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Could those original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, amusing the sense of humor of adults – perhaps even those former students – as well as the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about having Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Vibe

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon settles into a recognizably goofy rhythm. Its script serves as a family-friendly exploration on the pros and cons of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it finally allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, consistently highlighting pleasing, authentically animated visuals.

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

Memorable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the younger crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and arguably the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those original fans will likely be snickering anew.

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