Ghost Rider

There won't be any Academy Awards for "Ghost Rider," and deservedly so. Great cinema it ain't. It is fun stuff, though, and very much in the spirit of the Marvel comic book of the same name. Nicolas Cage works well in the role; his dead-pan humor is well suited to the role of motorcycle stuntman Johnny Blaze, and the scene in which he attempts to explain himself to his long-lost girlfriend is classic stuff, full of awkward pauses and an eyebrow put to good use.

Granted, things get a little melodramatic from time to time, but that's as it should be. This is, after all, a movie based on a comic book hero, and what superhero worth his heat-vision doesn't indulge in a dose of the melodramatic every so often? It comes with the territory. Still, there's a sense of humor at work here, something that didn't play out well in the "X-Men" franchise and led to that abysmal third installation. There are a good number of laughs in "Ghost Rider." This isn't a movie that takes itself too seriously, which is a nice benefit considering how heavy the subject matter could become. It's rough around the edges, no doubt, and isn't quite up to the same level as the Spiderman movies to date.

I saw an early (11:45 AM) show and the theater was still nearly full. The audience laughed at points that were intended as humorous and even jumped at a couple of scenes. All in all, everyone looked like they were having a good time, from the six year olds with their parents to the older folks like me who were fans of this comic as kids. If you're looking for something fun, "Ghost Rider" isn't a bad bet at all.

I am a Nicolas Cage fan. I love all his comedies and think his serious ones are okay. After seeing the Wicker Man, I lost my respect for Cage in serious films, and went to see Ghost Rider thinking it would be an average movie, but probably easy to make fun of. It was bad. . . very bad. It was funny at times, I will admit that, but Cage just is bad in the role, the story is not very complex and has many plot holes in it. You know it is bad when you go into a movie only wanting to make fun of it and coming out just depressed because it was SO bad. In short, don't see this movie, if you want a superhero movie done right, see Batman Begins or Unbreakable, or basically, any other superhero movie was better than Ghost Rider. Thumbs extremely far down

I remember watching this film the first time and thinking it was just a lot of special effects without a lot of plot. Then I watched it a second time, and started to realize you have to really pay attention to the details to get the story. While not the best adaptation of a comic book (graphic novel if you prefer) to the screen, the special effects are awesome and the photography is Oscar worthy. Cage is Cage, that stoic actor who seems somehow devoid of emotion in most of his films. Mendez is hot, goes without saying, and equals Cage's level of emotion. Sam Elliot and Peter Fonda are the saving graces of the film, both adding a dimension of emotion lacking in the main characters. The prelude scenes of young Johnny and Roxanne are somewhat necessary, but could have been trimmed down to include more footage of the Ghost Rider and his missions. I haven't seen the newest film, just released at this writing, but hopefully the characters have been "fleshed out" and the plot concentrates more on the present than the past. With Cage being the only holdover for the new movie, perhaps the new directors can up the game a bit. The original film is rated PG-13 for violence and language, but nothing the teens haven't seen in their video games. Collectible? If you are a Marvel fan like I am, probably. As as classic film? No way. But entertaining.

I really had a great time watching this film; although i have never been a Ghost Rider Fan, i loved comic books. I had been a Superman fan all my live, but in the comic stores the character of Ghost Rider had some attraction to me, as the non-typical superhero. Now that i saw the movie, i was amazed of the great story behind this guy. A superhero that fight evil of the worst kind!, just great, a combination of a superhero and some horror - type characters; great complement!. It isn't an Oscar worth movie, but is a film to have a good time, is fun, entertaining, with action, and the type of movie that you can see in company with kids. Great special effects and night scenes that put a special charm in the film. Eva Mendes is absolutely beautiful as always!

ABOUT THE MOVIE: Nicolas Cage plays here Johny Blaze, a motorcyclist that used to make dangerous shows with his father Barton Blaze (Brett Cullen), when doctors detected to his father a cancer in his terminal stage, a demon called Mephistopheles (Peter Fonda) offers to save him in change for his soul; Johny do this, but this demon or devil, deceived Johny, when at the next day his father dies on an accident in the show. Johny has his soul sold, and loses his all-life love, Roxanne (Eva Mendes), years later Blaze became a famous motorcyclist, who performed very dangerous shows; with a great team leaded by Mack (Donal Logue) he even jumped over helicopters. Suddenly he meet again with Roxane, but in that moment, Mephistopheles claimed the right for Johny's services, and turn him in a Ghost Rider, one of the servants of the devil that looked at night like a skeleton on fire. Mephistopheles order him to defeat his "cold" son Blackheart (Wes Bentley) who wanted to claim the old contract of San Venganza, with the help of other demons that represented the natural elements earth, water and air; this contract was hidden by a previous Rider to the devil, in order to prevent the possession of 1000 souls!. Blackheart threaten to bring hell to earth with these 1000 demons! Here Blaze mission start as an incredible action quest as this new Rider!

7/10, good work of Mark Steven Johnson in another of his hero movies, and a good performance of Cage and great special effects!. Worth to watch!

This demonic Marvel adaptation is visually groundbreaking, no doubt, but is not an easy ride. Ghost Rider's exaggerated tone and dialogue and hell-driven sequences provides many speed bumps on this less-than-anticipated ride.