Thursday, March 01, 2012

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance Just Needs a New Cut: A Movie Review


Directors: Mark Neveldine, and Brian Taylor.

Writers: Scott M. Gimple, and Seth Hoffman.

Cast: Nicolas Cage, Ciarán Hinds and Idris Elba.

To ask the question of which is worse, Highlander II or Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, both rank equally for its contrived plot and its less than stellar sequel to the legend. If there are any redeeming qualities in Spirit of Vengeance, only two items come to mind.

The animation and the art used in Cage's narrated flashback sequence are far more interesting than the tale itself. It has a style reminiscent of the movie Heavy Metal and Ghost Rider travelling to Europe was well sequenced to get viewers up to speed in what happened since the last film. Some of the animated intro even brings recollections of Max Ernst's surrealistic works of art to screen. And the photo-realism in the later pieces of narration makes those few minutes of this film worth it.

But with today’s prices for a 3D film, that is not worth going to the cinema for. This movie was up-converted from a two-dimensional print, and the process was very poor. Producers really need to advertise what movies are true 3D and what are imagined. Also, many have already talked about a muddled script and spotty effects work.

Even for the die-hard few, those members of the audience may have hoped that Lambert could save the day. While the Highlander rarely deviates from his style of acting, he does make the order of warrior-monks look cool. The time he took to train and his willingness to shave his head shows his commitment to this project. The only shame is in how short this segment of the movie was. Also, not many viewers may have recognized Anthony Head at the start of the film. With two icons of pop culture, they are hardly used to improve the film.

The same can be said for the appearances of the Devil (Ciarán Hinds, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy) and his new disciple, Ray Carrigan (Johnny Whitworth). Hinds is a classically trained actor, with plenty of experience to make the role his. For Whitworth, he was a poster boy when he first became an actor. As Blackout, the character is very one-dimensional. He can perfectly belong in an episode of "Stargate Atlantis" as a Wraith, than one of the Twins from The Matrix Reloaded. This essence-sucking villain must also be able to do more than zap life forces. He looks like he can destroy inert matter too.

The self-destructive nature of this film looks in how the character of Ghost Rider has evolved in the story David S. Goyer developed. While Scott Gimple and Seth Hoffman came on board to adapt it, they did not have the comic book knowledge Goyer had. He most likely was adapting from the 90's reboot of the comic book. Also, he used ideas from "Spirit of Vengeance" the rider from a future timeline where he can spit hellfire and look like a charcoaled briquette more than a gleaming white screaming skull.

When this movie hits video, hopefully the producers and directors will see fit to create a director's cut. Much like Highlander II, after so many attempts at the chopping board, somebody is bound to get the treatment right.

Overall: 3 out of 10.

The film's fan page is here:

Spirit of Vengeance's Homepage

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