The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run is a capricious and touching surrealist kiddie ride that, in its sugar-high way, is as much a celebration of friendship as the “Toy Story” films.

Them is a horror show, through and through. But while the violence is challenging, it’s not necessarily exploitative in its treatment.

Rich filmmaking, from assured camerawork to tactile set decoration, is the film’s basis. But richer exploration of theme and spiritual belief is its design. Things Heard & Seen isn’t elevated. It’s just mature, wonderfully made, and, whether dead or alive, human.

This Is a Robbery is expertly structured to build and keep momentum, teasing major elements of the story before bringing them home later. Despite its cinematic luster (The Irishman producer Jane Rosenthal is among the producers), this is a tight, four-episode series, not a four-hour movie. The interviews in This Is a Robbery are an embarrassment of riches.

There’s nostalgia and memories of prom to be channeled for anyone of a certain age, of course. But this lead ep of This is Pop and what’s to follow are also offering fresh takes on a pretty wide subject.

Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer are the best haphazard superheroine duo I’ve seen. A hilarious comedy worthy of a series and/or sequel.