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Could those early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob escapades have predicted the franchise enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such longevity is in part attributed to its broad charm, amusing the funny bones of adults – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about having a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Groove

Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film soon settles into a comfortably goofy groove. Its script acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it finally allows him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, like the best modern American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a charming mix of digimation and hand-turned components, forever showcasing satisfying, properly cartoonish visuals.

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

Memorable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably squarer than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to delight the six-year-old crowd: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a solid entry to the franchise – and arguably the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original students will likely be snickering all over again.

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.