Preview: 'Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance'

The original Ghost Rider (2007) made almost $230 million at the box office, which is miraculous considering it was beset with delays and production problems for the best part of a decade, and the film that director Mark Steven Johnson finally delivered is one of the worst comic book adaptations to date. Fortunately, the services of Johnson have been dispensed with so there is hope that Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor's upcoming 3D sequel Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012) will be a far superior offering.

Although the Razzie Award nominated performance of Nicolas Cage did the first flick no favours, the majority of the blame rested on the shoulders of Johnson and screenwriter Shane Salerno. Johnson was hired to direct Ghost Rider before his previous directorial effort - the abysmal Daredevil (2003) - was released to general dismay, and it's doubtful he would have got the gig had the producers known that he was so creatively impoverished.

The same goes for Salerno who got lucky with his script for Michael Bay's Armageddon (1998) but then followed it up with a production rewrite of Aliens vs. Predator (2004) and a screenplay for Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007). Those of you who are fans of the Dark Horse comics and had the misfortune to catch any of those films will be fully aware that Salerno has an almost supernatural inability to adapt the page to the screen.

Billed as a re-imagining rather than a direct sequel, Spirit of Vengeance is based on a story by David S. Goyer - of The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012) fame. In addition, the dynamic duo of Neveldine and Taylor - who delivered the highly amusing Crank (2006) and its sequel Crank: High Voltage (2008) - are on directorial duty, which gives the project a bit of pedigree.

The return of Nicolas Cage as Ghost Rider/Johnny Blaze will disappoint some, but with a supporting cast which includes the likes of Ciarán Hinds, Idris Elba and Christopher Lambert, perhaps Cage will be encouraged to up his game and deliver the kind of performance we know he is capable of this time around.

Even if the film turns out to be a turkey from hell, it may just make its money back. In an industry which continually measures success by box office receipts rather than public and critical acclaim, expect Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance to be one of many future sequels featuring the man with the flaming skull.

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is due to be released in UK cinemas on 17 February, 2012.

Lee Cassanell