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Would the original fans who laughed through the first SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those former students – as well as the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie has no qualms about making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Zany Groove

Kicking off with a festive short featuring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie soon settles into a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it finally qualifies him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An early, psychedelic gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American animation, the true rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a grander scope, the film's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, properly cartoonish visuals.

Whether its freewheeling humor will resonate when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a cheekily innuendo-laden catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those original students will likely be snickering all over again.

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