Bubba Ho-Tep

“And on the seventh day, God came to rest upon the Earth in the form of Bruce Campbell…”

What can I say, I love the king. When the Angelika sent out newsletter saying that Bruce “Don’t call me Ash” Campbell was going to be at showings for his new movie last Saturday, I nearly wet myself. And that’s looked down upon at my company. Needless to say, I got tickets as soon as I could and rubbed it in the faces of those who could not attend. Although I didn’t get to shake his hand (I probably would have passed out from the excitement), Bruce came down to the front of the theater (about 4 feet from my seat!!!) before the movie and conducted a fun Q&A session before it began. It included him making fun of all of his fans, ridiculing his own lack of true success, mocking other actors, hanging up on someone’s cell phone, and getting laughs from everybody. He really is that awesome. And of course I had my trusty camera, so here are some side shots of the Chin and 3 ladies who just wanted to worship the King. Now, on to the movie…

Bubba Ho-Tep is a movie built upon the reality of the absurd. It takes the most laughable concepts, and wraps them up in a sweet, yet crunchy, tortilla shell. If you don’t know the concept by now, let me sum up to the best of my abilities. Elvis Presley switched lives with an impersonator and is now stuck in an old age home. JFK may have been dyed black and is now hiding out just down the hall from the King. Regardless, these two are the only hope to defend the rest of the old folks from an ancient, soul-sucking mummy. Got it? Not only is this movie hysterical, but it also turns out to be quite touching. Campbell delivers line after line of side-splitting… well… one-liners and Ossie Davis’s deadpan portrayal of a black man who believes he is former President Jack Kennedy is priceless. But the true revelation is in their ability to convey the later years of two great men well beyond their prime, yet pushing to go out on top.

The mixture of comedy, horror, and drama in the most offbeat sense is brilliant and already has me wanting to see it again. The audience enthusiastically agreed as the 92 minutes runtime was filled with hoots, hollers, guffaws, and other types of laughter along with rowdy handclapping and kneeslapping. I highly recommend this film for those with a taste for the unusual.

As a side note, there were some very interesting looking trailers. I’m definitely on the lookout for The Station Agent – about a dwarf who finds interesting companions at an abandoned train depot – and Elephant – Gus Van Sant’s exploration of a school shooting and the reality of teenage life. Then there’s Returner, a Japanese sci-fi action flick that shows some promise, although could be a bust.