Rating: 
Summary: Elvis lives! (or not)
Review: I was one of those rare people that did not like "Army of Darkness" so when "Bubba Ho-tep" was released I had no desire to see it. However, I have always liked Bruce Campbell so I waited until "Bubba Ho-tep" was released on DVD before watching it. I have to say I was thoroughly entertained. Yet most of the people I know that liked "Army of Darkness" were terribly disappointed. So if that is any basis for seeing or not seeing, purchasing or not purchasing "Bubba Ho-tep" then you must be the judge. This is a quirky and weird little movie that you cannot label and is difficult to describe; you simply have to experience it. "Bubba Ho-tep" definitely has a "cult" "B-movie" feel to it that is irresistibly appealing. Bruce Campbell is brilliant as an older "Elvis" and Ossie Davis is his usual professional best as "JFK". The dialogue is well written with a clever and very unique plot (a rarity these days in cinema). Since I am a big fan of "Pulp Fiction", "Desperado" and films of this genre I think the musical offerings of these films is one of their most appealing qualities and "Bubba Ho-tep" continues in this style of "surfer, late 60's" music. Obviously, this film is not going to win any academy awards but it is still a great little movie. The DVD is loaded with extras which are both entertaining and informative and the quality is top notch, in my opinion, so it is well worth the buy.
Rating: 
Summary: Hail to the Superannuated King, Baby!
Review: Let Me Guess: You're probably thinking about seeing or getting this movie because of Bruce Campbell, right? After all, He did kick much monster backside as Ash in the "Evil Dead" films and "Army of Darkness," and had some of the most quotable dialogue this side of Humphrey Bogart in the process. And here he plays Elvis, the referent of that oh-so-famous line of infinite cool spoken at the close of "Army of Darkness". You can taste the longing-he wouldn't tease us with such a cruel joke like that, would he? Playing Elvis in a low-budget Monster movie that does nothing but just fall apart? It just wouldn't be right. So you're hoping that maybe, just MAYBE, this one can catch just a glimmer of the brilliance shown on that dark day at S-Mart...is that too much to ask?
Fear not, gentle viewer.
As you may already know, Campbell plays a not-so-gracefully-aging and nearly-bedridden Elvis (or Elvis Impersonator, we're never quite sure) who is wasting away what is left of his life in a run-down East Texas nursing home. The cause? He has never fully recovered from a broken hip suffered when he fell on stage at a concert. Elvis teams up with Ossie Davis (playing a black JFK with a head full of sand), and together they try to solve the home's bug problem. Meanwhile, their fellow patients are starting to drop like flies under the appetite of Bubba Ho-Tep, a soul-sucking Egyptian mummy in snakeskin boots now unleashed upon their collective golden years. Can Elvis and JFK save the nursing home? How in the world did an Egyptian mummy land in East Texas anyway?
For maximum enjoyment of this picture, you must not think of it as a serious movie release, but as the best "B-movie" ever made. The Effects? Cheesy and straight out of the '50s, but it fits the model of the low-budget B-movie. The Plot points? as preposterous as a B-flick should be, but the difference here is that they are all exposed and deftly explained into believability. Further, you will accept the story without losing the ability to laugh at the sheer absurdity of it all. Bruce, Ossie, and the rest play their roles to the hilt, too, resulting in a cheesy, preposterous B-movie comedy that avoids the kiss of death that comes from everyone knowing "The Big Joke". Here, the characters never get "The Big Joke," and the movie is marvelous as a result. Director Don Coscarelli deserves mucho kudos for his effort on this one.
Rating:
Summary: Bruce Campbell is the KING BABY!
Review: I loved this movie. I have seen other people call this a B-Horror movie. While it is partly, it is much more than that. This is a great comedy and actually even a moving drama. There is much more to this movie than you would expect to find.This movie is alot of fun, and the reason for that is a brilliant performance by Bruce Campbell, and that is not an exageration. He gives a hilarious and even touching performance, that is a tribute to Elvis. If you are an Elvis fan, Bruce Campbell fan, or a fan of good Film than you will like this movie. You can't help but fall in love with the KING.
