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Could those original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, following experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is partly due to its broad charm, amusing the sense of humor of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – alongside the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as unexpected as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Zany Groove

Starting with a holiday short starring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon settles into a comfortably goofy groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it finally allows him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest modern American animation, the true rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the film's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-turned components, consistently showcasing satisfying, properly cartoonish effects.

Whether its spitballing humor will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Notable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the younger audience: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and arguably the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a hearty Davy Jones joke and a cheekily innuendo-laden catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early fans will probably be chuckling anew.

Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on December 19th in the US, December 20th in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.