Bad Movie Beatdown: Ghost Rider (REVIEW)

[@FilmBrain]

This review, originally posted in September 2011, has been re-edited for this new posting that's 1m 12s shorter than the original. Edits have been made to tighten up the pacing, shorten film clips, and a few insensitive lines. The episode that followed this one in it's original posting was When in Rome. The version of the film reviewed here is the Extended Cut, which is different from the one on Nostalgia Critic, which was the Theatrical Cut. Enjoy!

[@Obiwan1994Kenobi-iv4jf]

This is one of my personal favorite reviews of yours.

[@josethebeast8709]

epic big guy

[@josethebeast8709]

i'm with you on this pal

[@JeffreyPiatt]

ghost rider from the demon behind one more day.

[@josethebeast8709]

@@JeffreyPiatt don't remind me brother

[@whatiftherewasanun]

Well, to be fair, the devil wasn't even trying to catch up.

[@tuntemon]

Blackheart is as scary as Care Bears villian. ;)

[@MiXVoy]

maybe he is DarkHeart's cousin

[@calebmayfield3878]

You mean DAAARKHEART

[@GatorRay]

+EmilBergstrom Plot Twist. Darkheart is a descendant of Satan.

[@randalgraves6979]

Time for a game of disappearing Souls. 🤨

[@diegobareno5820]

Time for a game of disappearing Ghost Riders.

[@FlameWizard5]

Minor nitpick, but since Ghost Riders flames are made of Hellfire, which is unable to be put out, it partially makes sense that Water didn't beat him

[@bannerturtoise1219]

Still. Would've been cooler if we got more of a fight out of it. Like he gets beat a bit, but them they drag water out of the water, and turn him to steam.

[@seigeengine]

@@bannerturtoise1219 Yeah, plus that would make more sense. Water might not beat him, but that doesn't mean he should be able to beat a water demon in it's element.

[@HereComesPopoBawa]

My name is LEEEEgion, for we are - MAAANEEEE!!!

[@JamiJR]

Is it a bad movie? Yes. But honestly I can't think of a known actor who could play such an off the wall character like Cage can. Now maybe if Hollywood was brave enough to go for an unknown as the lead we might get a decent Ghost Rider movie.

[@MediumRareOpinions]

Jami JoAnne Russell I've been liking the Ghost Rider they brought into Agents of Shield. Granted that isn't Blaze but still the effects look good and the character is a lot more sympathetic than Cages.

[@LupineShadowOmega]

I'd be down to see Tom Hardy as Johnny Blaze, but that's just me. And I think they should have played it a bit more serious, but also allow for the silliness by letting his Ghost Rider persona be much more over the top and manic. Also, no stupid monster voice.

[@mitchellhorton9382]

But Johnny Blaze isn't really an off the wall character like He's a broken man mostly

[@neilprice513]

The Ghost Rider, in the comics, was one of the forces of Nature like Death, War, Famine, Pestilence, Entropy, Destiny etc. The Ghost Rider was supposed to be the spirit of Justice that became The Spirit of Vengeance when Mephisto/Mephistopheles/The Marvel Universe's Devil corrupted him. Well roughly speaking anyway as the comics got really confusing in the 90's and Marvel never really knew what to do with the character, so his continuity was all over the place. But that was the original character's premise. He was basically Marvel's version of the DC character "The Spectre" who is their "Spirit of Divine Justice/Vengeance" depending on the writer/story.

[@Godzillakingofkaiju1]

Though, one of the major themes was a fight for control of Johnny's body with the spirit of the Ghost Rider, Zarathos.

[@Khilkhameth]

At least the two ghost riders racing to the final confrontation was cool. Nothing else in this poor movie was.

[@LupineShadowOmega]

Disagree. This movie was firmly okay, just had a terrible villain and while Ghost Rider's design was cool, the deep monster voice was a stupid choice.

[@LupineShadowOmega]

Mike Burnsy, nope. Ghost Rider is going more for the Grim Reaper, how often does the grim reaper have a growl monster voice? No one needs him to be Bengt Ekerot, but give him a stern and decipherable voice. People would be fine with it.

[@johnnyg1237]

His transformation scene was badass too

[@seigeengine]

Flaming chains as a weapon is also cool.

[@graemesmith6721]

@@LupineShadowOmega It's hard to fuck up a character as intrinsically cool-looking as Ghost Rider.

[@ryantanner48]

I remember when I was young and super hyped for this movie at the time, and I was overwhelmingly disappointed on how the actual movie turned out.

