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Could those original fans who chuckled through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series enduring for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most surreal of plotlines? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging appeal, tickling the funny bones of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as the memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this latest movie has no qualms about making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while dispensing payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Vibe

Starting with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film soon settles into a recognizably goofy groove. Its script serves as a family-friendly treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it at last qualifies him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest modern American cartoons, the true rollercoaster is the twisting plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever showcasing pleasing, authentically animated effects.

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

Notable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably squarer than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to delight the younger audience: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the franchise – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original fans will probably be chuckling anew.

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