It was terrible, but it seemed intentional. This seems to fall into a classic Adam Sandler movie. He even spends the entire movie using the accent that he used in the Water Boy. The Sandler in movies like these compared to him in Uncut Gems, is almost incomparable. He has shown that he can be a very serious actor and receive acclaim for doing so, but in the movies he makes, it appears that he is not interested in being that serious actor, and that he would rather make fun movies with his friends.
Hubie Halloween was about Hubie, Adam Sandler, the town loser, trying to keep the town of Salem safe on Halloween. No one in the town seems to take Hubie seriously, but he thinks it is his job to keep the town safe, especially on Halloween. The night of Halloween, people start to disappear, and Hubie’s investigation begins. Throughout the movie there was a large amount of hijinks and pranks, and of course it ends with Hubie saving the day and ending up with the girl of his dreams.
One of the best parts of Sandler movies is his ability to bring in different people from his friend circle into the film, even when they are not typically actors. The two biggest examples from this film were Dan Patrick being the principal and Shaq being the radio host. Although neither of these people really have any major role in the plot of the movie, it just gives the viewers who know them the sense of recognition. Dan Patrick was a Sports Center anchor, who left ESPN to start his own radio show. He has been featured in multiple of Sandler’s films, and they are such good friends that Sandler appears on his radio show often. In this movie he did an excellent job in his five minutes of face time being a principal, and he fit the role incredibly well. Shaq was a former NBA all-star, who has also appeared in multiple of Sandler’s movies. His main contribution in this movie was sharing a sandwich Lady and the Tramp style with his wife in the movie. They also used his deep voice as a joke by making him have a very feminine radio voice.
One aspect of the film that always adds something to film is the live radio playing in scenes. In multiple scenes in this movie, Hubie was riding around town with his radio on his bike. Although in these movies, the radio does not add much to the plot, it does a good job of establishing the setting. Based off the music, the viewer can tell what time of year it is, and they can also tell what decade the movie is supposed to be taking place. If the movie has the D.J. talk, it can also help establish parts of the setting, and in the case of Hubie, there was some information that was garnered from the radio and from his interaction with the D.J at the radio station. A movie that did an excellent job of using the radio to establish the setting was Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Tarantino went back in the radio archives so that when the characters were in the car, what came over the radio was what was playing on that day in California. So when it comes to attention to detail the radio can come in handy.
The thing this movie did the best was get me excited for the Halloween season. From start to finish, it was very clearly taking place on Halloween. There were decorations everywhere, the music in the background was Halloween related, and the music got stuck in my head. It has a similar effect to some people having to watch a certain Christmas movie to get into the spirit or listen to the same song repeatedly to get into the spirit. The worst part about this is that this year, there might not be a real chance to celebrate Halloween. So if people watch this movie or Hokus Pokus to get into the spirit, it might be for naught. I know some states and cities have said that there should be no trick or treating this year, which is kind of depressing to think about all of the kids that will be missing out, and I do not even like dressing up, but I do enjoy handing out the candy and seeing everyone else indulge.
One of the biggest ways to know this was a Sandler film, besides him starring in it, came from the humor. There are a few ways to describe it: fart jokes, potty humor, teenage boy, and a fake puke within the first minute. I will not lie, there were multiple times when I laughed, but when it comes to rewatchability, it does not stand up to other comedies. Some comedies are worth watching over and over again, and the funniest ones, a viewer can go back almost immediately and watch again and catch five new jokes. This is not one of those movies. Once was enough. I might revisit it again a year from now just to get some of the Halloween spirit again, but that is probably it.
Overall, this movie was bad, but oddly I would recommend watching it, especially if you enjoy Halloween, it will help get you into the spirit of the season in a time when it is hard to do so. They try to have a moral of the story of treating everyone well in society, especially those that are nice in the face of adversity, but the terrible comedic format in which this occurred took away from the power of the message. I gave the movie a 65, which might be a little high, but it seemed self-aware enough that the over the top gags were done with purpose, which makes it better for some reason.
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