Trailer for Charlie Clark Superhero Movie Looks…Surprisingly, NOT Terrible

I was asked by an associate to check out the trailer for “Green Ghost and the Masters of the Stone." It’s by Charlie Clark, the owner of a chain of Nissan dealerships, including the one in El Paso.

In a recent advertorial in Spotlight El Paso, it says that “Hollywood came knocking” it SEEMS a lot more like this is a vanity project. That is, a guy makes a lot of money selling cars and shells out big bucks to make a movie. Which HE stars in. As HIMSELF. Also, he’s a superhero.

But even if “Green Ghost” is a vanity project, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be bad. And this is the shocking part. Based on the trailer alone the movie looks…how do you put this…a lot less terrible than you would assume.

 For starters, it actually LOOKS like a competently done film. Looking at the credits on IMBD it has a few legit Hollywood names (Danny Trejo, Enrique Castillo) some promising recognizable faces (Sofia Pernas, Michelle Lee), and a few in the category we’ll call A-list Next-of-Kin (Edward James Olmos’s son directs and Robert Rodriguez’s brother is a producer).

The fight sequences, at least the ones in the trailer, look VERY well-done. I’d compare them favorably to the recent MCU $100M+ blockbusters “Shang-Chi” and “The Eternals”.

The CGI of spaceships and laser beams look MUCH better than even the best SyFy Channel originals (a low bar, I know, but this trailer is several cuts above that).

I think the most surprising aspect to me was Mr. Clark. He’s been in enough of his own commercials, of course, to be comfortable in front of the camera. But he also seems not-at-all-out-of-place on the big screen. He’s got a very affable, slightly beleaguered persona, not dissimilar from Bob Odenkirk or Brian Cranston…both critically acclaimed actors. I’m not saying Charlie Clark is another Cranston, just that he seems to really have some screen presence.

IMDB says “Green Ghost and The Masters of the Stone” actually came out in 2018, so it seems like this might be a re-release or being re-promoted for some reason. Whatever the case, the trailer seems to do a good job of keeping things fun and knowing not to take themselves too seriously. A lot of big studios have struggled to do that recently.