Rating: 
Summary: It's certainly original.
Review: This is that oft-told tale of a decrepit Elvis finding a new purpose in life when he teams up with JFK to fight the soul-sucking mummy feeding off their fellow residents at an East Texas rest home. The movie is okay, but not the brilliant piece of work that the gushing reviewers would have you believe. If you're a Bruce Campbell fan looking for another Evil Dead II, this ain't it. It's got the low budget and tons of camp, but its missing that touch of greatness that seperated E.D. II from, say, Army of Darkness. Still worth a look, though--at least for those whose tastes run to the unconventional. Oh yeah-- The special features are pretty good.
Rating:
Summary: Hail to the king, baby.
Review: I won't bother describing the plot, since other reviwers have already. Well, O.K., here's the lowdown: Elvis didn't really die, but instead switched places with a guy who was the spitting image of him and had studied him closely enough to actually pass for him. The imitator who everyone thought was the real Elvis then died and the actual Elvis who everyone thought was just an imitator grew old and went to a retirement home, spending the days laying in bed missing his glory days and being taken care of by nurses and wondering if his family would even bother to visit him if they knew he were still alive. Then one night he gets attacked by a rather large bug, then sees a ghastly figure walking down the hall. It turns out the retirement home is being stalked by the spirit of a mummy that is consuming the souls of the elderly residents. Now only the king and a fellow retiree, a black man who belives he's JFK (who claims his skin was dyed black as part of an elaborate conspiracy,) stand in the way of the monster they nickname "Bubba Ho-Tep". The movie certainly isn't anywhere near as over-the-top as the Evil Dead films, yet it maintains much the same kind of shlocky, horror movie-spoof humor. The preformances are, as mentioned many times before, excellent, the script actually presents a story of Elvis surviving that's truelly beliveable. (The supposed tale of Jack Kennedy being disguised as a black man and having his brain replaced with saw dust is not at all believable, but then for all we know the black man played by Ossie Davis could well just be some delusional old coot who only thinks he's JFK.) I guess the film's only weakness is just the limits put on it by it's minscule budget, but you have to admire the filmakers for what they were able to do for the little amount of money they had and it just goes to show that it's more the talent and attention to story that really makes a movie, not the budget or state-of-the-art special effects. Well, O.K., one more complaint. (DO NOT read the rest of this paragraph if you haven't seen the ending yet.) During the end battle Elvis sets the mummy on fire twice. The first time the mummy gets back up and seems to be hardly bothered, but then Elvis just sets him on fire again and the mummy falls down again and this time apparently we'er just supposed to accept the idea that this time the mummy won't come back. If he/it survived one burning, how do we know he won't get back up again? How would being burned a second time do the trick when the first time failed? Anyway, then we have the extras. There are a few behind-the-scenes documentaries, a scene with the writer of the book this is based on reading the first few pages of his book to us while we are shown an artist's drawings of Elivs in the rest home, two deleted scenes with optional commentary by Bruce Cambel and the director (forget his name), a music video and two commentary tracks, one by Cambel and the director, the other by Bruce Cambel as the king himself. Not the version of Elvis from the movie, but an Elvis who, the joke being, is supposedly in an "undisclosed location" who has never seen the movie before and has been asked to share his thoughts as he sees the film for supposedly the first time. This Elvis played by Cambel actually acts as a pretty harsh critic of the film. "What's with all this talk about penises and erections? This better not be a porno movie!" "Why is this guy always in bed? Why's he got that gut hanging out? I've gotten in pretty good shape myself." "What's with all the profanity? I guess that's what you need in these modern movies. I would have just said,'Take that, you overgrown bug!'" "Why am I smoking a cigar? I never did that. You could get kids started on that." "I can't tell who the heros are! One's a cranky old codger and the other one keeps ranting on a bunch of nonsense." "This director seems obsessed with bathroom humor. I don't think we need any of that!" "You know, you'd think they'd be able to slip at least one of my songs in here. Why didn't they?" "Why's he acting so nasty to the nurse? I always knew how to respect the ladies." Ahem. Well, anyway, you get the picture. This is one to watch for.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie..A must see
Review: This movie was great. I was able to see the movie a couple of months ago and was able to meet and talk to Coscarelli, Landsdale, and Campbell. Some parts of the movie had me laughing so hard I cried! Buy this movie---you won't be dissapointed (unless you have absolutely no sense of humor and wouldn't know a good movie if it bit you in the ass).