[@oldmanmark0958]

hellfire can burn anywhere its spiritual flame

[@Volvagia1927]

And the irony of all of this is that the origin part is an IMPROVEMENT on the original comic.

[@sebastianrosa7935]

For real, the original origin is needlessly more complex, and he actually ASKS Satan to help him, making him even dumber.

[@Soot_Smiles]

Nicholas cage was so good in kickass I argued it wasnt him for 2 hours.

[@seigeengine]

I mean, he plays NIcolas Cage in Kickass, so I don't even know what you're talking about.

[@kirbynat493]

"my name is legion, and we are manyyyyyyy" There's a Pokemon named Spiritomb that is a combo of 108 souls. It's a doofy looking rock that spits out a ghost, and yet that is much better executed than in this godforsaken movie.

[@seigeengine]

It's absolutely wild when you hear a line read in such a way that it saps out any coolness it even could have had. It's such a nitpick in this movie, but it's this perfect little microcosm of badness.

[@SwiftNimblefoot]

Man, to think we could have had a Blackheart who looks like in the comics, basically effin' Diablo from the games! Well, maybe now that they have much more money, Disney/Marvel might do a reboot.

[@seigeengine]

I mean, no, diablo is way cooler. Honestly, the lore of diablo is pretty rad and something I missed out on understanding as a kid.

[@polk-e-dot8177]

"where are you going? I want my climax!" phrasing

[@Godzillakingofkaiju1]

I just want to make something clear: Mephisto. Is. Not. The. DE-VIL. He is an incredibly powerful demon. That's all.

[@vieiraverso8695]

And real one doesn't shows up ?

[@vieiraverso8695]

Because In every comic book i always see mephisto and not his boss..

[@Godzillakingofkaiju1]

@@vieiraverso8695 He does in Immortal Hulk. Though in there, he's called The One Below All.

[@Zomdra]

That may be true for the comics but the film _explicitly_ refers to him as The Devil multiple times. At least as far as this film is concerned, Mephisto and The Devil are the same thing.

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

17:05 - You can't catch the wind. But you certainly can break it.

[@SwiftNimblefoot]

Wow, I totally forgot that this was an extended cut. I probably saw the original version back then... And yes, Daredevil is improved a lot by the extended cut - but in this one, the director has no excuses.

[@00KiryuZero00]

Holy crap, someone else who's seen Reaper. It was a pretty funny show, sad it was cancelled

[@verdethestarwarrior1088]

Honestly, this movie is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me. The cool stuff the Ghost Rider does makes up for the shitty writing for me and Nicolas Cage is always a delight to watch

[@trinidadbotello9906]

It's crazy that Nicolas Cage played a superhero.

[@anshumandeshmukh780]

So that's crazy for you ? What if I tell you he was also considered to play Iron Man, Superman and Green Goblin.

[@lunabearsong2043]

He voices Superman in Teen Titans Go the Movies.

[@morganyoung3557]

Four superheroes Ghost Rider, Big Daddy from Kick-Ass, Superman from the Teen Titans Go movie, and Spider-Man Noir from Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse.

[@DemiBirdDoes]

This movie became our family's joke that we always watch with relatives cuz it's just too terrible and Nick Cage. We also used to watch Reaper all the time, unlike anyone else.

[@KageMaxwell]

My mom and I watched Reaper as well. That's three viewers. I wonder who the other two are? 🤔

[@MediumRareOpinions]

(Raises hand)

[@GigaWhitArtandStuff]

KageMaxwell Me too, have it on DVD now too

[@DrGregoryHouseIT]

Hello there.

[@KCohere33]

I watched Reaper. I loved it.

[@00KiryuZero00]

I'm late but to this conversation but yes, I saw it (that's seven whole viewers)

[@Jay-gurl]

Hey, hey, hey... Crap on this film all you like (I know it's not the best but it's a guilty pleasure of mine) but those abs aren't CGI. Nick worked out hard for those abs, quoting "I will never do this again" because he wanted to look good in this film at 42. Producers, director and the effects team have all vouched, those abs are 100% real. So that's one nitpick I have to disagree on. Everything else? Fair game

[@wintersnow998]

You know, for as bad as this film is, it used to scare me...when I was four years old.

[@gracekim1998]

But like that’s UNDERSTANDABLE 😅 what’s the issue?

[@wintersnow998]

@@gracekim1998 IDK. I don't even remember making this comment if I'm being honest.

