Ghost Rider Review

Ahh, Ghost Rider. I went into the theater with the hopes that it would be bad. With Mark Steven Johnson at the helm, the man who wrote both Daredevil and Elektra, there was a good chance that it might cross the line of bad into embarrassingly hilarious bad. Sure enough, ten minutes in, they're in a field carving 'Johnny and Roxanne Forever' into a tree. But I still wasn't sure if it was safe to laugh. Was I going to be spoiling the film for others who were really wrapped up in this love story? I gave it another ten minutes and it was clear that the audience had given up hopes and were laughing at things that probably weren't supposed to be funny, like the Ghost Rider's previously unknown power of making everyday shit look bad-ass in his presence, as he does with the motorcycle, jacket, and a shotgun. (yes, to some of us shotguns are everyday objects) But here's the thing. A lot of it WAS supposed to be funny and that's the one point where it did succeed. As a comedy, the movie was alright.

Lifetime comics fan, Nicolas Cage, did a pretty good job. He fit into the role well (though did anyone besides me think he was 'elvis walking' when he first changed into Ghost Rider?). Sam Elliot was a nice surprise as the old cowboy caretaker, a role he could play in his sleep, but the character was kinda wasted if you ask me. Peter Fonda and Wes Bentley as Satan and son were not so good, but again, supplied some laughs.

Overall, pretty subpar. I give it 3 Star Clippies out of 12. You can check out the Ghost Rider movie blog to see video of Nicolas Cage and Eva Mendez answering such hard hitting questions as 'What was it like working with the director?'...'uh...he has a good sense of humor?'

-Nick