In Hubie Halloween, Adam Sandler's stupidly hilarious antics are more accessible than ever,
with viewers of all ages able to laugh along with this Halloween-themed comedy.
But Hubie Halloween contains some tidbits that will only be picked up on by older viewers,
especially those familiar with Sandler's previous movies.
Mild, spooky spoilers follow.
Adam Sandler is known not only for the familiar faces that show up onscreen in his films,
but also for having a consistent group of creatives behind the scenes writing
and directing his comic escapades. Returning for Hubie Halloween is frequent co-writer Tim Herlihy,
who has collaborated with Sandler on prior classics Billy Madison,
Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, and more,
while his cadre of frequent directors includes Dennis Dugan, Frank Coraci, and Peter Segal.
For Hubie, Sandler reunites with another of his frequent collaborators, director Steven Brill,
who helmed Little Nicky, Mr. Deeds, The Do-Over, and Sandy Wexler. Brill has also
brought his comedic direction to non-Sandler projects like Heavyweights, Without a Paddle,
and Drillbit Taylor. Sandler is nothing if not loyal to his collaborators,
and Brill's work is a perfect match for the hijinks required for Hubie Halloween.
"Yes."
The first face you see in Hubie Halloween is certainly not one you would expect,
but for longtime Sandler fans, it's a wonderful surprise to kick things off.
Our story begins at the nearby mental asylum where the inciting event of the film takes place:
the escape of a mental patient who's been locked up for many years. And the orderly
who comes to check in on this patient is someone you might recall from a previous Sandler film.
"Special delivery for Mr. Loon E. Tunes."
It's none other than fellow comedy luminary Ben Stiller, reprising his role of Hal L.,
the fantastically deranged orderly who tortured Happy's beloved grandmother
in 1996's Happy Gilmore. He definitely should have lost his license by now,
but all these years later, Hal L. is back, still as unhinged as ever,
to introduce us to the spooktacular world that this film has in store.
Supporting legends
If we've learned anything from Adam Sandler movies like Grown Ups and its sequel, the comedies
released by Happy Madison Productions seem to sit halfway between genuine attempts at telling funny
stories and thinly veiled excuses for the actor to hang out in fun locations with his friends.
Hubie Halloween certainly falls more into the former category, but as per usual, Sandler
is joined by an impressive cohort of comedy compatriots to fill out the supporting cast.
Joining him this go-around are Sandler mainstays Kevin James as the local police chief,
Steve Buscemi as the new next-door neighbor with a terrifying secret,
Tim Meadows and Maya Rudolph as old classmates of Hubie's,
and Sandler's Happy Madison co-star Julie Bowen as Hubie's longtime crush Violet Valentine.
It isn't just the larger supporting cast that's filled with great comedians.
Even the smallest one-line cameos are delivered by stars who bring
their A-game to the latest entry in the Sandlerverse, ensuring that each scene
is as much fun for us as it looks like it was for the actors bringing these scenes to life.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm officiating a funeral."
"On Halloween?"
"People die everyday, dummy. They don't skip holidays."
"Even April Fools Day?"
A few to watch out for? Stand-up comedian George Wallace plays the extremely stubborn town mayor,
while Breaking Bad favorite Lavell Crawford shows up as a hilariously despondent farmer.
In a blink and you'll miss it moment, Colin Quinn pops up as a heavily made-up janitor,
and Saturday Night Live veterans Kenan Thompson, Mikey Day,
and Melissa Villasenor are all able to find their way into the proceedings.
Then there's Shaquille O'Neal, whose role in Hubie
Halloween winds up being slightly different than you might expect.
Throughout much of the film, Hubie is seen listening to the
local radio station WTCH - specifically enjoying the dulcet tones of the spooky,
seductively voiced disc jockey known only as Aurora.
"Well, all you witches and warlocks. Daylight is fading and you know what that means.
Halloween in Salem is in full effect."
In a classic comedy spin that maybe we should've seen coming, that voice actually belongs to none
other than Shaq himself, creating a visual dissonance that makes for one of the film's
goofier comic premises - and one of the film's more unexpected cameo appearances.
Critics may not always like his movies, but people clearly enjoy working with Adam Sandler.
O'Doyle still rules!
While Hal L.'s appearance provides evidence that Hubie Halloween takes place in the Happy
Gilmore universe, there seems to be firm proof that this film shares a world with
another early career-defining Sandler hit. Hubie DuBois is something close to the town pariah. Even
the local kids know that making fun of Hubie is a Salem tradition, and a certain Salem child appears
to be part of a family that knows a little too much about making fun of Adam Sandler characters.
You can faintly hear it early on, but when a group of kids who've
been harassing Hubie start to ride off on their bikes, you can hear one of them yell
"O'Doyle rules!"
That's right, it's yet another member of the accursed O'Doyle family from Billy
Madison who made Billy's life a living hell. They've somehow found their way
to Salem to continue their tradition of picking on Adam Sandler characters,
but as always, the guy Sandler plays winds up triumphant in the end.
One of the biggest mysteries throughout Hubie Halloween is the identity of the escaped mental
patient roaming the streets of Salem wearing a pig mask. As he continues to wander through the town,
citizens are being kidnapped left and right, and only Hubie has the wherewithal to try and solve
this mystery once and for all. Suffice it to say, major spoilers are coming up
for anyone who doesn't already know who this mystery asylum escapee really is.
If you know your Adam Sandler comedies, you know that there's
a certain Sandler collaborator whose name has yet to appear on this list,
and for good reason: Hiding behind that pig mask is asylum escapee Richie Hartman,
played by none other than Rob Schneider, one of Sandler's most frequent comedic co-stars.
His late appearance in the film sets us up for the final shocking revelation of who's been causing
all the mischief in Salem - a mystery that you'll just have to watch Hubie Halloween to solve.
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