Rating: 
Summary: A great change from tedious religious films
Review: Here's what there is to say: 1) Johnny Depp is terrific as Dean Corso, the man you hate but have to sympathize with. It's amazing how Depp can portray such a wide variety of characters. 2) The screenplay, for the most part, is what makes this movie. There are very few, if any, unnecessary scenes and elements like lighting are all very appropriate to mood and style. 3) It's not a horror film. Thank God. If this had been a cheesy horror flick I wouldn't have seen it. No "dramatic buildup into nothingness" as is too typical these days. 4) An interesting taken on Satanism without stereotyping everyone who takes an interest.The only problem with the film: A few ridiculous plot twists here and there. Where do they come from? Who knows.
Rating: 
Summary: Major disappointment
Review: I went into this movie expecting a supernatural thriller steeped in the occult. What I got was a guy wandering around Europe looking at a couple of books and trying to figure out why people are trying to kill him. Nothing really supernatural about it. Johnny Depp and Frank Langella both put in excellent acting jobs. Unfortunately, they weren't enough to save this film. Slow pacing and an unrealized potential dragged this movie into the category of "Why did I just waste 2 and a half hours watching this?" I was expecting demonic conjurings and encounters with supernatural beings, but those never happened. The major problem I had with it was the fact that none of the mysteries were ever explained, especially the mysterious woman following Depp's character around and saving his life. What was her story? All in all, I found it quite a boring movie. The theme was interesting, but the potential of the film was definitely not met. This movie could have been so much better, but ended up leaving me disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: The Long and Dull Path to The Ninth Gate
Review: To start, I will confess I was very disappointed with this movie. I somehow was lead to believe that I was going to see a thriller with a lot of suspense and a touch of horror. On the other hand, what I got was a mystery novel, a very slow moving mystery novel. It actually took over two hours to tell a very simple story (which I have reduced to one paragraph). Three copies exist of the demonic book called "The Ninth Gate". Balkan has acquired one and believes that his may not be authentic. He hires Corso (Johnny Depp), some type of book mercenary, to determine which of the three copies is authentic. Corso travels to Europe, views the other two copies, and determines that the three are authentic but not identical. All three books have nine similar drawings, but only three specific drawings of each book are to be used to assemble the nine needed perform a mysterious incantation. Corso figures out how to identify the correct nine drawings. With this information, Balkan attempts to recite the incantation, which does not work. Corso's mysterious follower, who may be the Devil herself, tells him that Balkan failed because one of the drawings he had was a forgery. She then tells Corso where to find the remaining drawing. At the end, we see Corso headed to the ruins referenced in the book, presumably to recite the incantation. It is assumed the incantation will give him unlimited power. As simple as this plot is, this lengthy movie leaves a number of unanswered questions such as: What exactly is Corso going to do at the end? Who is the woman who mysteriously followed him throughout the movie? Why did he not recognize her immediately (she looked exactly like the drawing in the book)? Why did she choose him to have the correct nine drawings? What exactly is the mystery of the ninth gate? Perhaps the director assumed most of us had read the book upon which the movie is based and knew the answers to these questions. I also believe the director couldn't decide what kind of story he was telling (mystery, drama, suspense...) and couldn't develop his characters. At the end, the protagonist is not any better for what has happened or any worse; instead, he seems unchanged (and as one-dimensional as he was at the start). Though his character learned nothing during the move, Johnny Depp sure did an excellent job as Dean Corso. The rest of the cast is also competent in this otherwise dull movie.
Rating:
Summary: Anit-Remake of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Review: A thinly veiled remake of The Last Crusade in antimatter. The Ninth Gate fails as a movie due to the complete lack of motivation of its anti-hero. Wait for it to hit cable.
