If you believe this story so far, then follow it just a bit further. After a bad fall on stage, he quietly retires to an old folks home. At that point, it’s too late to turn back. Who'd believe he was the real King, especially after the contract he signed with the impersonator was accidentally incinerated in a freak BBQ mishap? Nope, there's no way to convince the world he's Elvis. The only one who even slightly believes him is President John F. Kennedy and heck, who's going to take the word of a dead president as the gospel truth? Did I mention this dead president is alive and kicking at the same retirement home that houses Elvis - but that he's been dyed black and had his brain replaced with a sack of sand? That's not exactly the rock-solid sort of confirmation needed to back up such a crazy story.
Okay, that’s the set-up and now here comes the tricky part: Elvis and JFK form an alliance to take on a Egyptian mummy (nicknamed Bubba Ho-Tep by The King) who is sucking the souls out of the elderly residents through their - there's no way to put this delicately - anuses. If that premise alone isn’t enough to make you want to see this movie, then forget it. You have to be able to suspend belief and get into the spirit in order to truly appreciate the comic genius of "Bubba Ho-Tep."
Bruce Campbell is at his best as the elderly, overweight Elvis. Campbell's not asked to sing but he is asked to do a reasonable facsimile of Elvis' drawl. In an impressive performance, Campbell channels Elvis so effectively you'd swear you were watching the real thing, if the real thing wasn’t actually dead and buried going on 26 years now.
Distinguished, versatile and highly respected, Ossie Davis is an unlikely casting choice to play President John F. Kennedy (the actor knew the real Kennedy and never thought he'd play him on screen). Thank goodness Davis took the chance on this movie. His quiet reserve makes him absolutely perfect for this role. When he instructs Elvis on the finer points of hunting a mummy, his delivery is incredibly dignified and that makes funny lines on paper into hysterically funny lines once said aloud.
Director Don Coscarelli (“Phantasm” and its sequels) directs with a campy touch, bringing to life the fantasy world of a retirement home-from-hell filled with unlikely 'dead' heroes chasing down a mummy who favors western wear.
With the hundreds of dopey movies put out during the year, it’s a crying shame this one is getting such a limited release. I’d much rather sit through “Bubba Ho-Tep” a half dozen times than sit through one showing of most of the wide releases offered up this past summer.
Channel your own inner Elvis and check out this riotously funny film.
GRADE: A-
"Bubba Ho-Tep" was directed by Don Coscarelli (cast and crew list) and is rated R for language, some sexual content and brief violent images.
