The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run Review
Originally set for a theatrical release earlier this year, the third film in the SpongeBob Squarepants series has sailed over exclusively to Netflix. While the prospect of returning to the late Stephen Hillenburg’s colourful and familiar undersea creation of Bikini Bottom and it’s wacky residents did fill me with some joy, does this instalment live up to the previously bizarre Sponge Out of Water (2015) and the fun theatrical debut The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)?
SpongeBob and Gary (both voiced by Tom Kenny)
In a premise that already feels too similar to previous episodes of the television series, SpongeBob’s pet snail Gary gets kidnapped by Plankton and sent to King Poseidon in The Lost City of Atlantic City. SpongeBob and his best friend Patrick set off on a rescue mission to retrieve the beloved pet and while they’re away, we see just how much Mr. Krabs, Sandy and even the grumpy neighbour Squidward miss their friend in his absence. Despite the simple and familiar storyline and it’s sub plot with the supporting cast, it does repeat on a lot of already familiar ground and apart from trying to be funny and wacky for children, the story just felt unimaginative and boring compared to the previous films that did at least try to do some new things with the characters.
But one thing that does need to be mentioned is how they were going to incorporate Kamp Koral, the new up-coming spin-off series in the Nickelodeon franchise, into the film and it’s a bit of a mixed bag. While the new location of the underwater summer camp is filled with bright colours and a wide variety of sets filled with the younger and cuter versions of the characters we all know and love, these scenes feel forced in and under-utilised after the initial flashback scene where SpongeBob meets Gary. It was used well enough as it added to the emotional driving force of the film, but then the returning flashback scenes just don’t naturally fit and feel like the advertisement that some fans may have been concerned it would be.
SpongeBob and Gary at Kamp Koral
As for the animation, the shift to computer animation is a welcome one as the characters’ designs work just as well in a three dimensional space as they do in their more familiar and traditional hand drawn roots. Being able to see realistic fur on Sandy and the metallic sheen in Mr. Krab’s office walls are really nice touches while everyone else remains faithfully the same, even with their new smooth coat of paint.
While it may not stand up to the quality expected from major studios like Disney and Pixar, it does do a decent enough job to look decent enough while also taking full force of the transformative cartoonish moments we expect from these cast of characters. The animation even has an almost stop-motion feel to it at times and the artistic direction they went with does make the colourful world feel more playful and one of the more visually unique from this year’s releases.
SpongeBob and Patrick in The Lost City of Atlantic City
The animation may have been a welcome change to the over twenty year old series, but unfortunately the film’s approach to the story just didn’t feel as fresh as it could have been. For me, it’s overall the weakest out of the SpongeBob Squarepants films to date.
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run is now available on Netflix UK.