Ghost Riders On The Storm
Posted on | March 11, 2007 at 6:43 pm | 2 Comments
Hey, I actually saw a movie today! In a theater! Bryce and I went to see Ghost Rider. Ghost Rider is not one of my favorite Marvel heroes – I don’t think I even own any GR comics, though I remember reading a few. Nevertheless, it’s a comic book movie, so I had to see it. Here’s my comments, bullet-pointed for efficiency:
- The story was pretty pedestrian and shallow. Standard Faustian scenario. Did not really make me think at all, except for trying to explain away some of the plot holes and figure out exactly what was going on. Could’ve used a bit more exposition. The central conflict between Peter Fonda and Wes Bentley was never really established, other than that they were father and son. I guess teenagers rebel even in hell.
- The effects were nice. You’ll believe a man with a flaming skull can ride a flaming bike.
- Did anyone not see the plot twist involving Sam Elliot’s “Caretaker” character from the moment he was introduced?
- Why did Eva Mendes‘ cleavage/breasts look airbrushed in every scene?
- The villains were the most ineffectual villains I’ve ever seen, even Peter Fonda. Blackheart’s elemental henchmen are so easily dispatched by GR (cuz, he’s ya know… fire, and fire beats all other elements) that it’s a wonder they were included in the movie at all. I guess GR had to have something to do. (At one point, the “water” henchman attacks the Rider for no reason – in fact, if anything he should’ve been escorting GR to his master. That was just one of many things that made no sense.)
- I couldn’t figure out if Nicolas Cage was overacting or underacting. I think he was overacting by underacting. It was like he was doing a favor for some buddies by acting in their student film. Or maybe he was just playing the “Nicolas Cage” character.
- The director, Mark Steven Johnson, did a better job with Daredevil, I thought. He’s also responsible for the upcoming Preacher adaptation series on HBO, and that makes me a little worried. Oh well, maybe when freed from the confines of the PG-13 feature flick world, he’ll open up.
- The inclusion of the song “Ghost Riders In The Sky” was a nice touch, if a little obvious.
- The theater experience was somewhat wretched, as usual. I guess it takes me not seeing a theater movie for a long time in order to make me appreciate why I don’t do it. The picture framing was off – it was cut off at the top. The print was degrading already and had some vertical lines down the screen for much of the film. One of the speakers was blown and the dialog channel was hard to hear. Several people walked into the theater long after the movie had started (I’d say 30 to 45 minutes in). One of them was a guy with the tallest mohawk I’ve ever seen. Thank God he didn’t sit down in front of me. I swear the spikes were at least a foot tall. Bryce wondered how he could fit in a car, and figured he must ride a motorcycle.
Wait for DVD!
Latre.
Category: Movies
Comments
2 Responses to “Ghost Riders On The Storm”
March 12th, 2007 @ 7:32 pm
Saying Daredevil was a better movie is not a ringing endorsement. I may even skip the DVD.
Preacher is getting adapted for HBO? I might have to subscribe.
March 12th, 2007 @ 8:54 pm
Saying Daredevil was a better movie is not a ringing endorsement.
I’m one of the few people who didn’t think Daredevil was that bad (especially the Director’s cut). But yeah, it could’ve been so much better. In the wake of the success of Sin City and 300, it would be interesting to see what a real auteur could do with Miller’s Daredevil/Elektra material. But alas, we’ll never see that.