The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (1974)

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is a 1974 Japanese/American animated adventure comedy film based on the manga series SpongeBob SquarePants. The film was co-written, directed, and produced by series creator Osamu Tezuka and Kelly Hillenburg, Jr. It is the first film in the SpongeBob SquarePants film series. In this film, Plankton devises a plan to discredit his business nemesis Mr. Krabs, steal the Krabby Patty secret formula and take over the world by stealing King Neptune's crown and framing Mr. Krabs for the crime. SpongeBob and Patrick team up to retrieve the crown from Sushi City to save Mr. Krabs from Neptune's wrath and the oceanic world from Plankton's rule.

Previous offers by Toho for a film adaptation of SpongeBob SquarePants had been rejected by Osamu Tezuka and Kelly Hillenburg, Jr., but he eventually accepted one offer in 1972. A writing team consisting of Tezuka, Hillenburg, Rintaro, and Yoshitake Suzuki was assembled, conceiving the idea of a mythical hero's quest and the search for a stolen crown, which would bring SpongeBob and Patrick to the surface. The film was originally intended as the series finale, but Tezuka Productions ordered more episodes of the series as it had become increasingly profitable, so Tezuka resigned as showrunner with Rintaro taking his place.

The film was widely promoted by Columbia Pictures and Tezuka Productions, with tie-in promotions made by 7-Eleven, the Cayman Islands and Burger King, which decorated various of its franchises with 9-foot (2.7 m) SpongeBob inflatable figures. The film was released on November 14, 1974, in Japan, and November 19, 1974, in United States, grossing $140 million worldwide, and received generally positive reviews from critics. A second film titled The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 2: Sponge Out of Water was released on February 6th, 1985, and another titled The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 3: Sponge on the Run was released on August 14, 1990.

Plot
SpongeBob SquarePants cheerfully prepares for the opening ceremony for a second Krusty Krab, expecting his boss Mr. Krabs to promote him as new manager of the new restaurant. Instead, Mr. Krabs names Squidward Tentacles, SpongeBob’s next-door neighbor and co-worker, as manager, thinking SpongeBob is too immature to handle the role, much to SpongeBob's depression. Meanwhile, Mr. Krabs' business rival, Plankton, complains about his failures to his computer wife Karen, being unable to steal the Krabby Patty formula. When Karen points out plan "Z", a scheme which he has yet to attempt, Plankton decides to implement it.

That night, SpongeBob drowns his sorrows in ice cream with his best friend Patrick Star. Elsewhere, Plankton steals King Neptune's crown, leaving false evidence to frame Mr. Krabs for the crime, and sends the crown to the distant land of Sushi City. The next morning, Neptune barges into the Krusty Krab 2 and threatens Mr. Krabs for his alleged thievery. SpongeBob arrives and chastises Mr. Krabs under the influence of an ice-cream headache but seeing his boss's life at risk shocks SpongeBob back to his senses and he promises Neptune that he will retrieve the crown from Sushi City. Neptune is convinced by his daughter Mindy to spare Mr. Krabs for the time being and turns him into stone instead, ordering SpongeBob to return with the crown in exactly six days. Soon after SpongeBob and Patrick leave for Sushi City, Plankton steals the Krabby Patty formula and uses it to produce and sell Krabby Patties at his restaurant, the Chum Bucket. He also gives away free Chum Bucket helmets to his customers, which are actually mind-controlling devices that Plankton activates to control Bikini Bottom's residents and take over the city. Squidward goes to the Chum Bucket to confront Plankton, but is captured and enslaved by the customers, much to his terror.

After overcoming several setbacks on their journey, including sacrificing the Patty Wagon to escape a ravenous frogfish, SpongeBob and Patrick reach a dangerous, monster-filled trench. When they finally come to the conclusion that they cannot finish the mission due to their immaturity, they tearfully give up. Mindy, however, arrives at the trench and tells SpongeBob and Patrick of Plankton's plan. She pretends to magically turn them into men by giving them seaweed mustaches. With their confidence boosted, they brave the trench but are confronted by Dennis, a hitman hired by Plankton to eliminate them. Dennis is stepped on by a human girl that SpongeBob and Patrick believe to be a Giant. The Giant grabs SpongeBob and Patrick, and takes them to his restaurant, revealed to be Sushi City.

