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Could those early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series persisting for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most surreal of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part attributed to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those now grown students – as well as the very young viewers. Although it can't claim anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Zany Groove

Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film soon settles into a recognizably goofy rhythm. Its script acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a detail that excites him as it at last qualifies him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best contemporary American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever showcasing pleasing, properly animated visuals.

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

Memorable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to delight the younger crowd: our hero being subjected to endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the series – and arguably the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones gag and a saltily innuendo-laden catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those early students will likely be snickering all over again.

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