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Would the original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the franchise persisting for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such staying power is partly due to its broad appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. While it may not feature anything as surprising as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Vibe

Kicking off with a festive short featuring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie quickly finds a comfortably goofy groove. Its script serves as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a detail that thrills him as it finally qualifies him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a grander scope, the movie's visual style remains a charming mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, forever highlighting pleasing, properly cartoonish effects.

If its freewheeling humor will resonate after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Notable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably more rectangular than ever; a brief appearance 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

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a solid addition to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a saltily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those early students will likely be chuckling all over again.

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