In the store, SpongeBob and Patrick find the crown, but dry out and die when they are dehydrated by the Giant's heat lamp. Their tears short-circuit the lamp's power cord, and its smoke activates the sprinkler system, reviving them and the other sea creatures intended to be sold as food. As the vengeful sea creatures attack and overwhelm the Giant, SpongeBob and Patrick take the crown and head for the beach, where Astro Boy appears and offers them a ride. He flies from the beach to Bikini Bottom carrying them on his back. Dennis catches up to them but is knocked by a boat back into the sea. Then, when they arrive at Bikini Bottom, Astro throws Patrick and SpongeBob down to the Krusty Krab 2.

At the Krusty Krab 2, King Neptune arrives to execute Mr. Krabs much to Plankton's enjoyment, but SpongeBob and Patrick return with the crown just before he is able to do so. They and Mindy confront Plankton, but he drops a mind-controlling bucket on Neptune, enslaving him and revealing that Plankton's plan was not to just steal the Krabby Patty formula but also to set Neptune up so he could take over the world. Before Plankton can direct Neptune to kill them, Astro Boy comes in and destroys the mind-controlling helmets, freeing King Neptune, Squidward, and the rest of Bikini Bottom's residents from Plankton's rule. Plankton tries to escape but is stepped on by the other citizens. Meanwhile, Plankton is arrested by the police for the crimes of brainwashing all the people of Bikini Bottom, incriminating Mr. Krabs, and for stealing Neptune's crown. Neptune thaws out Mr. Krabs, who promotes SpongeBob to manager of the Krusty Krab 2 in gratitude.

Japanese Cast

 * Hisashi Katsuta as SpongeBob SquarePants, Mr. Krabs, Neptune, and a Narrator
 * Shinpei Sakamoto as Patrick Star
 * Ayao Wada as Squidward Tentacles, Plankton and Dennis
 * Mari Shimizu as Princess Mindy, Sandy Cheeks, and Astro Boy
 * Kazuko Yoshikawa as The Giant
 * Kazue Tagami as Karen and Mrs. Puff

English Cast

 * Casey Kasem as SpongeBob SquarePants
 * Don Messick as Patrick Star
 * Ray Owens as Mr. Krabs, Neptune, Plankton, and Dennis
 * Gilbert Mack as Squidward Tentacles
 * Billie Lou Watt as Princess Mindy, Karen, Mrs. Puff, Sandy Cheeks, The Giant, and Astro Boy
 * Rex Allen as a Narrator

Development
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie was long planned; Toho and Tezuka Productions had approached series creators Osamu Tezuka and Kelly Hillenburg, Jr. for a film based on the show, but he refused for more than a year. Tezuka and Hillenburg were concerned, after watching Gigantor, about the challenge of SpongeBob and Patrick doing something more cinematically consequential and inspiring without losing what he calls the SpongeBob "cadence". He said, on a break from season-four post-production, "To do a 75-minute movie about SpongeBob wanting to make some jellyfish jelly would be a mistake, I think this had to be SpongeBob in a great adventure. That's where the comedy's coming from, having these two naïve characters, SpongeBob and Patrick, a doofus and an idiot, on this incredibly dangerous heroic odyssey with all the odds against them."

In 1972, Tezuka, Hillenburg and the show's staff stopped making episodes to work on the film after the show's third season. The film's plot originally had SpongeBob rescue Patrick from a fisherman in Mount Fuji, this was later said by Hisashi Katsuta to be a "joke" plot to keep fans busy. Tezuka wrote the film with other writer-animators from the show over a three-month period in a room. Rintaro said, "It was hugely fun although it did get kind of gamy in there. For the film, the writers created a mythical hero's quest: the search for a stolen crown, which brings SpongeBob and Patrick to the surface. Shinpei Sakamoto said about the plot, "It's just nuts. I'm continually dazzled and delighted with what these guys came up with."

