“Hubie Halloween” is dimwitted Adam Sandler fun
After the success of “Uncut Gems,” Adam Sandler returns to the comedic genre with his latest film “Hubie Halloween.”
Like most people, I was blown away by “Uncut Gems” (2019), and thought that it was Adam Sandler’s best performance. Now it’s back to the basics for the Sandman’s latest film “Hubie Halloween” (2020). I didn’t go into “Hubie Halloween” expecting “Uncut Gems.” In fact, my expectations were somewhat low. In December 2019, Sandler himself stated in an interview, that if he wasn’t nominated for an Oscar he would make a purposefully bad film. Unfortunately, Sandler was not nominated. Is “Hubie Halloween” that purposefully bad movie? I don’t think so.
I’m not gonna lie, Sandler’s performance is pretty dang funny. — Sam Westergaard '21
Now the film is far from great, but it’s not terrible. Sandler’s performance is pretty dang funny. I found myself guiltily chuckling at much of his gags. One gag that was particularly funny was at the beginning when a group of kids try to throw eggs at him; He catches them and eats them, but he throws up. The film is full of slapstick and sight gags, which I am all for. One funny sight gag is the shirts that Hubie’s mom (June Squibb) is wearing. While watching, try to read what they say — it won’t disappoint. I also like the sense of community, not only within the small town but also with the cast. Many of the cast members have co-starred alongside the Sandman in past films. Actors such as Steve Buscemi, Kevin James, and Julie Bowen have all appeared in previous Adam Sandler films, so this group of actors reinforces this sense of community. The film is harmless fun and has good vibes.
That being said the film is far from amazing. It obviously suffers from being the first Sandler film since “Uncut Gems.” But to be fair, the films are rather different, for better and especially for worse. The pace is inconsistent: the first hour is comedic and enjoyable, but the rest of the film just repeats itself. Hubie (Adam Sandler) is sad so he goes to Violet (Julie Bowen), or Hubie needs help so he goes to the police and they ignore him. It’s all stuff we already saw earlier, and it gets repetitive.
I also found myself constantly asking questions. Why does everyone in the town hate Hubie so much? Why does the love interest think Hubie is so amazing, even though everyone else loathes him? How does Hubie’s thermos work? Why Is Shaquille O’Neal in this? There are so many questions that the film expects you to know going into it. And some are answered but not well. There is a lack of sense, which is to be expected, but it’s still clunky.
One big problem is the villain. I love the Universal monsters, as well as ’80s slashers, and going into this I was hoping to see at least one. But sadly we don’t. It’s so strange because the film sets up that one character is a wolfman, which I’d be down with. It also sets up that a maniac escaped a mental institution, like Michael Myers from “Halloween” (1978). We don’t even really see the wolfman’s true form, and they do nothing with the maniac. What a letdown. The real villain and the reveal are quite bland as well as predictable. Imagine Adam Sandler being chased by a wolfman or Michael Myers, that would be hilarious. Oh well, a man can dream… a man can dream.
With all that being said, “Hubie Halloween” (2020) is not that bad. It has problems and suffers from pacing issues, as well as the lack of a strong villain. However the Sandman’s performance is enjoyable, and the overall film has some fun goofy vibes.
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Sam Westergaard is a senior at West High. This is his second year on staff. He is a photographer as well as a videographer. He enjoys Star Wars, anime...
