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Could those early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have predicted the franchise enduring for a quarter-century, even after absorbing the most surreal of plotlines? Such staying power is in part due to its broad charm, amusing the funny bones of grown-ups – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. While it may not feature anything as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to stars like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a festive short starring Paramount's other long-running babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob movie soon finds a recognizably goofy groove. Its script acts as a PG-rated treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it finally allows him to ride his fantasy coaster. (An initial, trippy laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the finest modern American animation, the real thrill ride is the twisting plotting.

The Adventure for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the spectral Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. Although the Dutchman's ghost ship introduces a grander scope, the movie's aesthetic remains a charming mix of digital animation and hand-turned elements, forever showcasing satisfying, authentically animated visuals.

If its freewheeling humor will linger after the credits is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Notable moments feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and coming out inexplicably squarer than before; a brief appearance from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty sure to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being forced into never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable addition to the series – and perhaps the most humorous pirate-themed movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's certain: those original fans will likely be chuckling anew.

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