Ghost Rider looks cool and menacing, but when he starts talking...

Rating: 6/10 (8 April 2007)

First off I'll make this clear: This superhero movie is better then Catwoman, Elektra, Fantastic Four and Blade 3, but it's nowhere near the same quality of an X-men or a Spiderman movie. But don't take this as a great compliment. Nicolas Cage, here, finally get to play a superhero, years after he was in talks for the role of Superman, one could only wonder why did he decided to pick Marvel's B-list Superhero(Ghost Rider could be considered the equivalent as Blue Beetle, Animal Man or Booster Gold) over the main DC Comics superhero, but after seeing this movie I don't know if he has what it takes to be a superhero at all. Anyway, here's the story, young Johnny Blaze signs a deal with a demon who saves his father from dying from cancer, but as a price he become the demon's right hand man turning him into a Ghost Rider. Now as an adult and as a champion daredevil he is given the task of stopping the demon's son and his elemental henchmen from obtaining a scroll with the souls of a small town who hold great power for anyone who chooses to collect them, Blaze not only has to deal with them but he also has to deal with an old girlfriend from his past. Ghost Rider seems to also focus on some aspects of Texan culture, such as country music, stunt shows and bikers(heck even one of the former Ghost Riders sounds just like Johnny Cash). Ghost Rider's a fun movie, the special effects are nice to look(save some parts where it's obviously CG) and has an OK soundtrack, but the real problem is, sadly the plot, the characters and the dialog which turn the whole movie into a cartoon. They did a great job in making the Ghost Rider menacing and cool at the same time, but when he opens his mouth and starts talking, yikes. Nicolas Cage feels out of place in this movie, but at least he does a better job of playing a Texan then an Ukrainian gun smuggler from Lord of War, his dialog is cringe-worthy, but the Ghost Rider's comments sound like bad puns(think Tennage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3: Turtles in Time, watch Angry Movie Nerd's review of it on Youtube, if you don't remember),then it suddenly feels like you're watching a G-rated cartoon despite the fact that this movie does contain some frightening images. Eva Mende's character plays the most understanding(and tolerant) girlfriend I've ever seen and you'll probably forget the villains as soon as the movie's over. Also, don't think too much of the plot, because some things will be immediately obvious to the viewers(the other Ghost Rider) and it's good enough for 100 minutes or so. Bottom line is: If you have some time to kill or a fan of Ghost Rider, but in all you want some fun and easy-going superhero action, check it out. But if you're looking for a superhero movie in the same league as Batman Begins, Spiderman 2, X-men 2 or Richard Donner's Superman, wait for the DVD or go see it in a discount theater.