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Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part 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 can't claim anything quite as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Starting with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a comfortably silly groove. Its storyline serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that excites him as it at last qualifies him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, like the best modern American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Credentials

SpongeBob's quest to secure the legendary pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-turned elements, consistently highlighting satisfying, properly animated visuals.

Whether its freewheeling humor will linger after the credits is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Memorable moments feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably squarer than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment sure to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and arguably the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.

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