By Julia Duggan
Staff Writer
“Hubie Halloween” is more of a comedy than a horror movie. However, the main character does get scared a lot. This movie is great to watch to give a little humor to a long day. It was released this Oct. 7 and can be found on Netflix.
The main character, Hubie Dubois (Adam Sandler) is just a guy who wants to keep everyone safe on Halloween. The townspeople routinely bully Hubie, and considering how easily he can dodge flying objects while on his bicycle, this must have been going on for a while. The movie starts off by showing that someone has escaped from a mental institution, but then quickly pans to Hubie going about his morning routine. When town residents start disappearing on Halloween night, Hubie is the first to notice, but the kidnapper remains elusive. The movie is set in Salem, Massachusetts, so the potential for witches and werewolves to strike is high, especially when everyone is in a costume (except for Hubie, of course). There are a lot of suspicious characters to keep track of as well: for example, the escaped resident of the mental institution and a mayor who ignores the early signs his town is in danger.
The movie starts out a little slow at the beginning. I immediately felt terrible for Hubie and kept hoping that someone would stop the town residents from tormenting him. However, I can see why it starts off slow, all the major characters have to be introduced and their treatment towards Hubie has to be shown, not just told. Luckily, several characters scattered throughout the movie are impressed with Hubie’s ability to shrug off any mean comment or action and just keep living.
I must admit that the ending was predictable. Even though there are several characters that remain suspicious throughout, the actual kidnapper in the end was not disguised too well. The movie is almost two hours long, and by 45 minutes in I had confidence in who the kidnapper was. What gave it away for me was the dialogue. There is one character that has several distinct lines that did not quite match with what the viewers and Hubie knew at the time.
Nonetheless, this movie would be great to watch after a long day of classes online. Sandler is excellent at playing Hubie, which is vital since the movie hinges on the juxtaposition of the bullies in Salem and Hubie’s sweet and caring nature.
Honestly, “Hubie Haloween” reminded me of life before the pandemic. This movie might also be surprisingly inspiring: that no matter what life throws at us, there’s hope, and we can weather the storm — just dodge the eggs and the toilet paper along the way.
