The "Ghost Rider" that shouldn't

This weekend's movie of choice was "Ghost Rider." This is the first movie in a long time to have me stumped. There were times during the movie where I felt as though it was going to be the best movie of the season, and others when I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity I had to sleep for about two hours.

For any comic book fan, especially those who were particularly fond of the Ghost Writer series, it's a pretty good comic-to-big-screen movie. But, in my opinion, the acting still left something to be desired.

Eva Mendes' portrayal of journalist, and love interest, Roxanne falls flat from the beginning, leaving much to be desired from the previously entertaining actress. The part of Roxanne has the potential to be played as a very stimulating character; a strong willed, hard-nosed reporter with the same approach to her personal life as she has in her work. Instead, we're left with a character who swoons over the hero and ends up playing the typical fawning female.

Nicolas Cage's rendition of Johnny Blaze, entertaining as it is at times, still seems disappointing in the end. The obligatory hero monologue that ends all comic book movies, a usually stirring wrap up of the heroes ethics and morals already displayed, comes off as boring, rehearsed, and almost insincere. I, simply, had expected more from Cage, a fan of the Ghost Rider series.

The story itself is a good one. A man sells his soul to save a loved one, only to lose said person but still have to settle his debt. When the debt is called in, Blaze, aka Ghost Rider has to choose; continue on his righteous path but leave behind all hopes of love and family, or cling on to his passion for Roxanne, risking both her life as well as his. The rest of the story is simple; the Rider has to find out what Blackheart, the son of the devil is after, stop him, and ultimately destroy him.

The effects, while cheesy at times, are pretty good. Blackheart both frightens and intimidates however, the voice effects used for him leave the audience with no other option but to have a slight chuckle at his expense. But I suppose, in the end, you're always supposed to have at least one part of the bad guy to laugh at.

All in all, Ghost Rider's a descent film. It's no Spider-Man by any means, but it also isn't nearly as much a travesty as the Hulk was.