SummaryBased on the Bram Stoker Award nominated short story by acclaimed author Joe R. Lansdale, Bubba Ho-tep tells the "true" story of what really did become of Elvis. (Silver Sphere Corporation)
SummaryBased on the Bram Stoker Award nominated short story by acclaimed author Joe R. Lansdale, Bubba Ho-tep tells the "true" story of what really did become of Elvis. (Silver Sphere Corporation)
I loved this film; from the opening “Ben-Hur” nod to the hieroglyph subtitles, it's simultaneously hilarious and poignant, with great performances.
Endearing and vulgar in about the right proportion. The movie doesn't exactly work, but sometimes when a car won't start, it's still fun to look at the little honey gleaming in the driveway.
This is one of my all time favorite films. From the subtle horror to the warm and genuine relationship that the two main characters develop this movie has more heart in it then just about anything you see today. Many think it's a horror film about about a mummy but the real horror is just what we as a society do to our older generations. Fantastic film.
As a satire and an off-the-wall comedy, Bubba Ho-Tep hits the bullseye. As a horror movie, it's less successful. Maybe we're too busy laughing to be scared.
Coscarelli, the man behind the long-running "Phantasm" splatter series, can't quite conjure a complete movie out the concept and stretches the material until its humorous conceits repeat ad nauseum.
Davis contributes his usual dignity -- not easy when you're playing a character who thinks he's John F. Kennedy dyed black -- but it's not enough to save this silly thriller-comedy.
Bruce Campbell gives a fantastic performance as Elvis Presley in this b-rated bit of horror-comedy excellence. Things are definitely on the cheesy side. However the humor is actually pretty smart even when the jokes themselves are juvenile. There's a surprising drama element to the film.
For all of it's jokes and mummy madness this is actually a tale about regret. Themes like wondering if you've lived your life to the fullest and moving on from past mistakes run strong here. It gives the film a little bit of heart.
It's an odd combination of ideas and themes that all work well together in the end. The pacing might be a little slow, but with dialog this sharp and a concept this goofy it's hard to not enjoy it all the way through. It's worth watching for Campbell's portrayal of Elvis alone. The humor, heart, and goofy horror are all just bonuses.
I give "Bubba Ho-Tep" a 9.2/10.
Bubba Ho-Tep is as good as B-movies get. What's not to like about the always wonderful Bruce Campbell as Elvis teaming with a black JFK to battle a mummy? Great performances, some suprisingly touching dramatic moments, and hilarious all the way through. Highly recommended.
Elvis vs The Mummy.
This movie couldn't be any more B-list horror movie if it tried. The acting is average, the plot is absurd and utterly unbelievable and the effects are average at best. Yet, like anything with Campbell in it, it has a certain charm to it.
As absurd as it might be, this movie is allot of fun and works better as a comedy than as a horror.
Overall:
You go into this movie expecting it to be bad. The name and the premise should be enough of a clue. Yet, low expectations do have a way of making something bad seem good. And in this case, that is exactly what it it. This is a fun enjoyable crap movie (if that makes any sense.)
Considering the title, you'd expect the film to truly bloody awful. In fact, it's weird, wonderful, funny and surprisingly tender. Bubba Ho-tep is the best, and only film about an elderly Elvis Presley (Bruce Campbell) defending his retirement home from an Egyptian mummy wearing a stetson, with a little help from a black JFK (Ossie Davis). The first half of the film is well-paced, funny and rather deep and emotionally compelling for a film with such a seemingly lowbrow premise. Campbell is absolutely captivating as The King, who swapped lives with an impersonator (who was the one who eventually died on the toilet) to escape the increasingly suffocating attention of his fans. He lives out his twilight years in obscurity, regret and extreme depression in an isolated nursing home in Texas, until something odd begins to happen. The film explores mortality and memory in an unexpectedly intelligent and sensitive way (it's ultimately left to the viewer to decide whether Campbell's character is really Elvis or just some old codger with mental health problems), but at the same time it's not above the odd crude joke and some brilliantly trashy comic horror set pieces. The final few minutes of the film are admittedly a bit of a drag, and are appear to have been put together rather hastily, but you'll hardly care when you've had such a good time throughout. Bubba Ho-tep is a superb, surprisingly clever and heartfelt A-quality B-Movie, with Bruce Campbell's best performance outside his Sam Raimi collaborations.