Synopsis

From Marvel Comics, creators of Spider-Man ™, Fantastic Four, and the X-Men, comes a new hero, Ghost Rider™. Long ago, superstar motorcycle stunt rider Johnny Blaze made a deal with the devil to protect the ones he loved most, his father and his childhood sweetheart, Roxanne. Over the ensuing years he has become a national hero, recognized for his incredible record attempts and his seemingly indestructibility. But now the Devil has come for his due. By day, Johnny is a die-hard stunt rider. At night, in the presence of evil, he becomes the "Ghost Rider", a bounty hunter of rogue demons. Johnny finds himself powerless, forced to do the Devil's bidding, and that bidding is to destroy Blackheart, Mephistopheles' nemesis and son who plans to create a hell on earth. Johnny, on the other hand, is determined to control his fate and use his curse and powers to defend the innocent.

What The Critics Say

"Nicolas Cage really hits one out of the park here. Cage has created both a tragic yet fun character on-screen. It's entertaining to watch him play Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider. Fonda and Elliott are great as always, while Bentley was good casting for Blackheart and Logue adds comic relief to the dark story. Eva Mendes is definitely nice to look at, but she doesn't add much as Roxanne. Ghost Rider is a fun ride and definitely worth checking out!" Mirko Parlevliet COMINGSOON.NET "The SFX of the Rider, with his burning skull and burning chains and kickass burning chopper, are pretty cool. It's often hilarious, and generally intentionally, too! Rumor has it that Nic Cage rewrote much of his part, and I can totally buy that." Kevin N. Laforest MONTREAL FILM JOURNAL "Having never read the Ghost Rider series, I found this to be pretty well done." Kevin Carr 7M FILMS "Fonda is in pure hambone mode while Bentley camps it up like a high school drama club member making a home video with friends. Mendes plays the world's most unconvincing TV news reporter. And then there's Cage. Wearing a bad hairpiece and channelling Elvis, his Johnny lives up to the actor's reputation of playing eccentrics. He sips yellow and red jelly beans from a martini glass, unwinds to the smooth sounds of 'The Carpenters', and loves watching monkey videos." Mark Pfeiffer REEL TIMES It follows fairly standard, troubled hero rules, mixed with some substandard horror movie cliches. But that's just half the story. The other half involves a full-blown Nicolas Cage oddball performance; he's more "Vampire's Kiss" than "National Treasure" here. Whether you like it, hate it or just don't get it, this at least makes "Ghost Rider" an intriguing, witty/nutso acting experiment from beginning to end." Bob Strauss LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS

"A lifelong fan of the comic-book character—Cage had to have his real Ghost Rider tattoo covered with makeup for some scenes—the actor seems to be having a genuinely good time in the role. Never having read the books, I don't know how purists will accept him, but as much as could be expected, I bought Cage as Johnny Blaze." Staci Layne Wilson SCI-FI WEEKLY "Johnson does a nice job as the director showing he can do more than focus on stuff blowing up, other things catching on fire, and some cool special effects (I like Blaze’s and his motorcycle’s transformations into Ghost Rider, plus the spirits look good and evil). He often frames many shots much like what you would expect from the actual comic books and graphic novels, like one person standing over another with the sun behind them, or looking down in the face of Blaze when he has been knocked to the ground. These visuals are a nice tip of the hat to fans and the genre." Willie Waffle WAFFLEMOVIES "It’s much more of a campy good time than you’d expect and best of all, despite how the special effects look in the trailers and still photos, the CG work is first-rate and very believable. Ghost Rider’s nothing more and nothing less than a decent popcorn movie filled with lots of humor and great effects. Don't expect anything more and you'll be just fine." Rebecca Murray ABOUT.COM "Now wait a second – you mean a story about the devil's bounty hunter with a flaming skull and smoldering scooter is just a teensy bit silly? Get outta town! Lots of movies are silly, but where the rubber meets the road is not how ridiculous they are, but rather in exactly how they are ridiculous. Here, Ghost Rider is a pleasant surprise, silly in a way Goldilocks would deem "just right." Neither contemptuous of its audience nor merely stupid, Ghost Rider's nonsensical histrionics are an almost perfect mirror of its comic-book source." Matt Weitz DALLAS MORNING NEWS

