Hubie Halloween
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Steve Buschemi
Directed By: Steven Brill
Rated: PG-13
With a limited number of new movie releases to choose from this year and a love for fall-themed cinema, I had a decision to make. Was I really going to watch Adam Sandler’s latest Netflix comedy Hubie Halloween? Well, if you’re reading this review, you know the answer to that question. Not only did I watch it, but I took the time to write this review on it. 2020, how every day brings a new surprise.
What is Hubie Halloween about? It’s obviously all about Sandler’s character Hubie Dubois, the local Halloween enthusiast, who is mercilessly bullied by almost everyone in Salem, Massachusetts. The local middle school kids throw food at him as he rides his bike across town. His former high school classmates play cruel pranks on him. The cops don’t take him seriously. In true ASCU (Adam Sandler Cinematic Universe) fashion, the one person in town who doesn’t bully Hubie is the beautiful Violet Valentine (Julie Bowen) who is infatuated with him (for reasons unexplained to the viewer.)
Hubie still lives with his mother (June Squibb) and considers himself the town “Halloween monitor.” This year, things are a little more spooky than usual in Salem when a mental patient gets loose, and people start disappearing one by one. Can Hubie save the day?
This is your stereotypical Adam Sandler comedy. There are plenty of immature jokes and slapstick moments that will make you roll your eyes. How long can a grown man make poop jokes? I ask this condescendingly, but Adam Sandler is the millionaire in this situation, so the joke’s on me. Sandler enlists the help of his A-team, who appear in all of his projects, including Kevin James (as the town police officer), Rob Schneider (in a secret role I won’t spoil), and Steve Buscemi (as a mysterious neighbor). I was shocked that David Spade and Chris Rock didn’t show up. At a certain point, the film feels like a game of “spot the celebrity” as a host of cameos pop up, including Shaq, Dan Patrick, Maya Rudolph, and Ben Stiller. (Ben Stiller, where have you gone? And why is this your first movie back from hiatus?!)
Truthfully, Hubie Halloween isn’t as bad as some Adam Sandler movies like the tragedy known as the Grown-Ups franchise, The Ridiculous Six, or Jack & Jill. There are some funny moments that did make me laugh. A gag involving a news station’s obsession with Harley Quinn Halloween costumes is particularly funny. Hmmm, I did laugh more than one time watching this movie, but at the moment, I can’t come up with another example to give you. Of course, we have to talk about Sandler’s accent that sounds like a distant cousin of the Bobby Boucher Waterboy voice. At times, it’s difficult to even understand what he’s saying, but it’s so wildly ridiculous that in certain scenes, you can’t help but laugh at it and the fact that he was running a potential Oscar campaign for Uncut Gems just a few months ago. “KG!!! Have you seen Hubie Halloween?!”
Hubie Halloween is your typical Adam Sandler fare updated for the Halloween season. You may laugh a little bit, but the amount of cheap humor and slapstick moments keep this from being a good comedy.
My Rating: 4/10