Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance Directed by: Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor Starring: Nicolas Cage, Idris Elba, Ciarán Hinds Rating: Not Yet Rated Release Date: February 17, 2012
TRAILER SCORE: 8/10
Thoughts by TSR: If I was to sit down and make a list of things I thought I’d never see, another Ghost Rider film starring Nicolas Cage would have to be near the top. 2007’s Ghost Rider is terrible, plain and simple. Unfortunately it’s not even the fun brand of terrible where Nicolas Cage punches people while wearing a bear suit (here’s looking at you, The Wicker Man!). With the involvement of Neveldine and Taylor (the maniacs who brought us the Crank films), it looks like they might have found just the guys for this project. So while I may be shocked Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance even exists, that comes nowhere close to how surprised I am that I’m excited to see it.
The trailer doesn’t show much in the way of plot, but who really needs plot when you have Nicholas Cage peeing fire? Seriously, that’s an amazing way to end the trailer. They could have closed with the shot of Johnny Blaze throwing the chain around the title, but let’s be serious, that would have been boring. That bit of craziness at the end gives me hope, and I’m hoping it carries over to the performances as well. I felt Cage’s performance in this year’s Drive Angry was far too subdued for the type of movie he was in, and with any luck Neveldine/Taylor will allow him to bring the crazy here. While the opening is overly serious, it juxtaposes nicely with the hard rocked fueled reveal of the new Ghost Rider design. I prefer this new design, and while that may be minor, every little improvement helps.
The only real issue I have is the overabundance of Johnny Blaze whipping the chain around as a weapon. The number of chain throws feels high compared to the amount of footage presented. Still, even there I can find a positive in that using it to throw a car into the camera is just the type of insanity I’m looking for.
I also wouldn’t argue with a bit more Idris Elba and Ciarán Hinds, but that is just another minor quibble. Overall this trailer deserves a round of applause for successfully getting me interested in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.