Did anyone like Ghost Rider? Yeah, the 2007 film starring Nicholas Cage as the titular character? I guess not that many people would remember it these days, but it was one of the many anticipated films that viewers wanted to see prior to Spider-Man 3's release.
Over two years since the movie came out, I still find it hard to believe that I actually enjoyed it... for the effects at least. It was one of those movies that looked kick ass from the trailers because of the character - one of Marvel Comics' dark and cool supernatural creations. Once I saw the movie though... I tried too hard to enjoy it. Every conceivable flaw that people saw was overlooked by me, and I tried to be optimistic about Cage's acting - which is decent, but nothing hardcore to say the least.
The premise was simple - A stunt daredevil biker named Johnny Blaze makes a deal with the demon Mephisto in order to save his Dad. Unfortunately, the deal turns sour and Johnny gets more than he bargained for when he gets turned into the Ghost Rider. As a Spirit Of Vengeance, Ghost Rider's mission was to punish and bring judgment to whoever committed unspoken acts of evil... but under Mephisto's leash and contr He eventually turned against Mephisto, and has since waged a war against him and those that would do evil to others.
So in the end, the film was... B-movie quality at best. It had a poor and predictable plot for one thing, and the villains were pansies who fell easily to the Rider's powers as compared to the baddies we saw in the Spider-Man and X-men films. Even the supporting characters were given less screen time, most especially the "other" Ghost Rider, Carter Slade. Things were treated more like a comedy rather than a dark tragedy, and even the romance was downplayed. In short - we got a lot of Nic Cage and less of the brutality found in the comics. The ride was fun... but not thrilling enough.
With the first film in the books, it wasn't long before talks of a sequel were up on the horizon. The filmmakers were ambivalent about such a thing happening... but not Nic Cage. As a comic book fan himself, he's very much invested in trying to pitch a new Ghost Rider movie, and MTV.com just posted a story about the actor's progress. He's still looking for a writer and a director to help him make the film... but it won't be a sequel. Cage is looking towards the lines of a "reboot" for the franchise, and his adventures will take him to Europe, where the Rider will team up with the Catholic Church to do battle with the forces of evil. This is just an idea up the air, but if this manages to fly, then I sincerely hope that GR2 will please fans more than the first film did.
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