26.10.11

Forgotten Frights, Oct. 26: Bubba Ho-Tep



BUBBA HO-TEP (2002)

Section of the cinematic cemetery: The crotchety, yet charming crossroads between Grumpy Old Men, The Mummy and Evil Dead 2

Cause of (premature) death: Definitely not the reviews. It maintains a 78% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and got high marks from tough horror critics like Ebert and Travers. But the lower budget, B-movie name and Bruce Campbell-led cast made it only really appeal to niche nerd like us. 

What its tombstone would read: An old dude who thought he was the real Elvis and a black, wheelchair-set man who was convinced he was JFK defended their East Texan nursing home by taking on the hick mummy that haunted its halls and robbed its residents of their actual last breaths.

Why it needs to be revived: Did you read the last category? I mean, could there be a more original and intriguing horror comedy in the world? And what makes it even better is that, unlike many an awesomely titled indie genre flick, this one is legitimately decent, following through on its ridiculous story every single slightly slippery step of the way and wrangling what I think may just be the best Bruce Campbell  performance ever. Its not a scary monster movie by any means, but its monstrously funnyand creative, to cowboy boot. If the thought of a hunk of no longer burnin love walker-ing towards a slow-moving undead Egyptian in rodeo gear sounds like the best thing youve yet to see, its because it really is.

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