Movie Review: Ghost Rider


Nicholas Cage and Special Effects

My friend, Joey, said that there was an inverse relationship between a movie's plot and the movie's special effects. I've held a similar relationship between Nicholas Cage and plot.

I really liked National Treasure. You can probably find a review of that somewhere on this site. If not, I need to write one. And there were some special effects in National Treasure. And Nicholas Cage was in National Treasure.

Then came Ghost Rider. Well, it wasn't really a "Then came..." situation. But, you get the idea.

I used to like the comic book. I didn't subscribe to it or anything, nor did I buy every single issue when I saw it, but I was drawn, occasionally, to the angst of young stunt man, Johnny Blaze, in his fight against demons and the Great Evil. And that is the catch. The young stunt man. Not the forty-something Nicholas Cage Evil Knievel wannabe. And the five seconds it took for Blaze to "control the fire within" was amazingly reminiscent of little Anakin Skywalker's pathetic turn to the dark side.

But the special effects! Brilliant skull effects! Amazing! The Hell Cycle is awesome! But I got tired of watching him sling that damned chain twice over his shoulder.

Should you see it? Nah. Should you rent it? Only if you share the cost of the rental with at least three other people. I give it two flaming skulls out of seven, just to be weird.

Posted: Mon - February 26, 2007 at 08:24 PM      

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