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Would the original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is in part due to its broad appeal, amusing the funny bones of grown-ups – perhaps even those former students – alongside the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Starting with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film quickly settles into a comfortably silly groove. Its script serves as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it finally qualifies him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, as in the finest modern American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the twisting narrative.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the fabled pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever highlighting satisfying, properly animated effects.

Whether 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 wedging 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 younger crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the franchise – and perhaps the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original students will probably be snickering all over again.

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