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Would the original fans who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob escapades have predicted the franchise enduring for a 25 years, even after absorbing the most surreal of plotlines? Such longevity is partly due to its broad appeal, tickling the funny bones of adults – possibly even those former students – alongside the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this fourth feature has no qualms about making Clancy Brown talk like a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a recognizably silly rhythm. Its storyline acts as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a detail that thrills him as it at last allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, trippy gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) However, like the best contemporary American cartoons, the real rollercoaster is the twisting plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Credentials

SpongeBob's quest to obtain the fabled swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a grander scope, the film's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-turned elements, forever highlighting satisfying, authentically animated visuals.

Whether its spitballing silliness will resonate after the credits is up for discussion, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Notable moments feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an air conditioner and emerging inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie in years, encompassing a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original students will probably be snickering anew.

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.