The Inside Story I reckon if they were honest, if you mentioned Marvel Comic's "Ghost Rider" to ninety nine point nine percent of the population, they'd give you a vacant look and mutter, "Ghost who?" "Oh, really?" you say (gobsmacked in utter amazement that most of the world hadn't read a comic-book edition of "Ghost Rider"). It seems my poor unfortunate readers that such is the case. Of course there are exceptions to the rule and that one exception is the director and writer of the latest big-screen production based on that very same Marvel Comic character, none other than Mark Steven Johnson, who many will remember brought to life another comic book hero, "Daredevil". Johnson notes that bringing "Ghost Rider" to the big screen was the culmination of a lifelong love of the character. "I've been a huge comic-book fan from the time I was in third grade," says Johnson."I got comics every week: Daredevil, Spider-Man, X-Men, all of them." And why was that, you ask? He says it was because "Ghost Rider" is "one of the most visually interesting, and, in my opinion, the coolest character." The star of this cool $120 million dollar Columbia Pictures production is the versatile, Academy Award winning actor, Nicolas Cage. "I think Ghost Rider is one of the most unique mythologies in the comic book universe," says Cage. "He's a complicated character who makes a decision to sell his soul to the Devil, but he does it out of love, not out of greed or personal ambition. To me, that is really rich material to play with. This scary-looking guy really is a hero." Former Marvel Studios CEO and one of the film's producers Avi Arad revealed, "We've been trying to bring "Ghost Rider" to the screen for a long time. Just trying to catch the right tone, the right script. When I got Nic onto the project, it began to take shape. It's incredibly gratifying to see a project through from initial casting to completion." One of the first to come on board was producer Michael De Luca, who also happens to be an ardent comic-book fan. As a young head of production for New Line Cinema, De Luca worked with Arad on the first movie adaptation of a Marvel property, the highly successful "Blade", starring Wesley Snipes. He says, after the success of director Johnson's adaptation of Daredevil, "it was clear that the time was right to bring "Ghost Rider" to the screen." He notes that there were big advantages in having Johnson involved in another project. "When a writer-director like Mark is in creative control of the vision of the film, it‘s an advantage in every way," he says."Mark loves comic books and he's the perfect person to make the leap from the two-dimensional printed page to the three-dimensional movie screen. I think the character has always intrigued him because it‘s so visual, the Ghost Rider is such an arresting image." It seems everyone knew that Johnson was a comic book fan. So was that all good news for the team? "Obviously, Mark is a comic-book geek, but he's also a sensitive guy who‘s not afraid of emotion, which I think is hugely important in filmmaking in any genre," says "Sleepless In Seattle" and "Ghost Rider" producer Gary Foster. "He has the enthusiasm he had as a kid and all the knowledge of someone who loves every detail and nuance of these characters." And it seems that Nic Cage was the only man for the role of the "Ghost Rider". According to Johnson, "Nicolas Cage was the only actor who could pull off such a multi-faceted character. I think the very best horror movies and thrillers are full of humor. You need to release the tension. Having Nic Cage on board really cemented that, because he is naturally very funny. He took the character of Johnny Blaze and made him a lot more fun." Does that mean Cage sold his soul to the Devil? "I made a deal with the Devil and now I am a flaming skeleton on a motorcycle," he says. "You can't help but discover the humor." For those who aren't aware, the "Ghost Rider" comic-book franchise started in the 1940's as a western-themed series about a gun-slinging horseman; it was later purchased by Marvel and reinvented in the 1970s as a supernatural story centering on motorcycle stunt rider Johnny Blaze. The property was revitalized again in the 1990s, again with a new lead character. Johnson's script, which took a whole year to write, neatly ties up the loose-ends for those many, many people who aren't familiar with the history of the character. No that you need to know all that much, after all, judging from the high illiteracy rate amongst school leavers these days, you're probably better off being introduced to the "Ghost Rider" via the big-screen. "There was a certain amount of license because of the two incarnations of the comic book itself: the '70s version that I collected and remember, and then the '90s version," "Zathura: A Space Adventure" and "Ghost Rider" producer Michael De Luca explained. "It changed so many times over the years that we were able to cherry-pick the parts we liked best." Does that include the main characters? "Blackheart and Mephistopheles are from the comic book; the reason and way that Johnny makes the deal and Roxanne are all pretty much the same. It is a fairly faithful adaptation, even though the comic book itself changed storylines over the years," says De Luca. For Nicolas Cage the connectio with "Ghost Rider" goes back its inception. "I remember having the first issue of "Ghost Rider" and looking at it and wondering what it was all about," he says. "It was complicated and scary and exciting, all at the same time." Cage's interest, even as an adult, has never waned. "I would bike all the time out in the canyons of Malibu," he remembers. "So I was very interested in the idea of bringing whatever motorcycle abilities I may have had at the time to this movie. Five years went by and I stopped riding motorcycles, but then the film became a reality and I got back into it again. The main thing that kept me going was my fascination with motorcycles. They are marvelous creatures." Personally I think the "Ghost Rider" is one cool character. Cage thinks so too. Why is that? "It doesn‘t get any better than