★½
Despite its best intentions, Hubie Halloween is another unfunny, lazy, and dull Adam Sandler-produced “comedy.”
Hubie, a quirky community volunteer who is victim to bullying in his hometown of Salem, is drawn into an investigation in Halloween about a murderer on the loose.
Adam Sandler is an interesting individual. He certainly is very talented and has admittedly produced some genuinely good movies throughout his career. And that’s not even mentioning several of his Oscar-worthy performances in films like Punch Drunk Love and Uncut Gems. However, I’m sad to report that Hubie Halloween does not join either of those groups. Instead, this is much more in line with ‘Jack and Jill’, ‘Grown Ups 2’, and ‘The Ridiculous 6’: a dumb, easy to digest, “comedy” with not much to offer besides a very talented cast with a terrible script.
I don’t dislike Sandler. I was very much hoping this wouldn’t be too bad. The first few minutes were the toughest to get through. Still, to its credit, it eventually levels itself into “watchable” territory. At some points, it at least has a message behind it aside from just being idiotic for the sake of it — even if it doesn’t quite land. Still, it’s hard to deny that this could be so much better.
As for performances, Sandler, at the very least, seems committed. The rest of the cast feels like they’re the guest host acting in an SNL sketch: confused and with no comedic timing. And it’s a shame because most of them are great in other projects. Suppose there’s something that keeps your attention. In that case, it’ll probably be the variety of stars at display throughout the entire movie, with even some surprises.
While its heart is in the right place, ‘Hubie Halloween’ is mediocre and, frankly, boring. Still, after Uncut Gems, it’s clear Sandler has the potential for greatness — if only he stopped making these incredibly tiresome and unfunny movies.
FILMAHOLIC 