[@revolverocelot-rx2mf]

Rip Peter Fonda

[@Shiirow]

Hey, at least the song Ghost Riders in the Sky was pretty cool.

[@MiXVoy]

that song from Blue Brothers 2000 was also good

[@michaelrodriguez7667]

15:44, 17:19 - Dumb cop and dumb cop. They're dumb cops.

[@nomduclavier]

So he blackmailed her into a date

[@mesousagaby740]

GOT TO GET TO THE CHURCH Hopefully people will get this reference. XD

[@bradleyrutledge7304]

Fun Fact: Nick Cage's abs in that shirtless scene weren't CGI.

[@YEOsCanal]

Yes it was

[@seigeengine]

@@YEOsCanal No, they weren't. Disagree? Eat my butt.

[@Jay-gurl]

No, they aren't. Everyone on set from the director to special effects artist have gone on record to say those are Nick's abs. He was 42 when he did this role and worked out religiously to get into shape for the film. He even stated "I will never do this again" because working out was so tough. So, say what you want about the script but those abs are legit

[@frankgrossi385]

“Hope you like your daddy flame grilled, son!”

[@nitromagilou597]

I came into this movie expecting it to be the most awesome thing ever. What I got was a contrived melodrama with a forced romance subplot that drags on for far too long. When the Ghost Rider actually shows up, it looks pretty cool. Unfortunately, everything else is just dull and unnecessary.

[@Zomdra]

15:21 Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't it stated in that same scene that Johnny only transforms into Ghost Rider "at night in the presence of evil", meaning it's _not_ something he can just do at will and demonstrate to Roxanne right then and there? Kind of a silly, arbitrary rule to be sure but I think the film was at least consistent about it.

[@seigeengine]

He can pull fire out of his ass though?

[@diegobareno5820]

I feel the "My name is Legion" has potential to be somewhat scary.

[@TheBattlesword]

To be honest, I don't know if the Caretaker is supposed to be an original character or if he's supposed to be Carter Slade, the Ghost Rider from the old western comics whose title was reapropriated for the new ones after Marvel was founded Given the fact that I don't know if half of the characters in this are even official or not, I don't think I'll ever know

[@culwin]

What are your thoughts on fidget spinners? How many do you own?

[@DesignzRUs1]

Why don't you go stick one up your ass, loser.

[@darkturnip]

I just love your videos. Played 1.25x or 1.5 speed are even more entertaining. You are fantastic!

[@seigeengine]

The idea that a contract for a thousand evil souls is so dangerous is genuinely hilarious on it's own. A thousand evil souls? Mate, have you met humanity? If even 1% of people qualify as "evil", the devil gets to claim about 1600 evil souls every day (talking pre-covid figures... an extra 22.6M people have died over the past three years). This whole movie is predicated on a document worth 18 hours of the devil's soul harvest.

[@artistwithouttalent]

15:17 I'm dead.

[@SALshaNoma]

Thankfully the Ghost Rider in Agents of Shield is way cooler and badass than this one.

[@RhyperiorRanger]

The sequel is worse

[@jacobgrammer2022]

Whats bad about it

[@user-dr2yz8um3d]

The movie officially turns 15 today! Saw it with my sisters Jeanne and Cara opening night So much of this dialogue is cheesy and the critics panned it but the movie did make over $228 million worldwide Nicholas Cage is always a treat to watch and I like Eva Mendes and Peter Fonda Whenever Ghost Rider is on screen the movie is a lot of fun I remember playing the video game but it was so freaking hard I wish the action scenes were better though and the villains weren't tossed aside so quickly Nostalgia Critic found the movie boring and just delivering familiar comic tropes with Cage underplaying the role Still he might play the part one more time for another MCU film plus Norman Reedus is rumored to pick up the mantle afterwards Thankfully that first movie also influenced the comics too with the character using his Penance Stare in the future and they featured him on agents of shield tv show

[@haplon33]

lmao @ fire beating water...underwater. these vids are timeless!

[@whatsit2ya234]

Eva Mendes as usual pretty much saved this movie for me. Shes just like glitter...she makes everything better!!

[@seanchukwuezi3079]

Sam Elliott and peter Fonda saved this movie

[@RhyperiorRanger]

WE GET IT! YOU WERE IN EASY RIDER!

[@Dimensioneer88]

Hopefully, the MCU will introduce the Ghost Rider multiverse which includes a caveman on a mammoth and a truck driver.

[@AgentTasmania]

I saw this movie once when I was a kid and seeing these clips now it’s one of those movies where my memory fabricated far better acting and effects.

