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Could those early viewers who laughed through the initial SpongeBob escapades have envisioned the series enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most surreal of narrative twists? This staying power is in part due to its wide-ranging charm, tickling the funny bones of adults – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything as unexpected as a certain legendary David Hasselhoff cameo in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature thinks nothing of having Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything remains possible in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Zany Vibe

Kicking off with a holiday short featuring Paramount's alternative long-running family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob film quickly finds a comfortably goofy rhythm. Its script acts as a family-friendly exploration on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now stands a specific height, a detail that thrills him as it finally allows him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best contemporary American cartoons, the true thrill ride is the twisting plotting.

The Quest for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will prove him a “big guy” leads him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the film's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted elements, consistently showcasing pleasing, properly animated visuals.

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

Memorable moments include SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging somehow more rectangular than ever; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty sure to resonate with the six-year-old crowd: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid entry to the series – and arguably the funniest Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily innuendo-laden saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is clear: those original fans will probably be snickering anew.

Coming to Theaters: 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.