Now that the Special Effects movie marathon is finished let's go back to the realm of movies that are predominately animated. Well that was the plan anyway, but then I remembered that there was a large portion of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out Of Water that was in live action. I did not anticipate this being the bridge movie between the Special Effects movies and the regular animated movies, but I guess it worked out, I must have more Gladstone luck than I thought. As a bonus, since it is still July I figured I'd treat myself to a SpongeBob movie, because while it is no longer my birthday, it is still my Birth month, so I'm gonna watch something SpongeBob.
I actually remember the first time I watched this movie, it was on Netflix, and I enjoyed fine, but I remember all of the advertising focused on the fact that the SpongeGang would be on dry land and become superheroes. You can imagine this is one of the reasons I try not to watch trailers because I was a touch disappointed when I learned that only the last third of the movie took place on dry land. However, seven or so years can change a movie, and since we're going to be able to remove it from the expectations of the trailer, I think it is only fair to ask if this movie actually holds up.
The plot does not follow from the first movie, I think the closest thing to a direct sequel we got to the first movie was the episode Krabby Road, where Plankton tricks SpongeBob into forming a rock band. Side note, I literally JUST got that the title is a reference to Abbey Road, I am an idiot. Continuity in SpongeBob is hit or miss anyway, so if it isn't continuing from the first movie, then what direction are they going for the plot? They go in a rather interesting direction. While Plankton is making another attempt to steal the Krabby Patty Secret Formula, it just vanishes right before his and SpongeBob's eyes, so with Bikini Bottom in a Mad Max apocalypse, SpongeBob and Plankton must team up to find the formula. The interesting thing is that while this is happening, a pirate named Burger Beard is narrating the story and uses a magic book to steal the formula himself and become a successful food truck entrepreneur. I do realize that the summary leaves out how and why the gang becomes superheroes, but I would actually say that the superhero part is one of my big issue with the plot.
Not that the story is terrible, heaven knows I've watched worse, but like with the first one there are somethings that don't add up when you look at them with a critical lens, like for example, Sandy sees a book page land on her treedome, and then goes on to think that there are sandwich gods who want a sacrifice. It does lead to some funny jokes, but shouldn't Sandy know what a book page is? Wouldn't she try to find out what kind of book it came from? Wouldn't she try to do anything science-y? You know, because she is a scientist. I also think the movie shot itself in the foot by advertising the superhero angle of the movie since it really isn't a superhero movie, they just use a page from the book to become superheroes, which I feel would have been better if the movie built up to that and made it a reveal rather than highlight this aspect. On top of that, I don't know if they were aiming for a moral or a joke moral, but I don't think they pulled either off. I guess they were aiming for like a joke moral or a deconstruction of this moral, but I didn't really find it amusing. Still, I don't believe we were meant to take this plot seriously, it just seems like a vehicle for jokes and the superhero climax.
As a comedy, honestly I think this movie may be better than the first. There are so many different kinds of jokes that range from the "Meh, that was kind of amusing" to the "Now that was hilarious". I also loved a lot of the background jokes, like in the Chum Bucket during the apocalypse there is an iron maiden in the shape of Plankton's computer wife Karen. Of course, the plot allowed the writers to set up some really good jokes, including going into SpongeBob's mind, a bunch of fun meta gags, and some really amusing scenarios. I will say that not every joke lands, I don't think any of them were, and I apologize for the use of the overused term, cringey, but some of them were just mediocre. There are jokes in here that are definitely more for the children, the movie even ends with a Rap Battle, because kids like Epic Rap Battles of History, those guys even make a cameo in the film. That being said, I can't think of a joke that just fell dead on arrival, even the ones I wasn't fond of I know are up some people's alley. I think this movie is better as a comedy than the first one because the first one wasn't too focused on just telling joke after joke, it's kind of like the Ice Age movies in a way (Will I ever stop comparing movies to those?) where the first one had a solid mix of comedic and serious moments where the sequel is more focused on telling jokes.
Character wise, I mean it's the characters we all know and love in an apocalypse, as superheroes, and just as they are. For whatever reason Sandy wasn't given a lot to do in the first movie, but she has a more prominent role in this movie. I guess for new characters we have Burger Beard, played by Antonio Banderas, whom I did not immediately recognize. He is an amusing one off villain, would have loved to see him and Patchy interact, but I guess that suit was deep in storage somewhere. Otherwise, we get some more minor-ish characters who do have a good sized role in the story, and were fun enough characters, but overall the movie does keep its focus where it should be, on SpongeBob.
More interesting is the animation, and I don't just mean the 2D animation, though it was really good, maybe a little bit better than the first one, but I also want to talk about the live action mixing. After watching four movies that tried to blend animation with live action in some way, I have to say, I feel like the intentionally cartoony CG was a mixed bag. On the one hand, it did mean that the characters still looked like the characters, even if they were in a different medium, but on the other hand, when the CG character and the live action character had to interact, it looked fake. That being said, the CG looked WAY better than the third movie, Sponge On The Run, which just didn't look right to me, I still can't place my finger on it, but looking at two examples side by side, I just prefer the more cartoony style they went with for this movie.
So, my thoughts seem all over the place here don't they? Well, yeah, if this were any other movie I probably would be harsher, but what does save this movie is the comedic writing. On top of that the animation is still fun for a very large majority of the film, the voice acting is still excellent, and the plot is a bit iffy, but it does deliver fun scenarios for jokes so I guess it serves its purpose. This movie is fun, and I feel like that is all it wanted to be, could it be smarter? More emotional? Probably, but I don't think that was the kind of movie they were making. This is the perfect example of a movie you just shut your brain off and let it play, sure you can put a lot of thought into it, I mean hey it's my job to, but there are movies out there where the best way to enjoy them is simply to enjoy them. Maybe that isn't your kind of movie, maybe you would rather have a Little Prince or Felidae where you can analyze the symbolism, the themes and messages, the imagery and characters, hey I liked those films to, but sometimes it is just nice to watch a movie that is meant to be enjoyed. Flaws and all, I had a good time, and I think you will too.
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