Eva Mendes Showed Off Her Cleavage to Nicolas Cage in Ghost Rider
Written: Feb 20 '07 (Updated Aug 08 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good special effects. Entertaining movie.
Cons: Slow in few places. Plot is probably too dark for some.
The Bottom Line: Ghost Rider wasn't as good as some other superhero movies but it was still entertaining and worth seeing.
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| dragonfire88's Full Review: Ghost Rider |
I thought that Ghost Rider looked like it would be an interesting, entertaining movie when I first saw some information about it. I have enjoyed many other movies based on comic books, so I was interested in seeing this one even though I hadn't known anything about the character before I learned about the movie.
Johnny Blaze was performing in a motorcycle stunt show with his father Barton. He was in love with Roxanne and the two were planning to go away together because her father didn’t approve of their relationship. Their plans fell apart after Johnny was tricked into selling his soul to Mephistopheles in exchange for his father’s health. Things didn’t work out like Johnny had hoped and he took off, leaving Roxanne behind.
Fifteen years later, Johnny was the star of his own stunt show, making death defying jumps on a regular basis. He was reunited with Roxanne, now a reporter for a television station, before one of his jumps. That night, Mephistopheles showed up to make Johnny go after his son Blackheart and prevent him from getting something very important. Johnny transformed into Ghost Rider, a flaming skeleton, for the first time that night and used his new abilities to deliver vengeance. The next day Johnny met Caretaker, a man that was able to share information about the ghost rider legend.
Ghost Rider was based on a Marvel comic book that started in the 1970's. I recently picked up Ghost Rider Visual Guide so I would know more about the character before seeing the movie. That book did give background information on the character and briefly discuss some of the plots from the comic. Based on what I read in that book, I was able to tell that certain things from the comic book were changed for the movie. The back story for how people became ghost riders was changed a bit, making it less complex. I think the change worked for the movie and it would make it easier for people with no prior knowledge of the character to follow what was going on. It seemed like certain things from the different ghost riders covered in the book were combined for Johnny in the movie.
Ghost Rider began with a short sequence including a voice over that explained the legend of the ghost rider. Something mentioned in that scene would be important later in the movie. The movie then went on to introduce Johnny and the situation that led to him selling his soul before moving on to show Johnny several years later as an adult. The beginning of the movie did move a little slower while everything was being set up. It was necessary to share that information in order for everything else that would happen with Johnny later to make sense. The plot was developed decently and did make sense. There was a conclusion while still leaving the possibility for future movies open. The plot just wasn’t as strong as the plots in other comic book movies like Spider-Man, X-Men or Batman Begins. I wasn’t expecting that, so I wasn’t disappointed with the movie. If people go into seeing this one with their expectations too high, they will more than likely end up disappointed.
There was action in several scenes throughout Ghost Rider. There wasn’t as much earlier in the movie since that part was more focused on introducing the characters and what was going on. A few of the stunt jumps were shown and that really was it until Johnny was an adult. Two of his jumps were shown, both of which were rather extreme. The action really picked up once Johnny transformed into Ghost Rider for the first time. He fought Blackheart and the three demons that were working with him. Ghost Rider also ended up dealing with a few other criminals as well. There was violence in some of those scenes as well as some disturbing images and even one or two things that could be scary for younger viewers. I thought the movie was pushing the PG-13 rating, so parents should be very cautious about taking children to see this. The movie really isn’t for children. At different times throughout the movie, there was a little bit of humor added in. Some of it was rather silly, but it managed to work for the movie. Even with the added lighter moments, this was still a dark movie overall.
Special effects were used effectively throughout Ghost Rider. They were used when Johnny transformed into Ghost Rider or when he changed back into himself. They were also used for the abilities of the demons working with Blackheart and for what Blackheart did to people. When Johnny became Ghost Rider, his motorcycle was also transformed with flaming wheels and it left a trail of fire behind. Effects were used for the abilities Johnny had as Ghost Rider. I thought that the effects were done well and didn’t detract from what else was going on. Because of what the character could do, the movie really wouldn’t have worked without using special effects. When Johnny was in the Ghost Rider form, he interacted well with real people.
Johnny and Roxanne’s relationship was an important subplot without detracting from the other things going on in the movie. They had been in love and prepared to run away together as teenagers. That didn’t happen because of Johnny’s deal with Mephistopheles. Once they met up again as adults, Johnny saw it as a second chance. Things were complicated when Johnny became a ghost rider and he tried to send her away to protect her. There weren’t any sex scenes in the movie, but Johnny and Roxanne locked lips several times. In one scene, Johnny was shown wearing only a towel which did show off his muscled physique. That was it as far as nudity, though Roxanne was frequently wearing lower cut shirts that showed off her cleavage. It did look like she was ready to pop out of a few of those shirts.
Ghost Rider was mainly focused on Johnny and what he was going through. As a teenager, he wanted to be with Roxanne, but he also wanted to help his father which was how he ended up losing his soul. That influenced everything Johnny did after that, causing him to leave Roxanne and repeatedly cheat death with his dangerous jumps. He wanted to try to do the right thing and was conflicted about what he should do. Nicolas Cage was fine in the part. Matt Long was good in the scenes he had early in the movie as the younger Johnny.
From what I read about the comic before seeing the movie, Roxanne seemed like a very important character, especially to Johnny. She wasn’t as developed in the movie as I thought she would be. She was a reporter, which did provide a way for her and Johnny to be reunited, but overall she seemed to be around mostly for eye candy. Eva Mendes really didn’t have a lot to do for the part. Raquel Alessi, the actress that played the younger Roxanne did resemble Mendes. Johnny’s father Barton was only in a few scenes at the beginning of the movie so Brett Cullen didn’t have a lot to do.
Peter Fonda handled the part of Mephistopheles well even though he wasn’t in much of the movie. Blackheart ended up being in more of the movie. He was plotting and after something his father thought was very important. Wes Bentley was fine in the part. Sam Elliot as Caretaker was around in a few scenes and he ended up being very helpful by providing Johnny with information. None of the other characters were around that much or developed.
Main Cast
Raquel Alessi - Young Roxanne
Wes Bentley - Blackheart
Nicolas Cage - Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider
Brett Cullen - Barton Blaze
Sam Elliot - Caretaker
Peter Fonda - Mephistopheles
Matt Long - Young Johnny
Eva Mendes - Roxanne
Director - Mark Steven Johnson
Ghost Rider wasn’t as good as some of the better comic book movies, but it was a lot better than some other comic book movies that ended up as giant messes. I thought the movie was entertaining and I enjoyed it. People that have liked the character in the comic book may also like this movie though they shouldn’t have their expectations too high.
Ghost Rider Reviews
Ghost Rider Visual Guide ~
Other Comic Book/Superhero Reviews
Batman ~ Batman Returns ~ Batman Forever ~ Batman & Robin ~ Batman Begins ~ Batman: The Ultimate Guide to The Dark Knight ~ Elektra ~ Fantastic Four ~ Flash Gordon ~ The Incredibles ~ The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen ~ Lois & Clark: The Complete First Season ~ Lois & Clark: The Complete Second Season ~ My Super Ex-Girlfriend ~ Sky High ~ Spider-Man ~ Spider-Man 2 ~ Superman Returns ~ Superman: The Ultimate Guide to the Man of Steel ~ X-Men ~ X2: X-Men United ~ X-Men: The Last Stand ~ X-Men: The Legend of Wolverine ~ Ultimate X-Men ~ V for Vendetta ~ Zoom ~
Recommended:
Yes
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