Bubba Ho-Tep is basically about Elvis and JFK taking on an
ancient Egyptian mummy in an old age home in Mud Creek, Texas. Really. That's
the actual story. You see, Elvis never really died in 1977. What happened was
that The King got sick and tired of all of the fame and glory, as well as the
Machiavellian Colonel Parker, and the relentless mob of hangers-on who went everywhere
he did and who sucked the very joy out of living. And so The King switched
places with an Elvis impersonator named Sebastian Haff. The King went out and
performed as an Elvis impersonator, getting back to his rock and roll roots and
kicking it with the ordinary folk, with the stipulation that he could return to
his former life at any time. However, Elvis loses the written contract he had
with Haff in a fire, and then Haff, who had a bad ticker, ups and dies--leaving
The King broke and without any way of returning to his former life.
And that's how The King finds himself a resident of the Shady Rest Nursing Home
in his not so golden years. Like the other inmates, he's just passing the time
away, not able to walk without the use of a walker thanks to a bad hip. He's
also suffering the indignity of dealing with an unknown growth in his private
area. But Elvis' attention is soon diverted from his daily misery thanks to a
mystery. There's something odd happening at the Shady Rest Nursing Home.
Residents are dropping like flies, which may not sound so strange, since they
are all in their golden years. But it is the manner of their deaths that is
peculiar. Working with an old black man who thinks he is really JFK (Ossie Davis,
in a funny performance), Elvis discovers that an ancient Egyptian mummy wearing
cowboy boots and a cowboy hat is stalking the elderly residents. Giving this
supernatural threat the handle of Bubba Ho-Tep, Elvis and JFK decide to step up
to the plate one last time and rid Mud Creek of this evil once and for all.
Written and directed by Don Coscarelli, who also gave us Beastmaster and the
Phantasm films, and based on the short story by Joe R. Lansdale (who also reads
an excerpt of the tale on the DVD), Bubba Ho-Tep is a fun little film that is
not supposed to be taken too seriously. Although the pacing drags in places, there's
plenty of humor and Coscarelli also manages to deftly infuse some poignancy into the story, dealing
as he does with the humiliation of growing old in a society that marginalizes
the elderly. But if there is one reason you should see this flick, it's Bruce
Campbell. The Evil Dead actor does such a marvelous job at playing Elvis that
his familiar acting characteristics completely disappear, and you accept him
totally as The King. He may be a little older, and not move as fast as he used
to, but it's still Elvis, The King, and when he gets down to taking care of
business, that mummy had better watch out.
The DVD has the standard special features, such as "making of" documentaries,
deleted scenes, and audio commentary by Campbell and the director. But one not
so standard feature is the second audio track by Campbell, who speaks throughout
the whole commentary in character as The King. This commentary is something so
sublime that mere words can't describe it; you really have to
listen to it yourself. The same can be said for Bubba Ho-Tep, which is one of
those enjoyable flicks that is hard to fit into a box, but a lot of fun to
watch, nevertheless. --SF
Main Review Page | Horror Reviews |Email Me |Buy This DVD Right Here!