Entertaining, but could've been way better if someone else directed it

Rating: 4/10 (4 June 2008)

Overall, this movie was entertaining, but one of those only worth seeing once. The casting and the plot were good, and the special effects for the Riders themselves were excellent. I'd say the biggest problem was in the directing and especially the editing. Like everyone, I was skeptical after hearing Nicolas Cage would be in the title role, but when you stop and analyze the character of Ghost Rider--a flaming skull, which cannot have many facial expressions--it becomes more acceptable. Nick Cage doesn't really have any expression in his long face, plus he's tall and built, and does have a somewhat ghostly voice. So I figured maybe it wasn't a bad decision after all. But after seeing his performance, truth to tell, his character Johnny Blaze is not much more than a nuisance and a bit of a prick. I love Eva Mendes and was looking forward to seeing her in a Marvel Comics movie as the love interest, but her character Roxanne is depicted so two-dimensionally that you almost feel sorry for her, both the character as well as the actress. Peter Fonda's presence would've been intriguing if it weren't for his bad acting, and on top of the bad directing, it made him almost insignificant. The best-depicted character is Sam Elliot's. He is well-acted and depicted OK compared to the rest, though still not 100% great. What made this movie cheesy was that the comic relief is what predominates most, making this movie almost into a comedy. Even the serious parts are easy to laugh at, I'm afraid. I would've thought that after the flop of "Daredevil", the studio would've known better than to select an amateur like Mark Steven Johnson for what could've been a masterpiece. The problem lies in that all the characters were depicted in a way that was much too comedic. The best scene in this film is the one where the two Riders are riding across the desert side by side, Cage on his motorcycle and Elliot on his fiery horse. I'd still recommend making a remake/indirect sequel, as they are doing with the Hulk.