Bubba The Redneck Werewolf Review

Mitch Hyman’s underground comic comes to life in this funny horror comedy

2016 marks the 20th anniversary of the “Bubba The Redneck Werewolf” comic book. Originally published in 1996 by Brass Ball Comics and later by Creature Entertainment, the cult classic comic is a wacky parody of monster mayhem and low-brow humor. The comic by creator Mitch Hyman has finally hit the silver screen as a trashy b-movie that lives up to its source material.

The aptly named Cracker County, Florida is a haven for rednecks. The small town is under attack from the Devil (comic creator Mitch Hyman in outlandishly over-the-top make-up). The Devil has shown up looking to make deals with local residents in exchange for their souls. Local dog catcher Bubba, upset his former girlfriend Bobbie Jo (Malone Thomas) has taken up with another man, strikes a deal with the Devil and forgets to read the fine print. The ensuing chaos produces hilarious results for the entire town. Bubba is a lovably blatant redneck stereotype.

It has heart, laughs and decent practical effects.

Bubba ends up transformed into a powerful, cigar-smoking werewolf that kicks butt and takes names later. He becomes a werewolf ala Michael J. Fox in Teen Wolf. Bubba the Redneck Werewolf (Fred Lass under the werewolf prosthetic) will need to save the town from zombies, bikers and the Devil himself using his new powers. But before he tackles those challenges his new werewolf form will down a few beers and hundreds of chicken wings at the local bar. Can Bubba woo Bobbie Jo back into his life as he deals with his new status in town? Bubba goes from local zero to local hero overnight. Mitch Hyman’s devil character is a fun, sarcastic take that riffs on the familiar archetype without getting predictable.

This is a guilty pleasure with its crude jokes and tongue-in-cheek satire of rednecks. Bubba’s fun-loving ways give this low-budget horror comedy a distinctive personality. It has heart, laughs and decent practical effects. No one should confuse it with Citizen Kane but director Brendan Jackson Rogers has given us a campy superhero tale about rednecks starring a werewolf. The movie flows well and provides some funny jokes in its nearly 80 minutes. You can’t really ask for much more from Bubba and his friends.

Bubba The Redneck Werewolf is unrated and distributed by MVD Visual on home video. It runs 77 minutes. The DVD release includes a 16-minute making-of documentary, deleted scenes, blooper reel, make-up process videos, music videos and trailer.