TME Reviews: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
Review By Sean McQuillan
Release Date: February 17, 2012 (3D/2D theaters)
Directed by: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Screenwriter: Scott M. Gimple, Seth Hoffman, David S. Goyer
Starring Nicolas Cage, Fergus Riordan, Johnny Whitworth, Ciaran Hinds, Violante Placido, Idris Elba, and Christopher Lambert
Studio: Columbia Pictures (Sony)
Genre: Action, Adventure
Rating: PG-13 (for intense sequences of action and violence, some disturbing images, and language)
The Rider is back! This time he’s on the other side of the world protecting a young boy and his mother from the devil and his minions.
Wow. Just wow. I don’t know where to begin with this movie. If you were expecting a sequel to the 2007 Ghost Rider that’s not really what you got. If this didn’t share Cage between the movies it would feel completely unrelated, much like the two Punisher movies. This movie is coarse, raunchy, and a while being tons of fun. It has some moments that will make you laugh at the sheer randomness of it, and some that will just leave you mouthing a silent “WTF”?
This movie is part Grindhouse, part Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead. The Rider is a whole different character in this flick and really seems like the flaming manifestation of Cage’s personal brand of crazy. The rider has less than 5 words of dialogue in the whole film, so it falls to his effects to carry the performance.
The effects of the Rider are, like the movie, much darker and grim. Comparing to the original the effects, like the rider, seem drastically different in tone. I feel the 2007 effects looked better, but with the film direction taking such a drastic turn I feel that the effects, rightly, followed suit. Just rewatch the trailer showing the rider pissing like a flamethrower, it’ll show you exactly what I’m talking about. One effect I do want to mention is the 3D conversion the movie sports. It is just awful, and if you can see it without the 3D, do so. It’s not bad enough to ruin the experience, but it’s overly distracting.
The story is basic, devil wants boy, rider protects boy, lots of people and things blow up. The rider is promised that his curse will be lifted if he can save the boy. The story doesn’t banter around with much back story or character development. Apart from Johnny Blaze, and the Rider, most of the characters don’t get enough screen time to be developed.
Cage is back and channeling his inner-cage in force. He chews the scenery so hard that he overshadows anyone sharing the scene with him. I like Idris Elba’s character, but we didn’t see him enough. We don’t have Peter Fonda as the Devil anymore and his replacement, like much of the cast, doesn’t leave a lasting impression.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is a movie that is so bad it’s good. It certainly left me scratching my head but it was entertaining. I’d give it a Matinee.
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