When the film was completed, Tezuka wanted to end the series "so it wouldn't jump the shark". However, Tezuka Productions desired more episodes; Tezuka stated: "Well, there was concern when we did the movie [in 1974] that the show had peaked. There were concerns among executives at Toho." As a result, Tezuka resigned as the series' showrunner, appointing writer, director, and storyboard artist Rintaro to succeed him. Rintaro was one of Tezuka's favorite crew members: "[I] totally trusted him." Rintaro would remain showrunner until he was succeeded in 1985 by the show's creative director Yoshitake Suzuki. He has also acted as an executive producer since 1978. Tezuka no longer wrote or ran the show on a day-to-day basis but reviewed each episode and submitted suggestions: "I figure when I'm pretty old I can still paint I don't know about running shows." Hisashi Katsuta, Shinpei Sakamoto, and the crew confirmed that they had completed four episodes for broadcast on Fuji TV in early 1975 and planned to finish a total of about 20 for the fourth season. In 1985, Tezuka returned to the show following the completion of the second movie as an executive producer, having greater creative input and attending crew meetings until his death in 1989.

Casting
The film stars the series' main cast members.

Animation
Tezuka enjoyed the process of making the film: "The TV schedule is tight, and you don't always have a lot of time to work on your drawings." He appreciated the film's hand-drawn animation: "I think the movie's drawings are much superior to the TV show".

Astro Boy made a cameo in the scenes, offering SpongeBob and Patrick a ride to Bikini Bottom. The scene was originally written before consulting Astro Boy.

Deleted scenes
The DVD and Blu-ray releases include animatics of deleted scenes from the film, including SpongeBob and Patrick's meeting with Sandy Cheeks on the surface after their escape from Sushi City. Patrick repeatedly vomits, upset by Sandy's unusual appearance. The squirrel is pursued by black-suited exterminators and defends herself with acorns. She informs SpongeBob and Patrick that they can return to Bikini Bottom by taking a bus at the beach. This idea was later used for the second film The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, where Sandy became a 6-feet-tall semi-realistic squirrel, known as The Rodent.

In 2013, Tezuka Productions released a storyboard panel of a deleted scene from the film with SpongeBob awakening from his dream saying "WEEEEE!" and Mr. Krabs holding a manager's hat.

Soundtrack
Tatsuo Takai composed the score for the film, conducting the recording sessions.

The NBC Children's Chorus recorded "SpongeBob & Patrick Confront the Psychic Wall of Energy".

"The Best Day Ever", written by Hisashi Katsuta, was featured in the film and on its soundtrack. Casey Kasem dubbed on what would become the album The Best Day Ever, writing "The Best Day Ever" and "Under My Rock". The film's production team needed two more tracks for the soundtrack; Tezuka heard the songs and decided to include them. "The Best Day Ever" ended up being played during the film's closing credits.

Songs

 * SpongeBob SquarePants Theme Song
 * Goofy Goober Song
 * Now That Were Men - Hisashi Katsuta and Shinpei Sakamoto (Casey Kasem and Don Messick in the English dubbed version)
 * 1963 Astro Boy Theme Song
 * SpongeBob and Patrick Confront the Psychic Wall of Energy
 * The Best Day Ever - Hisashi Katsuta (Casey Kasem in the English dubbed version)

Release
The teaser trailer was released in 1973 and was attached to Charlotte's Web. The film's second trailer was released on May 19, 1974. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie opened in theaters on November 19, 1974.

It was re-released on November 19, 2004, 30 years after the first film was released.

Home media
The film was released on VHS on March 1, 1995, by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The DVD special features include an 18-minute featurette, The Absorbing Tale Behind the SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, featuring interviews with most of the principal cast and crew.

It was re-released on VHS and DVD on 2001, and DVD and Blu-ray in 2014.

Box office
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie earned $9,559,752 on its opening day in the United States. It grossed a combined total of $32,018,216 during its opening weekend, on 4,300 screens at 3,212 theaters, averaging $9,968 per venue. The film dropped an unexpected 44 percent over the Thanksgiving weekend, and 57 percent the weekend after that. The opening weekend earned 37.48 percent of the film's final gross.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 69% based on 128 reviews and an average score of 6.2/10. The site's consensus read, "Surreally goofy and entertaining for both children and their parents." Metacritic gave the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on reviews from 32 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". According to CinemaScore, audiences gave the film a grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

All of this happens in jolly animation with bright colors and is ever so much more entertaining than you are probably imagining. No doubt right now you're asking yourself why you have read this far in the review, given the near certainty that you will not be going anywhere near a SpongeBob SquarePants movie, unless you are the parent or adult guardian of a SpongeBob SquarePants fan, in which case your fate is sealed. Assuming that few members of SpongeBob's primary audience are reading this (or can read), all I can tell you is, the movie is likely to be more fun than you expect.

