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Would the early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise enduring for a quarter-century, following absorbing the most lysergic of plotlines? Such longevity is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the funny bones of adults – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything quite as unexpected as the memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of having a veteran voice actor talk like a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything can still in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon settles into a recognizably silly rhythm. Its script acts as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now stands 36 clams high, a fact that thrills him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the finest contemporary American animation, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a charming mix of digimation and hand-turned components, consistently showcasing satisfying, properly animated visuals.

Whether its spitballing silliness will resonate when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Memorable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably more rectangular than ever; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, including a robust Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original students will likely be chuckling all over again.

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