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Would the early viewers who chuckled through the first SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise persisting for a 25 years, following experiencing the most lysergic of narrative twists? This longevity is partly attributed to its broad charm, amusing the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the very young viewers. While it can't claim anything quite as surprising as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about making a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Vibe

Kicking off with a festive short featuring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon settles into a recognizably silly groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated treatise on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures 36 clams high, a fact that excites him as it finally qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An initial, psychedelic gag: our enthusiastic hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best contemporary American animation, the true thrill ride is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to secure the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the film's aesthetic remains a delightful bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted elements, forever showcasing satisfying, authentically animated effects.

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

Notable scenes include SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a penalty sure to delight the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into endless dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a reliable addition to the franchise – and perhaps the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's friend Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original fans will likely be chuckling anew.

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