Rating: 
Summary: Gate to the Kingdom of Disillusion
Review: First, a few reasons why I bothered to see this movie: 1. Roman Polanski is one of my favorite directors. 2. The theatrical/tv trailer looked intense 3. Interesting subject matter (occult). 4. French actress/wife of Polanski Emanuelle Seigner 5. Emanuelle Seigner 6. Last but not least, Emanuelle Seigner Now, a few reasons why I was left disappointed: 1. The ending 2. The ending 3. ...and the ending. This film was excellent for it's spectacular cinematography and various global locations. The plot and story itself were easy to comprehend . The mood, setting, atmosphere was very creepy and at times Gothic. Yet, it was not enough to frighten or thrill. As for the climax, maybe some of us are lazy and lack imagination to draw conclusions;However, I still wanted to know what really happened to Johnny Depp's character Corso at the end ( and have it explained to me by the director and actors) The ending was too ambiguous and symbolic (though the movie was filled with symbols figuratively and visually). As for Emanuelle Seigner, she is one underrated talented beauty only known for her modeling and acting in Europe. I wanted to know more about her character; Was she one of Satan's dominions or Satan himself ? She was definitely not heavensent(only to the eyes)... This movie gets 3 stars because it left me with more questions than answers; No closure whatsoever...and leaving the ending for personal or individual interpretation doesn't count Mr. Polanski
Rating:
Summary: The Ninth Gate
Review: This movie lacked any kind of suspense. Five minutes into the movie you could guess the plot. Was this movie supposed to be a thriller,horor,suspense, because it didn't make any of those categories.
Rating:
Summary: NICE TRY
Review: WHILE THIS MOVIE HAD A GREAT STORY LINE (A QUALITY MOST NEWER MOVIES ARE LACKING) I FELT THAT IT COULD HAVE BEEN PORTRAED BETTER THAN IT WAS. THE PREVIEWS WERE VERY MISLEADING SO THE VIEWER HAD EXPECTATIONS OF ACTION AND ADVENTURE, WHILE THE TRUTH IS THAT IT WAS VERY TAME. THE DEPP FAN THAT I AM I WENT TO SEE THIS FILM WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS. THIS WAS NOT A TYPICAL DEPP FILM, IT WAS A LITTLE DISAPOINTING IN COMPARISON TO SLEEPY HOLLOW OR EDWARD SCISSOR HANDS. IF YOU ARE EXPECTING A SLOW DRAWN OUT DETAILED STORY WITH OUT MUCH ACTION THIS MOVIE COULD BE ENTERTAINING TO THE RIGHT VIEWER.
Rating: 
Summary: Lazy, bored intellectuals rejoice.
Review: Great film with a great, but damn ambiguous, story. That's how people like me like it. I watched the film five times and developed a number of theories (which i tried to send to kittygirlme a few reviews down but the email wouldnt get through) Anyway I've been mulling over this flick for a week or so now and I'm still very pleased with every aspect. All the acting is above reproach, mostly good special effects, same great polanski style. Another huge contributer was production manager Dean Tavoularis (who we may remember worked on the visually exquisite Apocolypse Now) whose warm lighting and muted colors gave the film an immpressive visual flair. The music was also brilliant, vibrant orchestral scores accompanied by korean soprano Sumi Jo. Good stuff. I also loved the constant smoking and drinking, film noir lives on. i love this movie.
Rating:
Summary: I almost gave it four stars...
Review: But I was too impressed with it. Sure, it had some flaws; all movies do. But "The Ninth Gate" makes up in story, dialogue, acting, and overall atmosphere for any mistakes it made. Johnny Depp is perfect for the part of Dean Corso. As are the other actors in their own roles. For the most part, it's really like reading a book on TV. One thing leads to another, and another, and another. Definitely a step above the other religious/horror movies that have come out recently.
Rating:
Summary: Intriguing, but uneventful
Review: The search for the ninth gate was very interesting. Tracking down old dusty tomes around the world searching for the true steps to open the ninth gate was very intriguing. However, at the end of the movie many questions were left unanswered. What was the ninth gate? Who was the beautiful woman who could fly? What happens?!? I wasn't disappointed by the movie, but I was frustrated that some of these questions were never answered.
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