Rating:
Summary: fun
Review: I got quite a few laughs out of this one. First time Ive seen anything Bruce Campbell related. Of course since this is an independent film you get all these artsy people trying to write 3 page reviews. Theres nothing to explain! Its a straight forward funny movie period.
Rating: 
Summary: Cinematic Tripe
Review: There is no question that "Bubba Ho-Tep" is one of the worst movies ever put to celluloid. The depravity starts with the opening scene where we see Bruce Campbell lying in bed spewing a stream of profanity and attempting to sound like an bad Elvis impersonator. And, the movie just decends from there with egregious special effects and sub-par acting (especially from the typically wonderful actor, Ossie Davis). I was definitely expecting much more from Bruce Campbell - I have been a fan of his for many years and really enjoy most everything he does. However, this movie made him look ridiculous and failed to be even somewhat entertaining. If I can even give this movie one bit of praise it would be that it had one interesting effect near the beginning when Bruce Campbell sees time passing at a great rate. Although, even this effect is over used, just as the profanity was throughout the film. If you want to see a well-done movie with good acting, avoid "Bubba Ho-Tep" at all costs.
Rating:
Summary: The King of Rock vs. The King of the Dead
Review: Bubba Ho-tep, released in extremely limited fashion (there were only about six or seven prints produced, so availability at a theater near you wasn't something you may have heard unless you lived in or near a major metropolitan area) way back in 2002, finally makes it's way to DVD, and, in my humble opinion, is worth every penny. Now maybe I'm a little biased (okay a lot) as the film was based on a short story by Joe R. Lansdale (I love his fictional stuff; The Two Bear Mambo is a wonderful book), directed by Don Coscarelli, who's written and directed the four Phantasm films (the first one being the only one really worth a damn), and starring acting legends Ossie Davis and Bruce Campbell (okay, Bruce may not be in the same league as Ossie, but if you know your horror movies, then a little film like Evil Dead and it's subsequent sequels will have you certainly recognize him). The movie ventures into the realm of 'what if...' in asking what if Elvis didn't die? What if, way back when, he became so tired of the life that he switched places with an impersonator named Sebastian Huff, and the impersonator was the one who passed away and the real Elvis (Campbell) has been, due to an accident causing a comatose state, residing in a Texas rest home for the last 20 or so years? And what is the same home also houses a man named Jack (Davis) who believes he's really JFK, and has had a piece of his brain removed, and it's now in the White House, powered by batteries...oh yeah, he was also dyed black as part of the overall conspiracy. Is it absolutely necessary to believe that each of these characters is whom they claim they are to enjoy the film? I don't think so...although Campbell's character offers a very credible story to back up his claim, while Davis' character seems more like just your general-purpose delusionoid. Anyway, the story centers on a spate of deaths within the rest home. On the surface, they seem to be due to old age, but Jack and Elvis soon realize something more sinister is at work, namely a 4,000-year-old Egyptian force spirit forced to walk the Earth and consume souls for survival. How this spirit ended up in a Podunk Texas town feeding on the elderly in a rest home is better told by the film than myself, but it is plausible, within the context of the film. But to say this is an action/horror type film would be misleading...Bruce Campbell calls it a 'redemptive Elvis/horror film'...you see, much of the film is Elvis coming to terms with his age, and the fact the his life, when he was at the height of fame and fortune was pretty shallow. The film is peppered with flashbacks and dream sequences, which, along with the actual investigation by Jack and Elvis, ultimately create a rather slow pacing for the film throughout. Also, given that the elderly age of the main characters, you really can't expect a whole lot of action filled sequences. The mummy storyline almost takes a backseat to Elvis' contemplative ponderings, and may put off a lot of viewers who have certain expectations of the