Ghost Rider

GHOST RIDER

REVIEWED BY CARISSA HORTON

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: violence, supernatural elements

Rated:

One-hundred and fifty years ago, a man (Sam Elliot) sold his soul to Mephistopheles a.k.a. Satan (Peter Fonda), little realizing the consequences of his actions. Roaming the night, he becomes the ghost rider, a supernatural bounty hunter whose sole purpose is to track escapees from hell and drag them back to perdition. Sent to a small town to collect on a debt, essentially evil souls, this ghost rider rebels against the devil, turning his back on the creature he has become and fleeing into the night, refusing the devil’s bidding.

Time passes peacefully and another ghost rider has not yet been chosen until young Johnny Blaze (Matt Long) comes into play. He and his father (Brett Cullen) risk life and limb in their circus’ lives as daredevil motorcyclists. Rather than watch his father die of lung cancer, Johnny enters into an agreement he does not understand and whose ramifications he cannot comprehend. Johnny loses his father anyway for Mephistopheles is a clever and devious liar promising harmony and happiness while delivering only heartache and sadness. Johnny flees from his past, leaving behind Roxanne (Raquel Alessi), his girlfriend, and any hope for a happy and normal future.

But you can’t outrun Satan forever, which Johnny Blaze (Nicolas Cage) learns as he reaches maturity. He is now a world-renowned daredevil, willingly displaying death defying feats to the cheers and jeers of a rabid crowd. Some people say he’s crazy, including his manager Mack (Donal Logue). But Johnny tests his limits for one reason and one alone, to be sure his survival is because of his talent and not supernatural intervention. Just when his life seem to be on track. Just when Roxanne (Eva Mendes) re-enters his world and gives him the promise of happiness. Time stands still for Johnny Blaze when Satan recalls his debt.

There is dissension among the ranks of demons, with ones loosed upon the earth. And it is now time for the ghost rider to reappear, and so Satan calls on Johnny who is left with no choice but to obey. Every evening, Johnny heeds the call of his evil master. He morphs into the ghost rider, a hideous being with a skeletal frame wreathed in fiery flames, wreaking havoc upon the evil and condemning them to hell. His lone opponent, the one he must destroy, is a calculating demon under the name of Blackheart (Wes Bentley). Only Blackheart refuses to accept his fate. His will is hell bent on overthrowing his father, Satan, and his evil intention ultimately leads to a fiery showdown between Ghost Rider and demon in the town defended by that previous ghost rider so many years ago. Who will prevail?

Spirituality and the supernatural are developing into a popular trend in Hollywood. Wherever you look, another film pops to the surface to examine the spiritual thread of evil running rampant through the heavenlies. And as always, they get it a little wrong. So why should Ghost Rider be any different? Men sell their souls to the devil, sometimes out of love, sometimes out of greed, but contrary to a character’s statement that maybe even God is on the side of such men, He isn’t. Selling your soul, either physically or emotionally or spiritually will not win you brownie points with God, no matter the reason. Johnny’s a good man, forced to do evil. But this movie blurs the line and makes you wonder, are his actions evil? In reality, nothing coming from Satan ever does any good. It’s just not possible. Perhaps Hollywood should have taken the time to do a little background research before plunging into something they clearly don’t understand.

On the plus side, there’s the everlasting hope that people who find themselves in Satan’s ranks can be redeemed. That is Johnny Blaze’s hope, that his actions against the evil one who created his dual personality will eventually bring him redemption. He’ll never be able to love or be near friends or family. His path is a dangerous one and he must walk it, all the time praying for a way to right the wrongs committed in the world by Satan’s legions. It’s perfectly clear by the end that Satan utterly regrets his decision to make Johnny Blaze an immortal nemesis. After all, it is Christ who is omniscient and omnipresent, not puny little Lucifer. You do have some odd contradictions in spiritual dogma. For example, the demons cannot enter a certain graveyard and church. However, Blackheart prances into another church, efficiently slaughtering the local priest during a prayer for protection. And rather than give up his sudden immortality, Johnny decides to keep his curse and use it to wreak havoc upon Satan’s followers. But you ask yourself, is he defending the innocent out of a call to justice or out of simple revenge?

Violence is gruesome. Blackheart possesses the talent of sucking the life out of his victims. Their eyes disintegrate into black holes, their cheeks tighten, skin turns dark, and they die. Blackheart himself isn’t a pretty sight when he’s in demon mode, appearing more like a demented and numerously fanged vampire than a man. Other demons crawl up the walls, drooling and thirsting for a body to inhabit. In his metamorphosing Johnny’s skin peels back, revealing flames. The same happens again when his evening of terror is finished. One talent a Ghost Rider possesses is the ability to make his victim experience everything he has caused others to experience. You see visions rimmed in flame of people being shot, mugged, or otherwise molested. The images are brief, but disturbing. And once the torment is complete, a red and black lid encrusts itself over the victim’s eyes and he dies. So gruesome images are highly prevalent throughout this film, with disintegrating demons in human form, grotesquely misshapen images, and shocking jolts to the nervous system.

Sexual encounters are limited strictly to sweet kisses between Johnny and Roxanne. She does, however, wear low-cut shirts that grow very old very fast. Johnny’s shows are also stocked with plenty of cleavage baring female fans shrieking and mincing at him. Language includes uses of sh*t, da*n, s*n of a b**ch, *ss, and other such swearing. Thankfully, the Lord’s name is only abused a few times, and one character even uses the name in reference to God instead of a curse. Nicolas Cage was nothing less than brilliant. He and Eva Mendes and Sam Elliot, no matter how hilarious their dialogue, really pulled through and made the film a serious high-paced, action-pumped ride of mayhem.

A film is nothing without decent villains and this movie is packed with some of the most terrifying, producing stellar performances by Peter Fonda and Wes Bentley. Ghost Rider is the adrenaline rush to end all adrenaline rushes. Before considering this movie for an evening out, remember where your treasure lies. Don’t let Hollywood dictate what you believe. Ghost Rider is mind-blowing, but is it really worth the risk?