Directed by: Mark Steven Johnson

Starring: Nicholas Cage, Eva Mendes, Peter Fonda, Wes Bentley, Sam Elliott

Classification: 12A

Comic book movies are like Marmite - you either love them, or you hate them. Considering that they're either very good (Batman Begins, Spiderman 2) or very bad (The Fantastic Four), it's easy to make the distinction. Yet every so often a comic book movie will come along that should be absolutely abysmal, and ticks every box on the 'rubbish film' checklist - yet is an oddly enjoyable experience that reaffirms your faith in the ability of Hollywood to entertain.

Nicholas Cage plays Johnny Blaze, a motorcycle stunt rider who sells his soul to the Devil (Peter Fonda) to save his father's life. The Devil cures his dad's cancer, but his dad dies in a freak motorcycle accident, thus putting Johnny's soul into the Devil's 'newly acquired property' box. However, the Devil has plans for Johnny, and wants him to act as his 'Ghost Rider', the one in every generation who acts as Satan's bounty hunter, collecting souls as unpaid debts. When the Devil's errant son, Blackheart (Wes Bentley) shows up, intent on stealing a contract whose power will grant him the evil souls of an abandoned town, the Devil sends Johnny after him - should Blackheart succeed, he truly will unleash hell on earth.

It's a typically silly plot but the motivations are sound enough (even if the plot does feel awfully reminiscent of both Blade and Constantine).

No movie would be complete without a love interest, and in Ghost Rider, she takes the form of Roxanne (Eva Mendes), Johnny's childhood sweetheart turned TV news reporter. Reunited after years apart, Roxanne ends up being used as bait by Blackheart to lure Johnny into finding him the contract and thus granting him the power to overthrow his father.

It has to be said, Nicholas Cage is an odd choice for Blaze (who is a lot younger in the comics) but his laidback stoicism sets Johnny apart from other comic protagonists - instead of sitting around moping about being different or having existential discussions about what his new powers mean, Johnny just gets on with the job at hand, being the Ghost Rider at night while spending his days learning to control his power. In this, Cage makes a likeable Johnny Blaze. Mendes is sadly atrocious as Roxanne, since her already limited acting skills are not best suited to this kind of movie, though both she and Cage are completely acted off screen by Bentley, who hams up his role to supervillain proportions, cleverly revelling in the chance to play such a thoroughly despicable, yet oddly cool, character.

The effects in the initial teaser trailers looked diabolical but thankfully they've tidied them up nicely, and the film has become a visual feast as the blue death of Blackheart and the flames of the Ghost Rider do battle on screen. Fans of the comics may not be entirely happy with some of the changes that they've made to the origins of Ghost Rider, but if, like me, you've never read them, then you're thoroughly enjoying watching Ghost Rider with fresh eyes. The pacing is spot on and while the dialogue may occasionally come across as slightly creaky, there's something so cheesy about it that you can't help but enjoy it.

Some comic book movies are entirely po-faced because they take themselves so seriously, but Ghost Rider knows it's silly and gives off an infectious air of amused satisfaction, which makes watching it feel like eating a whole bag of Haribo - it'll make you slightly hyper and you'll feel guilty as hell for liking it, but you'll enjoy the experience nonetheless.

4/5