a motorcycle stunt cyclist dressed head to toe in black leather with a flaming skull for a head," says Cage. Mark Steven Johnson's partner in Horseshoe Bay Productions, producer Gary Foster, says it was fun watching Cage at work. "He's a leading man, he's dramatic, he's funny, he's off-center, he's not afraid to try things. These are all the things that make him a great actor and a movie star and fit with the character perfectly." Johnson notes Cage is "perfect for the role. He even dresses like Johnny Blaze! He brought a lot of himself into the character." Including jellybeans and the music of Karen Carpenter! Johnny Blazes love interest in the film is childhood sweetheart Roxanne Simpson, played as an adult by gorgeous Eva Mendes, who is sure to set many male cinemagoes hearts racing as she progressively exposes more and more of her ample cleavage. And just because Eva Mendes has rather, well rather large breasts, don't go thinking that this is a bimbo role. Johnson says, "Roxanne Simpson has to be someone you would go through hell to save." I bet there'd be plenty of volunteers for that assignment. "It was important to me that she also have a lot of strength and Eva Mendes was that person. Eva has got so much energy and so much spirit. There's something inherently likeable about her as an actress and as a person. Whenever she's on film, you‘re cheering for her." Was that cheering or, leering? "You totally can believe Eva Mendes could be the love of someone‘s life," adds De Luca. "She brings a lightness and a hope." And I bet that after seeing "Ghost Rider", many a randy young lad will be frantically searching the internet in the hope that there are more revealing images of Mendes. Playing Mephistopheles (the evil spirit to whom Faust sold his soul in German legend) is the most iconic motorcycle film figure in cinemas history, Peter Fonda. "I always thought it would be cool to have the biggest motorcycle icon in the world play Mephistopheles; that, of course, is Peter Fonda, 'Captain America' himself," says Johnson. "Of course, we flipped it, so now Captain America is the ultimate evil. Peter was wonderful, he really took the role and made it his own, with his own inimitable style." So how does Fonda play the evil bastard? "I decided to play him very un-Devily, not evil at all," Fonda ("Race With the Devil") says. "In fact, really very nice. When Johnny sells me his soul, first I tell him how much I loved his show and would he consider being in my show." Also in the cast is Cowboy-movie veteran Sam Elliott who plays the 'Caretaker'. "When you see Sam Elliott, you want to see him in a cowboy hat and a duster and you want to see him save the day. He‘s the film‘s backbone. He's fantastic," says Johnson. One fantastic aspect of the film is that it was shot in Melbourne, Australia. And there were many good reasons for shooting down under. "One of the reasons that we chose Melbourne was the city‘s alleyways," says Foster. "They were great, exactly what we needed. As for Melbourne itself, the central business district worked really well for us in creating a large Texas city. There was a huge amount of variety in Melbourne that allowed us to really play with the various locations." The Verdict "If you are a pure fan, ie: a purist when it comes to comic book translations to the 'big screen', you may find yourself out on limb with "GHOST RIDER", the latest comic book hero to get a run in celluloid. Irregardless of what others may think, I don't for a minute believe that director and writer Mark Steven Johnson wants us to take this film seriously. Every aspect of it screams 'B' grade tribute and the film 'camps it up' at every opportunity. On that level it works extremely well, allowing the audience to laugh at the sheer audacity of many moments in the story of stunt motorcyclist Johnny Blaze, who sells his soul to the devil and gets totally ripped off in the process. It's all 'bad' good fun and will I hope lead to a sequel. The SFX and CGI are exceptional. If you don't take this seriously, you will have a seriously good time with "Ghost Rider'. Recommended as a great way to escape an at times, far to serious cinema environment. 3 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "GHOST RIDER" stars .......
Golden Globe Award winner Nicolas Cage ["Adaptation", "Lord Of War", "The Weather Man" and "World Trade Centre"]; Daniel Blum Theater World Award and the New York Critics Circle Award winner Peter Fonda ["Easy Rider", "Open Season", "The Cannonball Run", "Love and a .45" and "The Limey"]; Wes Bentley ["American Beauty", "The Claim", "Soul Survivors" and "The Four Feathers"]; Sam Elliott ["Fatal Beauty", "The Contender", "We Were Soldiers" and "Thank You for Smoking"], David Roberts ["The Matrix Reloaded", "The Matrix Revolutions", "Gettin' Square" and "Three Dollars"] and Eva Mendes ["Training Day", "Out of Time", "Stuck On You", "Hitch" and "Trust the Man"] as Roxanne.
"GHOST RIDER" was .......
directed by Mark Steven Johnson ["Simon Birch" and "Daredevil"]; screenplay by Mark Steven Johnson ["Grumpy Old Men", "Simon Birch", "Jack Frost" and "Daredevil"]; production design by Kirk M Petruccelli ["Where the Day Takes You", "Blade", "The Last Castle" and "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider I & II"]; cinematography by Russell Boyd ["Crocodile Dundee I & II", "White Men Can't Jump", Liar Liar" and "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World"] and John Wheeler ["Friday On My Mind" and "The Craic"]; original music by Christopher Young ["Tales from the Hood", "Copycat", "Swordfish", "The Shipping News" and "The Grudge 2"]; costume design by Lizzy Gardiner ["The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", "Welcome To Woop Woop", "Mission: Impossible II" and "Stealth"]; Visual Effects Supervisor Academy Award ® winner Kevin Mack ["What Dreams May Come", "Vanilla Sky", "Big Fish" and "The Grinch"]. Run Time 110 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2007 - Sony Pictures Entertaining - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2007 - Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved