Review

Review Date: 19-February-12
Spoiler Rating: Low
Juju Judgment: Junk

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012)

I'll say this for the second Ghost Rider movie: it is better than the first. Nicolas Cage's 2007 outing as the fiery-skull-headed punisher of evil didn't have the cojones to shout, "I'm a garish bit of horror-comic book pulp that you should laugh at even if you think my violence and motorcycles are cool!" This time, new directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (who are cutely credited as a single-named unit) fully embrace the series' nature. Spirit of Vengeance is almost admirably third-rate. It's ugly, choppy, tacky, brainless, and predictable, and it never stops winking at itself.

The saga picks up with our hero, Johnny Blaze, having removed himself from civilization while trying to suppress his inner demon so it will never emerge again. He brought the demon upon himself by making a deal with the Devil, which is also the predicament of a sexy single mom (Violante Placido) on the run from nasty men. Her demon is the teenaged son whom she dearly loves (Fergus Riordan) despite the fact that he is the spawn of Satan. Yes, this is one of those Antichrist-coming-of-age deals where "a shadow will fall across the Earth" if big, bad daddy (Ciarán Hinds) gathers robed minions to chant at a certain ancient ruin on a certain day of the year as foretold by prophesy. A mysterious soldier for the other side (Idris Elba) asks Johnny to uncork the Rider and prevent the ritual, preserving the mother-child bond in the process. The carrot he dangles is that if Johnny fights this battle, a sect of tattooed monks will perform a Riderectomy and rid him of his burden.

Except for one scene of hysteria which deserves to be imitated and relished for years to come, Cage is surprisingly subdued amid all this hooha. Even the Rider doesn't come out to play as often as one might expect, although since he's hyper-focused, nonverbal, and expressionless (skulls being unable to do anything but grin), a single appearance just about covers his character. (Turns out he's a fallen angel tortured into madness — so why is he called "Ghost" Rider?) Too much time is devoted to the Devil's chief henchman (Johnny Whitworth), a corrupt pretty boy transformed into an undead instrument of decay. Supposedly everything he touches crumbles or rots away, yet he wears clothes and drives trucks without landing butt-naked on the pavement. Hmm. His supposed talent sets up a funny moment involving a Twinkie which is one example of the filmmakers letting you know they're in on the joke. Another is the already notorious scene, used not once but twice, showing the Rider peeing flame. Neveldine/Taylor acknowledge the level of this humor by linking it to the boy. They seem to say that Spirit of Vengeance is, unabashedly, what it is. What it is is crap, but at least they are frank about it.

Copyright © 2012 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.