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Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part attributed to its wide-ranging charm, amusing the funny bones of grown-ups – possibly even those former students – alongside the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about having Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon finds a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its storyline serves as a family-friendly treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a detail that thrills him as it finally qualifies him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-turned elements, forever showcasing pleasing, properly animated visuals.

If its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Notable scenes include SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow squarer than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those original students will probably be chuckling anew.

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