There has long been a debate in the comic book world about what’s fair as far as creator’s rights are concerned. If you self-publish or work for one of the smaller companies, it’s possible to maintain the rights to any characters that you create while working in comics. If you want to work for one of the big guys like DC or Marvel, however, what you’re doing is work for hire. That means you’re just an employee of said company and any of the characters that you create while writing a Marvel or DC book are not your property, but the property of the company. While young comic creators are more than happy to agree to terms like this when they’re starving and hungry for work, regrets can sometimes develop later on if a character gets popular and starts to bring in huge amounts of revenue. This is especially true now that comic book properties are routinely being developed into big budget films that bring in hundreds of millions of dollars. DC has famously had troubles dealing with the estates of Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joel Shuster, who have been trying to get back control of the Superman pie for many years, and recently Marvel has had its own batch of troubles thanks to a man named Gary Friedrich. Friedrich worked as a freelancer for the House of Ideas back in the early 70s, and part of his output was the creation of a character named Ghost Rider, a [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

You’ll forgive me, dear reader, if I admit something to you now – I have never seen the first Ghost Rider. Trust me, this was not out of some misdirected hatred of Nicolas Cage-starring schlock (if Con Air is airing on television, I will drop everything to watch it – everything), it was just the way it shook out. And it looks like I might never have to see that film, as Brian Taylor and Mark Neveldine‘s next installment of the film appears to have just one thing in common with that first crack on the hellion superhero – star Nicolas Cage. That’s really all you need. When FSR hit Comic-Con earlier this year, our own Jack Giroux learned a number of things about the new film, including first and foremost, that this is a standalone story. Consider Ghost Rider removed from my Amazon Wish List for this holiday season. The full trailer for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance has now careened its way online, and it doesn’t even remotely give a fuck about your stupid rules of the road. Hell, it doesn’t even care that much for the basic rules of mortality. This newest look at the film does not include Cage pissing fire (a shocking letdown), but it does include him vomiting it and whipping it. There are also a bunch of monks with tattoos and a lot of fighting and car-crashing and leather and ugly dudes, so yeah, it’s a Neveldine/Taylor film. Put on a helmet and [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

No matter what I say below, know this: I will see Shark Night 3D. There are no press screenings, no DVDs mailed to my home. I will head out to a theater to watch it because I love sharks and I love watching people get eaten by them. So to be extra clear: I haven’t seen the film yet. No one has. But still, I’m going to bitch about it, because that’s how I roll. Why? Well, because it’s easy to get mad at this film. It’s rated PG-13. I mean, if there ever was a title for a hard R-rating, it’s Shark Night 3D. After all, Piranha 3D, which was probably instrumental in green lighting this late entry to Shark Week, was well received because of its gore. Its nudity. Its generally over the top nature. Without Jerry O’Connell getting his dick bit off and two hot, naked women swimming for six minutes, that film is a pile of crap. The blood makes it – and the PG-13 rating for Shark Night might break it.

Wow. The trailer for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance contains a lot of chain whip cracking, a lot of skulls on fire, and that wacky flaming vomit/urine combination that got Fure so hot under the collar. Considering the history of the movie and the weight of the first film’s failure that Vengeance carries around its neck, it’s probably a great idea to watch both trailers side by side to see what each production was going for. And whether they achieved it:

Unlike Robert Fure, I’m excited for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Like Nathan Adams, I dislike — not hate — the first film and its Myster Science Theater-esque enjoyability. Understandably, there’s a lot skepticism towards this Ghost Rider installment. I mean, who wants to see a sequel to a film that very, very few people actually love? Not many. Lucky for them, this isn’t a sequel. The fact alone that this is a Brian Taylor and Mark Neveldine “superhero” film already gives you a hint that this won’t be a run-of-the-mill action film. They’re out to deliver something dark, bizarre, and one of the few superhero films that doesn’t take itself too seriously. When directors has their lead pissing fire, the odds are something unique is getting made. Here a few things I learned about during the Comic-Con press conference that should make you excited about Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.

San Diego Comic-Con is a busy place. No one can cover everything, or even a significant portion of everything. Judgement calls must be made, like sleeping through panels or buying cool toys instead of waiting in line at Hall H. Or you know, just covering A instead of B. I found myself in that situation when it came time for the Sony panel that featured a lot of cool things, including The Amazing Spider-Man and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Instead of suffering though the line at Hall H, which I gladly would have done, I caught up with Spartacus and then went off to see Jason Momoa, the next Conan. Luckily I was able to read all about the Sony panel on Twitter and, well… Shit.

Every week, Landon Palmer and Cole Abaius log on to their favorite chat client of 1996 as TheManFromWaco andTeenWlf2 in order to discuss some topical topic of interest. This week, the pair questions what separates the wheat from the shit when it comes to reboots, prequels and movies capitalizing on name recognition in order to get ahead in the marketing game. What makes a prequel great? How can a reboot really succeed?

The Nic Cage crazy train just keeps rolling right through the station. Already this year we’ve seen him playing a crazy old man in a wig who sword fights witches in Season of the Witch. Well, get ready to take things to the next level.

Just when we thought the idea of a Ghost Rider sequel might have died a slow, painful (and deserving) death, the folks at Columbia Pictures jump back into the game. This time it’s nothing but good news. Nicolas Cage is in talks to reprise his role as Johnny Blaze. And Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the guys behind the Crank series, are in early negotiations to direct. Sadly, the film got a lame title: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.

With Bill Nighy’s claim that he doesn’t like watching himself in movies, I figured I’d take the opportunity to suggest the practice to a few other actors. But it’s not exactly what you think.

Well it will be reconceived, whatever that shit means.

Forgive me for not being my normal enthusiastic self in delivering the news. Excuse my complete and utter apathy at this tidbit. See, Ghost Rider was so utterly terrible that I can’t even muster any anger over this. Just pure, soul-crushing disgust.

Beyoncé is throwing her name in the arena for the Wonder Woman movie. Luckily, today is Monday which means I’ve got dibs on going insane over this before Kevin can proclaim WTF?

Don’t know whether to check out Ghostbusters or Ghost Dad next time you’re in the mood for a spooky comedy? We’ve got some flicks you should check out and others to leave on the rental shelf.

While much of the FSR staff was in sunny San Diego for Comic-Con 2008, our own Jason Dorough was sitting at home salivating over the collectibles announcements. Here is what really caught his eye.