The live action visuals were impressive, but during those scenes, the comedy hit a dry spell until the last moments of the movie. If you're a long time fan of Spongebob, this is a great movie to relive your childhood a little bit more. (Hopefully the new season of the TV show will be just as good!) Go see this movie.

Spongebob Squarepants is one of the greatest animated television shows of all time. It sounds weird, but for some reason, it shaped the sense of humor of a generation and possibly one of the inspirations that helped exceed the imagination and creativity of many cartoon shows that came after. The show itself has been terrific in its first three seasons, but after its first feature film, it slowly loses its touch until every character becomes something else other than what they were once known for. This latest Spongebob film might be the end of its glory as it seemingly panders the audience into another lame Alvin and the Chipmunks/The Smurfs approach, but surprisingly that only becomes a marketing stunt, and it turns out that most of the movie is basically just like the show, but at its original form. It didn't need any grand or blockbuster type of plot to save the material, we just need to revisit the stuff that we truly loved about Spongebob.

Other than its creative animation and zany undersea world, Spongebob Squarepants has always been known for its richly established characters and unique sense of humor. I haven't seen the show in a while, specifically the newer episodes, but I do remember how the ones that followed season four have become paler incarnations of the show. This feature film, while stuck in posing as a typical family movie fare, is actually meant to stay loyal to what really defines this show. The characters have gone back to their classic personalities (Spongebob can now be reasonable again than just a complete goofball) and the humor is smartly priceless in an ultimately unhinged way. The film doesn't offer anymore bigger plot than retrieving the Krabby Patty secret formula, it's all about fooling at the audiences as it messes with the logic and their senses, the Spongebob way, of course.

The mix of animation and live-action is definitely never a stranger to Spongebob, but its involvement is often taken as a joke. Here, it's supposed to be its central idea. Though, it takes so long for them to get out of the water, in spite of its title, but when they do, it still sticks to its own surreal, extremely ludicrous style. But their welcoming antics up there felt forced, in comparison. The 3D stuff really exists to attract the viewers who thinks it's gonna be a cute adventure with the characters as silly superheroes, but it's mostly just a small payoff to those who have that expectation. It kind of cheats them, otherwise it's a cool trick for instead luring them to what makes this material so enjoyable. But we don't have to underestimate this approach too much, because apparently it's still pretty fun when they are in the real world, giving the humans some hilarious reactions, like the one who's wondering if the Krabby Patty he's eating is hallucinogenic after encountering the gang as superheroes.

As feature film goes, it doesn't go beyond bombastic, if it does then it's all about the weirdness instead of epic proportions. This is basically just like a new episode on a length of an actual movie. And the cast has always been great no matter what. Out of all the cartoons Tom Kenny has been, Spongebob will always be his best and he once again brings the lovable charm to the character. While Antonio Banderas makes a fun turn as the villain, but his moments are the one where he interacts to talking seagulls which amazingly works for this character.

The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water is what the fans deserve. Not sure how the newcomers would exactly react to it, but this movie fully represents the true spirit of the show. It would be a brilliant surprise to the ones who missed this great side of Spongebob. It didn't need any deeper sentiments or darkness (unless we're referring to its twisted humor, because it gets a little close to that.) Sure it's not the best episode ever either, but it has so many elements that remind us why we loved this show in the first place. The out-of-water scenes weren't as bad as many fans were worried about, it's just some randomly crazy addition to an already fun ride. Overall, it's more nostalgic than groundbreaking, I do hope this movie would be the salvation of this show. It won't change anyone's life or anything, we just like Spongebob to be Spongebob again and that's already given too much to a fan like me who grew up with the cartoon.