There's a lot more pathos, bathos and . . . well . . . "mojo" in "Bubba Ho-Tep" than you'd ever expect from a low-budget horror-comedy about an aging Elvis Presley doing battle with an evil, soul-sucking Egyptian mummy.
As wacky and as out-there as this film is — and some will find it to be simply too much — it's considerably more amusing than many other films with several times its budget.
"Bubba" is refreshingly unpretentious, a breath of cinematic fresh air.
It's a blast, thank you very much.
One sort of hopes the film will catch on with its intended audience, so the promised sequel — "Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires" — will actually come to pass.
"Bubba Ho-Tep" is the reanimated corpse of an Egyptian pharaoh (Bob Ivy), which has been terrorizing the unfortunate residents of Shady Rest Convalescence Home in tiny Mud Creek, Texas. That's also where Elvis Presley (Bruce Campbell) finds himself — that is, if we can believe the claim of this lewd, crude sixtysomething retiree is really the king of rock 'n' roll, rather than a deluded Elvis impersonator named Sebastian Haff.
Our reluctant hero accidentally stumbles on the evil mummy — which is, for some reason, dressed in Western gear — so Elvis enlists the help of Jack (Ossie Davis), an elderly black man who believes he is assassinated U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
However, the two have a hard time convincing anyone they are who they say they are, much less convincing them of a soul-sucking mummy on the loose. So they're forced to take matters into their own hands — using walkers, bedpans and whatever else they can find.
This is an oddly appealing concept for a story, though it is a bit crude at times. In particular, the lasciviousness of the Elvis character grows a little tiresome. But the film is directed and acted with tongue firmly in cheek. And it moves quickly — so quickly at times that you might miss some of the quippy dialogue. (Among the better one-liners is this one: "It's time for A-C-T-I-O-N!" And this one: "Your soul-sucking days are over, amigo!")
Campbell is obviously having fun with the character. Admittedly, his riff on Elvis is awfully familiar to those who know his performances as Ash in the "Evil Dead" movies, but it's still quite entertaining. Always watchable screen-veteran Davis is also fun.
"Bubba Ho-Tep" is rated R for crude sexual humor and references, horror violence (mummy attacks), occasional use of strong sexual profanity, gore, brief sexual contact, brief drug content (references to abuse), and flashes of female nudity. Running time: 92 minutes.
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com