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Would the original fans who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series enduring for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most surreal of plotlines? Such staying power is partly attributed to its broad charm, tickling the funny bones of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – alongside the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything as unexpected as the memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a recognizably silly groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy gag: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the finest contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the corkscrew plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's mission to secure the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. Although 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 highlighting pleasing, authentically cartoonish visuals.

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

Notable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and emerging somehow squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the younger audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase 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.

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.