The King vs. the King of the Dead
Sebastian (Bruce Campbell), and Jack (Ossie Davis) are two delusional elderly care centre patients. Sebastian, an Elvis impersonator, believes himself to be the real deal (or is he?). Jack, on the other hand, is convinced that he is John F. Kennedy and that Lyndon Johnson has dyed his skin, taken part of his brain, and placed him in the home.
When greater than usual numbers of residents pass away everyone else writes it off as normal care home attrition, but Sebastian and Jack grow suspicious that something is amiss. Their fears are confirmed when Sebastian is attacked by an oversized cockroach and, Jack, by an Egyptian mummy in cowboy getup, which Sebastian dubs “Bubba Ho-Tep”, roughly translating to "Redneck Pharaoh".
It turns out that the mummy was part of a display stolen from a nearby museum and then lost in the creek by the centre when a storm hit, causing the thieves to crash their van. It then became reanimated and escaped. They discover that the mummy feeds on human souls, which he then proceeds to fire down the visitors toilet. Naturally deciding that this ghoul using their home as a smorgasbord is an untenable situation for them, and realizing that nobody would take their story seriously, they decide it is up to them to fight the creature themselves.
Bubba Ho-Tep is a horror-comedy like no other. It's not every day that you get to see Elvis and a black JFK take on a hillbilly mummy at a care home using an electric wheelchair and a walker. Bruce Campbell, who is obviously in his element in a picture like this, is fantastic, and Ossie Davis is at least as funny as "JFK". It's never really explained why exactly this mummy is dressed in cowboy gear (maybe he just wanted to fit in while in Texas), but by the time you wrap your head around the over-all premise of this movie, a little thing like that shouldn't cause you to bat and eyelash.
Essentially, that's the great thing about thing movie; it is ridiculous and out-there enough that it feels like anything goes, yet it manages to carry forward a plot which includes not only tongue-in-cheek humour, but also suspense, and even a mild scare or two. It also acts as a commentary on the too-often horrendous and neglectful treatment of seniors in our society.
4.5 hieroglyphic toilet graffiti's out of 5
Rated 18A for language, some sexual content and brief violent images.
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