Opening

87% Star Trek Into Darkness May 16
22% Erased May 17
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44% The English Teacher May 17
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—— Populaire May 17
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Coming Soon

—— The Hangover Part III May 23
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—— Epic May 24
94% Before Midnight May 24

Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)

tomatometer

72

Average Rating: 6.1/10
Critic Reviews: 29
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 8

The best movie to star both the King and JFK.

audience

76

liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 54,766

My Rating

Movie Info

An ancient evil finds resistance in the most unlikely of places in this oddball comedy horror effort from Phantasm director Don Coscarelli. Resting in the confines of a Mud Creek, TX, nursing home after fading into obscurity following his departure from the limelight, an aging and embittered Elvis (Bruce Campbell) befriends a delusional patient named Jack (Ossie Davis) who claims to be John F. Kennedy. It seems that at the height of his popularity Elvis had switched identities with a convincing

R,

Horror, Comedy

Joe R. Lansdale, Don Coscarelli

May 25, 2004

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Cast

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All Critics (107) | Top Critics (29) | Fresh (89) | Rotten (22) | DVD (39)

A mismatched marriage of offbeat character study and unimaginative horror riffs.

September 24, 2007 Full Review Source: Variety
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Writer-director Don Coscarelli piles on unpleasant details and cynical asides as if they were the stuff of wisdom, though they seem intended to produce guffaws rather than thoughts

September 24, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comments (3)
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

This absurdly clever caper is elevated by Bruce Campbell's pensive Elvis into a moving meditation on the diminutions of age and the vagaries of fame.

August 14, 2007
Rolling Stone
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There's plenty of scatological humour and knockabout fun to get one through the slower passages.

February 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Fry up a peanut butter and 'nana sandwich, hop in your Cadillac and take one last ride with the King.

April 8, 2004
Arizona Republic
Top Critic IconTop Critic

It gets by on a kind of demented charm.

January 30, 2004 Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee
Sacramento Bee
Top Critic IconTop Critic

An original horror movie worthy of your attention; original horror movies are hard to come by these days...

April 29, 2009 Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed
Cinema Crazed

Don Coscarelli still doesn't know how to make cookie-cutter genre films. Let's hope he never learns how.

August 11, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com
eFilmCritic.com

Elvis is in a geriatric care centre with JFK (who's black) and he's got to kick some ancient Mummy ass. What else is there to say?

June 21, 2007 Full Review Source: Film Scouts
Film Scouts

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.

April 1, 2006 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine
Empire Magazine

It's outrageous and full of novel ideas that will tickle the fancy of anyone who is stimulated by the absurd.

February 18, 2005 Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile
Urban Cinefile

There may be some deeper meaning to all this madness about living beyond your prime and regret, but it just barely escapes me how it all fits in

December 27, 2004 Full Review Source: Bangitout.com
Bangitout.com

the true horror here, far from being some middle-eastern revenant in a cowboy hat, is the indignity of disease, the anonymity of old age, and the inevitability of death

October 30, 2004 Full Review Source: Movie Gazette

A sharply written, surprisingly moving little film with a terrific performance by Bruce Campbell.

October 19, 2004 Full Review Source: ViewLondon
ViewLondon

A fiendishly funny comedy horror.

October 6, 2004 Full Review Source: BBC

Audience Reviews for Bubba Ho-Tep

Bubba Ho-Tep is a fun and original horror comedy from Phantasm director Don Coscarelli. What makes this a must see for horror fans is its ridiculous premise that is brilliantly constructed to be entertaining and memorable from the first frame onwards. Coscarelli has a gift to create great horror films that bring something unique to the genre and he does it with effective ease with this feature starring B movie icon Bruce Campbell. This is one of the best low-budget horror comedies in recent memory and it proves that Don Coscarelli is a formidable talent in the genre. This is a must see for horror buffs and aside from the Phantasm series, Bubba Ho-Tep is one of the best movies in Coscarelli's career. The film has a smart script aided by terrific performances from its cast and strong, immaculate directing. If you come across this gem, pick it up, and watch it with friends. This is among the best films that Bruce Campbell has starred in since Maniac Cop and Army of Darkness. This is a fun film worth seeing, and if you're tired of seeing remakes that butcher classics, definitely check this one out. Coscarelli and Campbell have created something special here and Campbell delivers in the role of Elvis Presley, which along with his performance as Ash Williams, is among his best. Bubba Ho-Tep is destined to be a modern day classic and hopefully Bruce Campbell and Coscarelli will work again on a future project. With the result displayed on-screen here, it's sure that it will be a memorable outing like this one.
January 1, 2013
TheDudeLebowski65
Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski

Super Reviewer

it wasn't nearly as funny as I thought it was going to be or as entertaining, but it was decently entertaining and kind of funny
November 2, 2012
michael e.
Michael Edwards

Super Reviewer

    1. Elvis Presley: Come and get it, you undead sack of s^#@.
    – Submitted by Charles R (3 months ago)
    1. Kemosabe: Asshole! Asshole!
    – Submitted by Simon O (16 months ago)

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Latest News on Bubba Ho-Tep

July 7, 2010:
Paul Giamatti Promises Bubba Nosferatu
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August 23, 2007:
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May 5, 2007:
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Foreign Titles

  • Bubbah Ho-Tep (UK)
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