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Movies / On DVD / Bubba Ho-Tep
Bubba Ho-Tep

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Bubba Ho-Tep (2003)

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Reviews Counted:8

Fresh:5

Rotten:3

Average Rating:5.6/10

Consensus: The best movie to star both the King and JFK.

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: Don Coscarelli's BUBBA HO-TEP finds Elvis Presley (Bruce Campbell) alive but not so well, living in a small Texas nursing home. Although he's preoccupied with his ailments and his memories, the... Don Coscarelli's BUBBA HO-TEP finds Elvis Presley (Bruce Campbell) alive but not so well, living in a small Texas nursing home. Although he's preoccupied with his ailments and his memories, the elderly Elvis befriends another resident who thinks he's John F. Kennedy (Ossie Davis) when they both begin to suspect that their neighbors aren't dying of natural causes. Their investigation leads to the discovery of an evil mummy with a fondness for cowboy gear and an appetite for the souls of senior citizens. Armed with little more than a walker and a wheelchair, the King and JFK must take on this ancient evil. Based on a short story by Joe R. Lansdale, BUBBA HO-TEP mixes comedy, drama, and horror to create a remarkably quirky film. As the aged and ailing Elvis, Campbell gives an outstandingly funny and poignant performance, while Davis exudes intelligence and warmth as JFK. Although horror is a key element of the story, much of the movie focuses on the life of Elvis and his new friendship with the former president, leading to many oddly comical scenes and even a few genuinely touching moments. Of course, their embalmed foe and his creepy minions must be confronted, making this the first movie about Elvis and JFK to appeal to horror enthusiasts, or, conversely, the first horror movie to appeal to Elvis and JFK enthusiasts. Either way, it's a highly unconventional tale that no adventurous filmgoer should miss. [More]

Starring: Bruce Campbell, Ossie Davis, Ella Joyce, Larry Pennell

Starring: Bruce Campbell, Ossie Davis, Ella Joyce, Larry Pennell, Bob Ivy, Daniel Roebuck, Reggie Bannister

Director: Don Coscarelli

Director: Don Coscarelli
Screenwriter: Don Coscarelli
Producer: Don Coscarelli
Studio: Vitagraph Films

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Bubba Ho-Tep

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1 - 8 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, but there's enough here to entertain even those for whom 'cult' is a four-letter word.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/01/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There’s plenty of scatological humour and knockabout fun to get one through the slower passages.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Nigel Floyd
Nigel Floyd
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A fiendishly funny comedy horror.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
10/06/04
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
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A mismatched marriage of offbeat character study and unimaginative horror riffs.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
09/24/07
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
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It has the damnedest ingratiating way of making us sit there and grin at its harebrained audacity, laugh at its outhouse humor, and be somewhat moved (not deeply, but somewhat) at the poignancy of these two old men and their situation.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/17/03
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Writer-director Don Coscarelli, maker of such potent cult films as Phantasm and The Beastmaster, fails to come up with enough incidents and action to make this overly leisurely picture the zany fun it means to be.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
10/02/03
Kevin Thomas
Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Ho-Tep is a punch line in search of a setup.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
09/25/03
Elvis Mitchell
Elvis Mitchell
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A zinger-filled crowd-pleaser that open-minded Elvis fans (but by no means all) will have fun with.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
08/21/02
David Hunter
David Hunter
Hollywood Reporter
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1 - 8 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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