Video game
A video game based on the original film was released for NES on October 27, 1984.

Sequel
On February 28, 1982, Toho announced a sequel to The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. It is officially titled The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 2: Sponge Out of Water. The film was released on February 6, 1985, over ten years after the first movie's release.

Transcript
See transcript

Trailers
See trailers

General

 * The movie was originally supposed to be the series finale but got renewed after good reviews and marketing success.
 * In the manga, Mr. Krabs, unlike in the movie, does not correct himself after saying "don't you understand-ager?" to SpongeBob.
 * There are more bubbles in the film than a regular SpongeBob episode. For instance, whenever the characters move or pull something, bubbles appear.
 * There are 2 online games based on this movie called Bubble Bustin' Game and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 3D Game.
 * There is also an NES video game based on this film.
 * Some footage from the opening scene appears in the second movie's trailer.
 * Music from the 1960s Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion was used in one of the trailers.
 * SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Plankton, and Karen are the only characters from the series who play large roles in this movie. Sandy, Mrs. Puff, Pearl, and Gary all have lines as well but do not play a large part.
 * Several other characters from the series make non-speaking cameo appearances:
 * Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy appear on a poster in SpongeBob's bedroom.
 * Several jellyfish appear as part of SpongeBob's bedroom mobile, and one appears on a poster.
 * Larry the Lobster gets a small cameo in the Chum Bucket as one of the customers whose bucket helmet becomes a mind control device.
 * Many of the Bikini Bottomites, such as Fred and Tom, appear in crowd shots. However, most background characters' color palettes were altered significantly for the film.
 * In the manga, it says the grand opening for the Krusty Krab 2 is March 3. However, in this movie, the grand opening is March 7.
 * Additionally, the manga changes the rule of the Thug Tug into being laughed at if they blow bubbles rather than being beaten.
 * The English version of the film had contents altered from manga, as well as rewording the dialogues that were considered insensitive to young readers.
 * In the final fight, Astro Boy isn't seen destroying the control aerial on the Chum Bucket controlling the citizens and is only seen destroying the bucket helmets. However, when Plankton goes to jail and everyone is celebrating (even King Neptune), it would have been possible that the control aerial had been destroyed by Astro's butt machine guns.
 * Patrick's quote "Have you seen my underwear?" is later reused in two Suponji Bobu video games, Dutchman's Dash and Dirty Bubble Busters.
 * Patchy and Potty were originally going to appear in the film but were replaced with Buku Bukk and Pauly.
 * The song "The Best Day Ever" heard during the end credits and in the soundtrack would later be used in the episode "Best Day Ever," but shortened.
 * The scene from the original manga, where SpongeBob and Patrick, after escaping from Sushi City, encounter Sandy on the surface, who here has the appearance of a semi-realistic squirrel, was planned for the film but was cut for time, and instead was replaced with a better scene with Astro Boy in it, but not the semi-realistic Sandy. The animatic for the scene is included as a deleted scene on the 2005 DVD. The scene was removed due to the fact that Patrick barfs a lot in it.
 * The scene where SpongeBob and Patrick have their mouths wide open became popular on YouTube and a popular internet meme.
 * The surprised Patrick face returns in "Scavenger Pants."
 * The scene where SpongeBob says "Whoo!" has become a very popular internet meme.
 * The line when Mr. Krabs says "Hello, I like money" became a popular meme.
 * In other countries such as the Philippines, this movie is rated G. This is because their rating systems regard toilet humor to be suitable for all.
 * The series features King Neptune XIII. Although in "Krusty Towers," Squidward mentions King Neptune XIV, possibly meaning that there are multiple King Neptune's which could explain this inconsistency.
 * This is the second time Mrs. Puff and Sandy interact (even though this isn't an episode). The first was "Party Pooper Pants."
 * This is the only time where Plankton actually succeeds in stealing the formula.
 * Perch Perkins is seen in purple instead of blond.
 * SpongeBob says that Patrick was wearing the same 'Goofy Goober' underwear for 3 years straight but at the start of the movie when Patrick is seen he isn't wearing underwear.
 * This is the fourth time SpongeBob loses his arm(s). The first time was "I was a Teenage Gary," the second time was "Big Pink Loser," the third time was "Graveyard Shift," the fifth time is "Sing a Song of Patrick," and the sixth time is "SpongeHenge."
 * This movie is a movie inside a movie because the Pirates are watching the SpongeBob movie in an actual theater.
