Bubba Ho-Tep (DVD)
Written and Directed by: Don Coscarelli
Starring: Bruce Campbell, Ossie Davis

Are you sick of all of those annoying nerds that, when not quoting the Simpsons constantly, talk about how much they love Bruce Campbell and the Evil Dead movies? I don’t know how many times I’ve been at a video store and overheard this discussion: “Have you seen the Evil Dead? It’s fuckin’ hilarious! ‘GROOVY’ ahahahha The third one isn’t as good though.” Don’t get me wrong, I love the Evil Dead movies and Bruce Campbell as much as the next guy, I just hate other people that like it. Well now there’s a whole new reason to hate: Bubba Ho-Tep.

Written and directed by Don Coscarelli (Phantasm series, Beastmaster series) and starring Bruce Campbell (“That guy from those Evil Dead movies! Man he’s fuckin funny.”) Bubba Ho-Tep is an unusual film about Elvis, JFK and an undead mummy. It takes place in a retirement home where the real Elvis Presley is alive and well… and old. Bruce Campbell does a dead on impression of someone doing an impression of Elvis Presley, and is sporting some sweet salt n pepper mutton chops. In a flashback, we see Elvis offer his sequenced jumpsuit to a well known impersonator in return for a normal life. The only catch is if he decides to return to the spotlight, the impersonator must willingly allow him to do so. However, when the contract stating this agreement is lost in an unfortunate barbecue accident, Elvis is doomed to a life of normalcy. That is until he finds himself investigating the disappearance of elderly residents in a southern retirement home. After being attacked by a large beetle, Elvis decides to team up with a fellow resident, played by Ossie Davis (Do the Right Thing) that claims to be John F. Kennedy. His explanation for the fact that he’s black is one that makes complete sense to him. “They dyed me”. By the end of the film we find these two unlikely heroes going into battle against a powerful undead mummy named “Bubba Ho-Tep”.

With such a limited theatrical release, Bubba Ho-Tep found its audience through word of mouth and internet advertising. Obviously the involvement of Bruce Campbell helped in peaking the interest of film nerds around the world. The unusual plot, based on a short story by author Joe R. Lansdale, definitely played a role in the film’s success as well. Most of the humour of the movie comes from the ridiculous ideas and situations. At first I thought the idea of Elvis and JFK fighting a mummy was sort of gimmicky, but luckily the mummy takes a backseat to the story of Elvis himself. The movie spends more time in bed with Elvis, analyzing how he got to the point he’s at in his life. And Ossie Davis’ performance as JFK works only because he truly believes he is the president. In the end, the actual battle against the mummy is sort of overshadowed by the dialogue between these two classic characters.

Of course a movie of this size usually finds its true audience on video. With the popularity of DVDs, a film will sometimes make more money in its video release than it did in theatres. This seems to be the case with Bubba Ho-Tep. Loaded with extras including commentary from Coscarelli and Bruce Campbell, not to mention commentary by Bruce Campbell in character as “The King”, this DVD is definitely worth owning. A cool behind-the-scenes featurette also gives a glimpse into the work that went into turning such an unusual story into a film.

Soon you’ll be visiting the local video store, and behind you two fat nerds will be having a conversation that goes something like this: “Oh man, have you seen this movie? It’s got the guy from Evil Dead in it and he plays Elvis and he fights a mummy. It’s fucking hilarious! It’s not as good as Evil Dead though.” — Jay C.