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Would the early viewers who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the series persisting for a 25 years, following experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such staying power is partly attributed to its broad charm, tickling the funny bones of grown-ups – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything as surprising as the memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film quickly finds a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script serves as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a detail that excites him as it at last qualifies him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best contemporary American animation, the real thrill ride is the twisting narrative.

The Quest 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 ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, properly animated visuals.

If its spitballing humor will resonate when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment sure to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the series – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those early students will likely be snickering anew.

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