[@ExplorerDS6789]

Hopefully Marvel will reboot Ghost Rider in Phase 4 or 5. If not Ryan Reynolds, maybe Liam Hemsworth, Daniel Radcliffe, Andrew Garfield, or Adam Driver could play him.

[@Zomdra]

12:44 You complained about Ghost Rider's punishment of the mugger being disproportionate but Isn't the literal point of the "Penance Stare" that it reflects the pain and suffering a person has caused back on themselves? That is to say, kind of the definition of a "proportional punishment"? IIRC it's made clear that the guy wasn't dead afterwards (his eyes look fiery and weird but he blinks after he falls down), so he's "just" traumatised by the experience. It's been a while since I saw the film but I don't think he "had his soul incinerated" as you claimed.

[@FilmBrain]

He literally uses the Penance Stare at the end of the film to kill Legion. That mugger's dead.

[@Zomdra]

​@@FilmBrain It's perhaps ambiguous but I don't think Blackheart/Legion died either, I think the intention of the scene is that he's rendered catatonic, the same as the mugger. Like I said, there's _pointedly_ a shot of the mugger blinking after he falls down that clearly only exists to confirm he _isn't_ dead after the stare. Granted, a cursory bit of research tells me the penance stare is kind of inconsistent and ill defined in the comics too re:whether or not it kills people but, at least as far as the film describes and portrays it, I don't think we're supposed to think of it as fatal. (Thanks for responding by the way, I'm sorry I'm splitting hairs over a decade old review of a silly movie, I've been a fan of yours for a long time and I'm honestly pretty embarrassed that I'm wasting your time on this, sorry about that. I really enjoyed your Blackbird review from last week and that Independence Day video you did recently.)

[@FilmBrain]

I think you've misinterpreted the blink as suggesting he's alive, rather than an involuntary twitch of the dead. The film suggests that the Penance Stare literally incinerates a person from the inside, and later when Johnny revisits the scene, he shys away from a body bag being loaded up into an ambulance. I'm glad you like my videos, and hope you keep on enjoying them. Just think you might have misread this one. (It happens) 🙂

[@Zomdra]

@@FilmBrain Update: Annoyingly I just wrote the long comment below and only then decided to check if the film's director said anything on this subject in the DVD commentary. He says during the mugger/Penance Stare scene: "You can see [the mugger's] eye blink there. It's a little CG eye-blink. I really wanted to make it clear that he wasn't dead. The Ghost Rider doesn't kill, at least not people. He never kills. That was important to me". So, that's that. The comment I was going to leave is kind of pointless now in light of that confirmation but I'll leave it here anyway since I think I made some decent points. *** Original comment: I really don't think that's the case re: the blinking, watching the scene I don't see how the blink could possibly be interpreted as a death twitch. When the penance stare is first described by Slade it's as "searing the souls of the wicked", I think that word choice is important since it doesn't imply the souls are destroyed. I know it's muddied by Blackheart and Ghost Rider using the term "burn" later, which does carry a different implication, but I still don't agree with the interpretation that it's supposed to be fatal; even "burn" doesn't necessarily mean "destroy". I think you've got things a little muddled on the body bag part, Johnny never sees it when he gets to the crime scene, Roxanne sees it a couple of scenes earlier and it's made clear that it's the body of the worker Blackheart killed, not the mugger (we see the corpse's blackened skin and the cops have a discussion later connecting the victim's sulphur poisoning to the bikers Blackheart killed earlier). Plus there's the fact that when the cops question Johnny later they only talk about that same Blackheart victim and the mugger isn't mentioned at all. I also just don't think we're supposed to think Johnny is lying when he's insisting to the cops in that scene that he didn't kill anyone (I mean, I know he kind of _is_ lying since he did kill that demon/elemental guy but I don't think that's supposed to "count" as murder under Johnny's/the film's morals due to the guy being what he was). For whatever it's worth, Mark Steven Johnson's screenplay for the film describes the Penance Stare like this (admittedly an earlier draft where the victim is a corrupt cop rather than a mugger): "Every act of violence, every evil he's ever committed, is revisited back upon him. This is the PENANCE STARE. And compared to this, death would be a welcome relief. OFFICER PLOOG falls to the ground, shuddering and glassy-eyed; his brain on eternal overload as he relives his sins forevermore." It describes Blackheart's fate the same way. I know, earlier draft, but much of the script is quite close to the finished film so it's something to consider. You have to at least admit, whether it's intended to be fatal or not, the film does a very poor job of communicating what the stare is supposed to do. Any kind of follow up on the mugger after it happens would've cleared this up easily. Whether he's supposed to be catatonic or dead it's rather odd that the cops don't mention or discuss him at any point.

