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Would the early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such staying power is partly attributed to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of grown-ups – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about having a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Kicking off with a festive short featuring Paramount's other weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film quickly settles into a recognizably goofy rhythm. Its script serves as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that thrills him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever highlighting satisfying, properly cartoonish visuals.

If its freewheeling silliness will resonate after the credits is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Notable moments include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the series – and arguably the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones joke and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will probably be snickering 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.