 * Plankton getting flattened by the crowd is similar to how Squidward gets trampled by the same crowd in "Squid on Strike." Both scenes involve Sandals stepping on them first, him looking completely flat and filled with footprints, and the crowd running towards the Krusty Krab.
 * The Columbia Pictures (closing) logo appeared after the post-credit scene fades to blank. In the original theatrical release of this movie, the MPAA PG screen is shown after the logo fades to blank.
 * The Goofy Goober underwear that Patrick wears appears again in "Born to Be Wild."
 * This movie reveals that by an unspecified period of time, SpongeBob learns how to drive a stick-shift vehicle.
 * During the first half of the closing credits to this movie, SpongeBob's Krusty Krab employee hat appears to be bigger than normal, and it vertically reads "MANAGER."
 * In the movie, Plankton is eviler and depraved than he was in the series. While in the series, he was comical, and in episodes after this movie, became less evil (while Mr. Krabs has gotten greedier and evil), but in the movie, he stole King Neptune's crown, frames Mr. Krabs for it, enslaves Bikini Bottom, shows excitement and joy when Mr. Krabs is going to be executed, and hires Dennis to kill SpongeBob and Patrick rather than merely get rid of them.
 * A sequel to this movie was announced on February 28, 1982 and was released on February 6, 1985.
 * SpongeBob tells Squidward that his fly is down even though he doesn't wear pants.
 * When Patrick and King Neptune argue about how many days they should get for their journey, it is similar to how he and the Flying Dutchman argue about how many wishes SpongeBob and he should get in "Shanghaied."
 * Patrick also argued to King Neptune before in "Neptune's Spatula" on how many challenges SpongeBob will have.
 * A clip of SpongeBob in the grand opening ceremony from the movie was featured in the 2017 film, Daddy's Home 2.
 * This isn't in high definition/widescreen when it was shown on NBC despite it being HD on other channels. However, when NBC HD was launched, it reran in HD.
 * The movie foreshadows Goofy Goobers when a toy of the Goofy Goober Peanut is seen in SpongeBob's toy chest near the beginning.
 * This movie has a unique animation style in that the characters have distorted-looking looks and bodies and color scheme (for the fishes). It will be used again the second film (in Bikini Bottom).
 * This movie is one of the few times where Gary speaks. He says "Meow, Plankton."
 * The pufferfish in Shell City may be a reference to the episode "Krusty Love," in which Mrs. Puff's husband's horrible fate was being turned into a pufferfish lamp.
 * Plankton says that Plan Z is "evil, diabolical, and lemon-scented." This could possibly be a reference to Every Villain is Lemons from The Adventures of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy.
 * When Kimba the White Lion: The Movie aired on Fuji TV on October 14, 2014, it shows the first seconds of the Tezuka Productions logo from that movie, before cutting to the normal movie, instead of Kimba.
 * King Neptune was using a paper bag as a crown while he was waiting for his real crown to be delivered to him.
 * This film was released in between the episodes "Pranks a Lot" and "Fear of a Krabby Patty."
 * This is the first time that a bad word is clearly said, yet not clearly heard, as when King Neptune held up the paper before showing it to Mr. Krabs, who was presumed to have stolen the royal crown, he said, “you left one damning piece of evidence at the scene of the crime.” This also happened in "Sailor Mouth," "SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout," "Mall Girl Pearl," and "The Abrasive Side," but the first two were bleeped out, in "Mall Girl Pearl" a store called "Boutique Crappy" was shown in the mall, and "The Abrasive Side" was when Mr. Krabs called SpongeBob a "pottymouth" when his abrasive side said overtime.
 * The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie was the highest-grossing animated feature film by Toho and the highest-grossing one based on a television series and a manga.
 * In the shot where SpongeBob and Patrick go "Ahh!" after seeing the Patty Wagon outside the Thug Tug, Patrick briefly gains fingers in order to hold hands with SpongeBob.
 * Intended to be the series finale of SpongeBob SquarePants (1969), the show was renewed for a fourth season due to the film's success and the show's popularity.
 * King Neptune's design is changed from that in SpongeBob SquarePants: Fools in April/Neptune's Spatula (1970). Instead of a more muscular body, Neptune is designed to look more like a king that resemble Ochanomizu rather than a god.
 * Ayao Wada took on the role of Dennis because his children are fans of the show.
 * The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 2: Sponge Out of Water (1985) was announced almost ten years after this movie's release date.
 * This marks the first time Sandy, Mrs. Puff and Pearl have minor roles in this film. Sandy would have a much more important role in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 2: Sponge Out of Water (1985) while Mrs. Puff and Pearl have minor roles in that film as well.
 * The film continues a recurring gag from the T.V. Series, in which SpongeBob SquarePants happens to be a show within a show.

