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Would the early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most surreal of plotlines? Such staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of grown-ups – possibly even those former students – alongside the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon finds a recognizably silly rhythm. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a detail that thrills him as it at last allows him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An initial, psychedelic gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the twisting plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's quest to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the film's visual style remains a charming mix of digimation and hand-turned components, consistently showcasing satisfying, authentically cartoonish visuals.

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

Notable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones joke and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those original fans will likely be chuckling all over again.

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