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GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCEMovie Reviews
Action fantasy about Johnny Blaze's struggle to save a young boy from the devil and rid himself of an evil curse. Cast:Nicolas Cage, Ciarán Hinds, Violante Placido, Idris ElbaDirector:Mark Neveldine, Brian TaylorRelease Date:February 17, 2012DVD Release:June 5, 2012From:Sony PicturesRating:PG-13Length:1 hr. 35 min.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance played to poor reviews. • Roger Moore wrote in the Seattle Times, "A goofy, gonzo thrill ride... a bad movie sequel so bad it's good - a bad movie that's almost a great bad movie." • And Edward Adams wrote in Atlanta Creative Loafing, "...doesn't have enough gas to make it interesting or entertaining." More Reviews Below...
Adam Markovitz, Entertainment Weekly: WEAK(cg) "...burns plenty of rubber trying to swerve around plot holes... most of the movie's action-horror set pieces play like lame Gwar music video outtakes..."(See all of Adam Markovitz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 216 words, 02/24/12
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: POOR(cg) "I felt my head would explode if I had to endure another minute of this blather from Cage and Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. As for the 3D, I've never seen worse."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 195 words, 02/17/12
Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor don't get into anything here that fundamentally upsets the apple cart of the conventional action film-watching experience."(See all of Glenn Kenny's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 614 words, 02/16/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (10 Reviews)
Neil Genzlinger, New York Times: FAIR "...has a bit more coherence and considerably more humor than the first installment, released in 2007. And humorously is the best way to view this silly enterprise..."(See all of Neil Genzlinger's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 318 words, 02/18/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor add their oddball touches around the edges while simply stringing together a series of thudding action set-pieces."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 338 words, 02/18/12
Kyle Smith, New York Post: POOR(cg) "The horror isn't scary, the action isn't rousing and the comedy is not only lame but also undercuts any sense of demonic danger."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 725 words, 02/18/12
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Cage leaves no neck tendon unpopped whenever he transforms into The Rider, a flaming skeleton... an entertaining slice of teenage heavy-metal heaven."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 163 words, 02/18/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: MODERATE "No movie that casts Ciarán Hinds as The Devil can be all bad... wants to wow us with its unrestrained, hyper-stylized, WTF-ness... way too disposable for its own good."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 580 words, 02/20/12
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star: WEAK(cg) "...plays like a bunch of solo performances on empty stages. They're just waiting for the CGI truck to back up and dump the glue to hold the sloppy mess together."(See all of Linda Barnard's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 436 words, 02/18/12
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "The standards of all involved are so obviously floorboard-high, there's not much to say after the lights come up other than one of Blaze's 'one-liners': 'So, that happened.' "(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 235 words, 02/22/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...the character still does nothing but rage, smash stuff and disappear, meaning that every time he manifests, the movie gets a lot less interesting."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 310 words, 02/23/12
Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times: MODERATE(cg) "Nobody else takes Nicolas Cage seriously as an actor these days, so why should he?... Cage is so bad that he's occasionally good, in a bad sort of way."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 477 words, 02/18/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (11 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "The standards of all involved are so obviously floorboard-high, there's not much to say after the lights come up other than one of Blaze's 'one-liners': 'So, that happened.' "(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 235 words, 02/22/12
Tom Meek, Boston Phoenix: WEAK(cg) "The filmmakers deliver some gorgeous landscape shots... but the time between such moments of relief can seem like an eternity of movie hell."(See all of Tom Meek's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 143 words, 02/23/12
Nathan Rabin, AV Club: WEAK(cg) "...the Neveldine/Taylor team inherit a promisingly trashy franchise and fail to give it the allure and go-for-broke energy of superior trash."(See all of Nathan Rabin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 502 words, 02/17/12
Jesse Hassenger, Pop Matters: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a tighter, weirder, funnier enterprise than its predecessor.... Cage's outbursts and pauses for bizarre reflection keep the movie twitching..."(See all of Jesse Hassenger's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 831 words, 02/23/12
Alison Willmore, Movieline: MODERATE(cg) "Just because the people on and behind the camera are willing to acknowledge what we're watching is ridiculous crap doesn't really change the fact that, well, it is."(See all of Alison Willmore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 707 words, 02/17/12
Michael Nordine, Slant: POOR(cg) "Were it only poorly written, it might be salvageable.... seems to have been ill-conceived from the very start.... it doesn't even offer much in the way of camp value..."(See all of Michael Nordine's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 527 words, 02/17/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...the character still does nothing but rage, smash stuff and disappear, meaning that every time he manifests, the movie gets a lot less interesting."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 310 words, 02/23/12
Edward Adams, Atlanta Creative Loafing: POOR(cg) "Cage's Blaze is just over the top, 'dialing it to 11'... doesn't have enough gas to make it interesting or entertaining."(See all of Edward Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 578 words, 02/22/12
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: POOR(cg) "There are many attempts at quippy humor that fall so flat they're all but invisible, and are also very weirdly at odds with the would-be dark nature of the story."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 623 words, 02/17/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Neil Genzlinger, New York Times: FAIR "...has a bit more coherence and considerably more humor than the first installment, released in 2007. And humorously is the best way to view this silly enterprise..."(See all of Neil Genzlinger's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 318 words, 02/18/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor add their oddball touches around the edges while simply stringing together a series of thudding action set-pieces."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 338 words, 02/18/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: MODERATE "A few lively moments don't justify this superhero sequel... nudges its obscure hero's mythology forward a bit without seeming to care much how it gets there."(See all of John DeFore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 514 words, 02/17/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor add their oddball touches around the edges while simply stringing together a series of thudding action set-pieces."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 338 words, 02/18/12
Neil Genzlinger, New York Times: FAIR "...has a bit more coherence and considerably more humor than the first installment, released in 2007. And humorously is the best way to view this silly enterprise..."(See all of Neil Genzlinger's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 318 words, 02/18/12
19.0 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's reviews are separated by an average 19.0 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (26 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's reviews cover 33.2% of potential readers (average is 68.0%). Volume:The film's reviews total 12,241 words involume (average is 20,221 words). Length:The film's reviews average 471 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 57.8 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.3 Release)
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's reviews on average broke 57.8 hours after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.3 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (26 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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