film, specifically involving the horror elements. The film also scratches the surface of the patronizing treatment of the elderly, especially the infirmed and/or disabled, which tend to create an underlying level of sadness, especially in terms of Campbell's character, as we can easily recall stories of his virility and power, and now the notion is reduced to a somewhat feeble old man with a bad hip and little or nothing to offer for all his accomplishments. This element would certainly drag the film down for a lot of viewers, but it serves really well to develop the character, and provide motivation later on in the film. I actually found this element to be intelligent and well thought out, and really served nicely to flesh out the character. In a sense, this film reminded me a bit of the Burt Lancaster/Kirk Douglas film Tough Guys (1986), that involved two old time gangsters released from extremely long prison terms and faced with having to deal with a drastically different world, trying to come to terms and fit in, but finally realizing that they have to follow their own paths, remain true to who they are, despite the consequences. Davis is really good in his part, creating a sense of believability despite the inherit and obvious differences between his character and JFK, and Campbell so inured in his own character, projecting all the familiar mannerisms we've seen so many times with the real Elvis, that one can't help but believe he is who he says he is...Coscarelli does a great job despite an extremely limited budget bringing this story to life, and, while I normally despise the excessive use of flashbacks and dream sequences, they were utilized well here, adding to the story instead of merely providing padding to the running time. I am pretty familiar with Lansdale's work, in comics and novels, and the screenplay does seem to stay true to his particular style of writing, which I really appreciated. The wide screen picture here looks beautiful and the sound is clear can crisp. The special features included are many including a cardboard slipcase for the plastic DVD case, a commentary track by Coscarelli and Campbell, another commentary by Campbell in his 'King' persona, a theatrical trailer and TV spot, Lansdale reading from Bubba Ho-tep, deleted scenes with optional commentary track, 'making of' featurettes involving the film, costumes, music, and make-up and special effects, a music video, a photo gallery, and a 12 page scrapbook with behind the scenes photos with personal notes from the director and Campbell. By the way, I can't wait for the sequel, Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires...but I won't hold my breath... Cookieman108
Rating:
Summary: "Like a pigeon having a heart attack."
Review: In the hilarious campy comedy "Bubba Ho-Tep" Elvis (Bruce Campbell) didn't die. He's spending his twilight years full of regrets in a dumpy rest home. The staff at the rest home seems to think Elvis isn't really Elvis but just another Elvis impersonator. But things aren't all bad. Yes, the old folks may be dropping like flies, but Elvis is in auspicious company. He's sharing room and board with JFK. The puzzling thing is that JFK (Ossie Davis) is now black (he claims he was dyed black) and following the shooting in Dallas, he's lost part of his brain. Elvis and JFK are spurred into action by a soul-sucking mummy who rampages through the halls of the rest home. The film is laced with flashbacks of stardom and stage performances, and the commentary from Elvis was so crudely funny, I laughed till my sides hurt. I haven't seen a film so campy in years, but the film, apart from being hysterically funny, has a serious side. The DVD is loaded with extra features. There's a reading of Bubba Ho-Tep from the author, Joe Lansdale, a commentary from Elvis, theatrical trailers, deleted scenes, a section about the make-up, a music video, commentary from the director, Don Coscarelli and Bruce Campbell, a featurette about costumes, and my limited edition copy included a scrapbook--it's terrific value if your tastes run towards over-the-top high camp (and mine do). Finally, I must add that Bruce Campbell did a spectacular job of portraying Elvis. His portrayal of Elvis really made me think consider the possibility of a geriatric Elvis. Bubba Ho-Tep is destined for every cult classic list of must-see films--displacedhuman
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