Ghost Rider

So I didn’t expect much of this movie and thank God I didn’t.  Ghost Rider is no Batman, it’s not even a Hellboy.  Hell, it’s not even Fantastic Four.  This is easily a movie that would have been a small release were it not for Nicolas Cage’s desperate need to be in a superhero movie (especially after his dream of playing Superman crumbled).  Cage has never been a great actor, that’s not his appeal.  I’m not sure WHAT his appeal is but I like him for some reason.  However bad Cage’s acting is, Wes Bentley’s is equal to that of the chimpanzee in Dunston Checks In.  Eva Mendes outshines everyone in the film

Quality:
I waited out seeing this movie when I already had the standard DVD because I thought it was worth viewing on Blu-Ray.  The picture quality is decent, not great but not horrible.  Certain scenes get a little grainy but the special effects, for what they are, look decent.  When Cage transforms into the Ghost Rider and when he IS the Ghost Rider, it’s not so great looking but I didn’t expect any more.  Surprisingly, when he is transforming back into his human form, it actually looks OK.  The sound is strong but, again, not great.

Bonus Features:
The bonus features are not in 1080i or 1080p.  It does not state what they ARE in but it seems barely a step above DVD quality.  I was hoping for something more in depth about the stunts as they were the standout feature of the movie, especially with Cage able to ride motorcycles himself, I was hoping to see how much he actually did. 

Overall:
Definetely not a great movie.  Even comics with bad plots can still make it possible to have a good script (see Fantastic Four, The Punisher, Hellboy).  Ghost Rider has all the makings of a straight to DVD movie (bad actors, bad script, bad effects), but there is something slightly intriguing about it anyway.  The picture doesn’t live up to the HD quality I have come to expect from Blu-Ray and neither does the sound but I would still recommend picking this one up on BD instead of DVD.  That is, of course, if you like the movie.