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Could those original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such staying power is partly due to its broad appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. Although it can't claim anything as surprising as the memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Groove

Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon finds a comfortably silly groove. Its script acts as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An initial, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-crafted elements, forever showcasing pleasing, authentically cartoonish visuals.

If its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out somehow more rectangular than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the younger crowd: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable entry to the series – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.

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