Cultural references

 * The film contains references to the epic Greek poem "The Odyssey" by Homer, specifically the Bag of Winds.
 * King Neptune XIII resembles Professor Ochanomizu.
 * Princess Mindy strongly resembles Princess Sapphire.
 * Astro Boy appears in this movie.
 * The 1963-1966 Astro Boy theme song can be heard when Astro Boy attacks Plankton's slaves.
 * Goober Meal is a parody of McDonald's Happy Meal.
 * In the English dub version, "SpongeBob and Patrick Confront the Psychic Wall of Energy" was a parody of the 1960s Gumazing Gum Girl! song, "Gum Girl and Ninja-Rina Confront the Psychic Wall of Energy".
 * There was a 2004 Gumazing Gum Girl film that used the similar plot to this film.
 * When SpongeBob and Patrick are in the Nut Bar, a picture of Ochanomizu and Chi-Tan can be seen framed on the wall behind them.
 * King Neptune trident being accidentally set to "Real Boy Ending" is a reference to Disney's Pinocchio.

Errors

 * Mr. Krabs says near the end of the movie "I'm going to do something that I should have done 6 days ago." He means 7 because it was the day after when SpongeBob got the 6-day challenge to get the crown.
 * SpongeBob had his shoes on while he put his pants on, but in the scene before that, he was only wearing his socks.
 * The size of the crown changes through most of the movie. When Plankton is carrying it, he is as big as the tip. When SpongeBob attempts to lift it, it looks gigantic compared to him.
 * When SpongeBob smears Plankton on the ground, Plankton's smear appears, but after SpongeBob picks up Plankton, the green smear disappears.
 * When Mindy talks to King Neptune, she has her golden band, however, the next scene her golden band disappears.
 * During the scene where SpongeBob and Patrick are eating lots of the Triple Gooberberry Sunrises, there are the glass bowls the ice cream came in lying around the bench, but no spoons. The spoons have miraculously disappeared.
 * While King Neptune was screaming, the rest of his hair turns into 3 strings of hair.
 * When Mr. Krabs is frozen, his position in the restaurant changes through most of the movie.
 * Even from the distance Mindy was, she should have seen Patrick's underwear.
 * After Patrick tells SpongeBob to be careful while he is fighting Dennis while on Astro Boy, Dennis's color scheme goes paler for one scene but changes back after SpongeBob looks down.
 * When Plankton was looking through his binoculars, there were two eyes, with two pupils. This would not be possible, as Plankton has only one eye.
 * When SpongeBob and Patrick were eating their Triple Gooberberry Sunrises, pink strawberry (presumably) ice cream was splattered on the waiter, however, there was no pink ice cream visible on the sundae.
 * There were also a few strawberries that got on the waiter, but there were again no strawberries visible on the ice cream.
 * When Mr. Krabs is being interviewed his pants are purple and don't change to blue until the end of the movie.
 * When King Neptune is fed up with being stalled from the execution, he tells Mindy to go wait outside, then places a lock on the door. After SpongeBob and Patrick arrive, the lock disappears.
 * When King Neptune first enters the Krusty Krab, the clock above the doors is absent.
 * After the end credits where the pirates are still in the movie theater and the usher coming in to tell them it's time to go, there's less popcorn on the floor, but as the pirates are leaving and her continuing her sweeping job, there's massively more popcorn all over the floor.

Running gags

 * Patrick asking if they are dead yet.
 * SpongeBob being called a "kid."
 * Plankton looking at his arms when someone says his arms are stubby