A must see for comic fans

Rating: Null/10 (24 February 2007)

I stated in my comment for last summer's X-Men: The Last Stand (a movie I loved the first and second viewings, and found many flaws with the third time around) that with 'Stand' and the preview for Ghost Rider that "This could be the beginning of a long line of great Marvel pictures." It seems that I was one of the only fans that thought so as the anticipation for Ghost Rider was lukewarm at best. Critics and moviegoers took notice of the delay from its summer release date and lambasted the unfinished special effects as well as the story. Still, I always maintained that the picture would be nothing short of great. It met my expectations.
Taking cues from the underrated and brilliant John Landis, Ghost Rider mixes comedy and elements of horror perfectly, combined with over-the-top action and an occasionally unusual sound track to form a truly different and highly entertaining motion picture. Simply put, it's the best John Landis-esquire film not to be directed by Landis himself. Writer/director Mark Steven Johnson, almost always reliable in the story department (with the exception of 1998's Jack Frost), provides the audience with the right amount of character development, back-story, and exposition to keep the two hour running time from getting bloated. Directing with attention to detail, Johnson has managed to make a comic book flick seem like an art form as opposed to just a blockbuster extravaganza.
However, credit must also be given to the amazing cast Johnson has put together. Nicolas Cage IS Johnny Blaze. There could have been no substitute. Eva Mendes as love interest Roxanne Simpson, is actually a character as opposed to just eye candy (although there is some of that). Wes Bentley makes for a fantastic villain. Last but not least, is Donal Logue, an actor who despite almost twenty years in the business, has yet to become the gigantic star he deserves to be.
As a fan of the comics, I was not disappointed. My only nit-pick is there were times when it was painfully obvious the filmmakers were forced to stay within the limits of the PG-13 rating (I don't remember a drop of blood in the whole picture). Rest assured, this is nowhere near being the cinematic atrocities of Fantastic Four and Hulk, which are two of the worst movies I have ever seen. This is a must see for comic fans. 9/10