[@FilmBrain]

That's fair. I've not seen the film in a decade, and only tried to refresh myself with low quality clips. I'm not hugely knowledgeable on the character, so to me as just an average viewer, I just read them as dead. Given that it reduces them to an empty shell, it is more or less a living death, even if not technically dead.

[@shellbacksclub]

water beats fire, but not "soul burning" fire, apparently.😉

[@rsfilmdiscussionchannel4168]

This movie, it's sequel, Drive Angry and Mandy could make an excellent quadruple feature of Cage Devil/Cult movies.

[@ivantrajkovski5055]

guess im another one of the 5 people who watched reaper alko when i watched how i met your mother later i was amazed who robins father was played by satan himself i noticed he does those types a lot It fits him

[@jessaminehaak8253]

Ah, Reaper... I remember that show XD pity no one but us watched it apparently

[@PhantomShadow224]

It has its problems but I love this movie anyway. The second one is a bit of a snooze until flames and whatnot either that or it’s feels shorter

[@devinharbert6071]

Review spirit of vengeance.

[@idongesitusen5764]

I want Sam Elliott to play Jonah Hex in something.

[@benfalconfiftyseven2558]

Not even the creators of crank could make it work

[@chravenschronicles7387]

15:15 and you had to sing that why?

[@FilmBrain]

Because the phrasing of the line is a play on the lyric from the song Something Stupid.

[@devinharbert6071]

Review Electra and daredevil.

[@jasonwheeler826]

Isn't that flaming skull CUTE?

[@Johnny_Blade300]

I feel like the only people who can enjoy this movie are kids in there tweens who've never picked up a Ghost Rider comic in their life.

[@bannerturtoise1219]

When I was young, I thought this film was awesome. I'm an adult now, it's too edgy to be taken seriously. I'm sure there's a director out there that can work on this, and make it awesome.

[@gracekim1998]

Well I know I’ve seen the movie but hey at least the character got a chance to make a comeback in Agents of SHIELD Liked in 2018 7.9.22

[@WalkmanWillWalkAllOverYou]

Shame he was only in the Fourth Season.

[@sharonpereira4501]

The sequel is even more bad.

[@otaking3582]

A deal with Mephisto? Why do I suddenly hear an overweight Minnesotan screaming in agony.....?

[@diegobareno5820]

You seem to take the name Blackheart more seriously than Nostalgia Critic.

[@YEOsCanal]

Because the NC don't read Comics but jet is very childish

[@Dim4323]

Matthew read the comics

[@iyona14granturismogt6gtspo7]

Nobody noticed fat Rebel Wilson at 12 minutes,

[@grahamburchell2065]

Mathew I'm really sorry bout this, I like this film. 😏 please don't hold it against me.

[@TheTribalgame]

I watched reaper. It was good

[@radiofiendify]

Am I the only one who thinks that BlackHeart looks like Ben Shapiro?

[@robogreek3157]

wes bentely is an evil Captain Planet LOL

[@seanchukwuezi3079]

Eva Mendez is pretty cute in the movie

[@thekingmaker7276]

Where are you going? I want my climax! Things said in a brothel

[@happyEmpath]

Ghost rider is so AWFUL and DEVOID OF Any TRUE AUTHENTIC VIBRATIONS. WORST MOVIE EVER: LOL!!!! 🤣

[@basicallyhell4150]

Ghost rider is awesome idk whst you mean

[@r4h4al]

I might check this film out if its so good :)

[@hdvplayz1343]

I would say the first one is pretty good but the second one was awful

[@donmiri437]

and legion x men not ghost rider

[@josethebeast8709]

awesome

[@talorguitarowner5]

I don't like ghosts or riding...

[@Shiirow]

at least theres no porno spoof about "riding" ghosts or skeletons.

[@kgraves2269]

Rule 34 shiirow

[@Barbayat79]

I'm pretty sure if you'd ask the Cinema Snob, he'd be able to point you to one or two ;)

[@Micosanmiguel]

Hey mathew have you seen the sequel because that movie is even worse than the first movie

[@jasondouglas152]

I hate CGI

[@reiryan9438]

One question: Why is your intro worse than the movies you're reviewing?

[@kimifw58]

Response: why is your criticism not criticism at all?

[@cerihooper2631]

13:14 like regina george is wearthy of having a soul being cremated