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Would the early viewers who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, following absorbing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, amusing the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as surprising as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this latest movie thinks nothing of making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Starting with a festive short featuring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon settles into a recognizably goofy groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a detail that thrills him as it at last allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the twisting narrative.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-turned components, forever showcasing satisfying, properly cartoonish effects.

Whether its spitballing humor will resonate when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Notable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the franchise – and arguably the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original fans will probably be snickering anew.

Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, December 20th in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.