This is a movie that both kids and adults will love, but not for the usual reasons. Instead of loading the script with sly cultural references and double entendres to keep the parents in the audience entertained while the kids just enjoy it, the writers instead just made an animated film that is simply too much fun for anyone not to enjoy it. Sure, there are a few things in the script that will fly over kids' heads, but for the most part, it's just a lot of silly, brightly colored fun. And there's nothing wrong with that. I don't usually say things like this, but if you think you are too mature to enjoy this film, you're a stodgy humbug. Stop taking yourself so seriously. Laugh a little.

SpongeBob is apparently a cultural juggernaut, the star of a hit cartoon show and the topic of an empire of merchandise tie-ins. I proofread some of the ads for one such tie-in at a certain hamburger chain. I mention this because it is a perfect segue into the plot. SpongeBob Squarepants (voiced by Tom Kenny) is a sponge who lives in Bikini Bottom. He's bright yellow and he wears folding cardboard pants. His best friend is a pink starfish named Patrick Star (voiced by Bill Fagerbakke). He works at a burger chain called Krusty Krab, and he dreams of becoming the manager of the new Krusty Krab II, opening right next door to the original store. He's so positive that he's going to get the promotion that he gives half of his acceptance speech before realizing that he didn't get the job.

Meanwhile, the nasty plankton named Sheldon (voiced by a guy credited as Mr. Lawrence) wants to steal the secret recipie for Krab's good burgers to sell at his restaurant, the Chum Bucket. Who wouldn't want to eat there? He hatches a devious plan to steal King Neptune's (voiced by Jeffrey Tambor) crown from his vain, shiny, bald head, and frame Sponge's boss Eugene Krabs (voiced by Clancy Brown) for the crime. He succeeds, and SpongeBob has six days to recover the crown from the dangerous Shell City before Neptune turns Krusty Krab into boiled dinner. Patrick accompanies SpongeBob on his difficult journey, and Neptune's beautiful daughter Mindy (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) helps out a little along the way. They have to hurry, because Plankton turns everyone into mindless drones, and he's sent the evil Dennis (voiced by Alec Baldwin) to stop the two spongy kids.

For those of you who insist on Deep Meaning from your animated fare, there's some of that too. SpongeBob and Patrick are obsessed with becoming Men—not adults or grown-ups, but Men. They want hairy chests, fast cars, big explosions, and facial hair. They don't want to be mature, they want to be Steve McQueen. They've been dismissed for the entire film by people who tell them that they're just kids; it's why SpongeBob doesn't get the promotion he so desires. The most intended-for-the-adults-in-the-room moment is when the silken-voiced Mindy tells them that she's going to "make men out of them." There was a breathless moment when I wondered exactly how they were going to handle this situation, but then the fun took over again when she pasted seaweed moustaches on their faces. Their joy at being men—which inspires a great song-and-dance number—is a hilarious, animated version of a manly high-five over a light beer while watching a football game on television.

What's not to like? It's animated in eye-popping colors that make the real world look drab and lifeless. I especially liked the subtle touches, like the backgrounds that manage to look like underwater with a few gently moving lines. The sound is great too: there's even a slight gurgling sound when the characters move quickly, as if to remind you that you're underwater (but it's also happy to forget that it's underwater when it suits the story, like in Sponge and Patrick's trip through the chasm). There are plenty of great sight gags, like SpongeBob's shower scene, or Neptune's experiment with spray-on hair, or the crazy drive through the skulls. It moves at breakneck pace, and it's not above the simple pleasure of making a funny noise at the top of your lungs (you sneer, but I bet you are thinking of how much fun that would be). It's basically a modern version of the kind of blissful, almost surreal anarchy of the classic Warner Bros. cartoons done by Chuck Jones. When you finally arrive at the scene where SpongeBob and Patrick are riding a real, live David Hasselhoff like a surfboard, you'll know that this is something special: a movie that doesn't discriminate on the basis of age.