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Would the early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise enduring for a quarter-century, even after experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such staying power is partly due to its broad charm, amusing the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything as unexpected as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about making a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Starting with a festive short featuring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly finds a recognizably goofy rhythm. Its storyline acts as a family-friendly exploration on the pros and cons of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a detail that thrills him as it finally allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American animation, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-turned elements, consistently highlighting satisfying, authentically animated visuals.

If its spitballing humor will linger after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably squarer than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the franchise – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original students will likely be chuckling anew.

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