The Ninth Gate

Rating:
Summary: Not Polanski's best, nor Depp's
Review: Johhny Depp, who has always been known for choosing strange & challenging roles, did something strange in 1999,2000. Over the course of a 12 month period, he starred in 3 films. Usually just the opposite is true. The Astronauts Wife was totally forgettable, while Sleepy Hollow was wonderful. The Ninth Gate falls somewhere in the middle. Trying to get back his glory days of Rosemary's Baby, director Roman Polanski chose another interesting, supernatural vehicle. I just felt that it lacked a lot of things that kept it from being as brillant. One of these things, regretably, was Depp's performance. Only a bit more animated than his performance in the Astronaut's Wife, Depp sometimes seemed to be sleeping through this role. He was much more effective in another of his "every guy" role in the movie Nick of Time. Though the truth is,with this film, he didn't have a heck of a lot more to work with. Polanski couldn't seem to make up his mind whether the characters in this movie were supposed to be cartoony or dramatic. He got an odd mix of the 2. Just listen to lines like Depp's after he and the dead book owners wife have just finished mking love ( i can't repeat them here)...but he delivers the line smirking into the camera like something out of a campy spy movie. There's also the annoying bit of Polanski not introducing the when & where of any of his scenes. Depp goes from NY to Portugal to Spain, and Polanski leaves the viewer wondering just where the character is now, and sometimes how he got there. Sometimes it feels like the viewer came in in the middle of the picture, when they have been watching it from the start. However, the film does hold the viewer's attention ( unlike the somewhat similar, apocolyptic snoozer End of Days), despite its almost 2 & 1/2 hour length. And some of the performances are genuinely eerie, like that of Frank Langellas ( just listen to that voice on the phone!).But going for the anti-climactic, artistic ending was a wrong move. It left me, oddly enough,feeling like I was taken ( much like Corso's clientele in the movie). The picture was shot nicely enough & had some terrific music ( that included a bit that almost sounded like the Jaws theme). I think that Polanski could have given in and given the viewers a little bit more of a spectacular, Hollywood ending ( and beleive me, I don't say that often!).

Rating:
Summary: is it over yet?
Review: This movie made you keep an eye on the clock and when it ended felt like a big waste of time. The ending left you staring at the screen asking what just happened, buy this only if you have the keys to the other eight gates.

Rating:
Summary: Atmosphere Strung on an Occult String
Review: Pardon the review title, but I think it aptly sums up the film. The plot is predictable up until the ending, which is quite startling (and disturbing), but this is not a negative. It is largely a mood piece, built around the connotations of occultism, drawing on our own relgious prejudices to frighten us and to get us thinking about their lack of complexity (it doesn't, apparently, frighten us, but for the most fundamentally devout who take these matters seriously). Aside from Polanski's sometimes uncomforable portrayl of women (always the Eve in his films), what is genuis here is Polanski's use of the "sex-and-satanism" theme without risking b-movie takiness. One should take a glance at the other reviews for a plot summary; here I will only say that one should not put all her eggs in the plot basket. See the film as a nice, eerie, sometimes funny, mood-making event, and you will enjoy the visual puzzles. I should mention, however, the the DVD version misrepresents the special features. Many of the items listed as "extras" DO NOT appear on the special features menu (e.g., no cast and crew bios, no production notes), but only on the paper menu in the case. The website, however, has lots of interesting goodies (linkable through artisanent.com).

Rating:
Summary: I thought this movie was excellent!
Review: I thought this movie was great! I had no problem with the way the plot was built up, how it ended, or anything. I haven't read the book so I'm not about to make any comparisons. But the DVD edition was great and I highly suggest watching it. But if your expecting a horror flick look somewhere else like End of Days.

Rating:
Summary: The Ninth Gate is not for stupid people.
Review: Excellent movie, intelligent and new. If you are an intelligent, literate person this movie should have tons of appeal for you. However if you are a brainwashed commercial consumer, you will hate because it often forces you to think.

Rating:
Summary: The Prince of Darkness comes into his own
Review: Empty your mind of all preconceived ideas about this film before viewing, and it will be a very worthwhile experience. It is not a horror film. It is definitely an occult film that takes a fresh look at the old theme of His Unholiness making an appearance on earth. The Ninth Gate has a superior cast who perform their parts well under the direction of a director with a worldwide reputation for genius, especially when it comes to depicting the darker matters of the mind. The film is what you would expect from such a combination of human talent. The strictly human characters display themselves in such a way that it becomes possible to read their minds and feel their motives. In so doing, the necessity of the one supernatural character becomes abundantly clear.

Johnny Depp plays Curso, a dealer in and locator of rare books who, as Balkan (Langella's character) points out, is worthy of trust because his loyalty can be bought. Balkan pays the right price to have Depp travel from New York to Lisbon and Paris in search of the two other copies of a rare book Balkan has recently acquired--one that was supposedly co-authored by the Devil and one of his most loyal disciples, the latter of whom was burned at the stake in the 1600's for his own loyalty. Balkan insists that he thinks only one copy of the book is genuine, and he wants to make sure his copy is the one.

It is obvious that Depp has no idea what he is getting himself into, but for all his cynical disregard of humanity, he becomes the "innocent" in this story, because he is the one person who becomes aware and admits early on that he has no idea what he has gotten into. Balkan says he obtained his copy of the book in a true sale from the owner just before the owner committed suicide. However, the former owner's widow insists that the book is hers and becomes the first person trying to kill Curso in an effort to get it back--after the best of feminine wiles don't get the job done. At this point Curso's "guardian angel", whom he calls Green Eyes, enters the picture in the guise of a wandering college student whose appearances at first inspire distrust and apprehension until she begins the rather pleasant habit of repeatedly saving Curso's life.

The mysterious "keys" that will open the Ninth Gate and let the Devil break through are contained in the set of nine woodcuts within each book. The woodcuts each contain interesting jumbled adaptations of various images from the Tarot's Major Arcana--combinations that give a clue to anyone familiar with the cards and their meanings that everyone's traditional ideas regarding the occult were either dead wrong all along or they are about to undergo--forgive the expression--one hell of a change. Curso notes that there are significant variations in the woodcuts in each volume of the three existing copies of the book. Apparaently some were drawn by the Devil himself and some by his advocate.

Curso also notes that he is now being hounded not only by the avaricious widow and her hit man, but also by Balkan, who seems to know his every move, not to mention having knowledge about the violent deaths of the owners of the other two manuscripts. Finally it is revealed that Balkan and the widow are involved in a literal battle to the death to become the Master who controls the Ninth Gate and the group of Devil worshippers who are this century's congregation of those who have been waiting for that Master since the book was first printed 350 years earlier.

There is humor throughout this film, providing necessary comic relief at some very tense moments. That humor is nowhere more evident than in the scene in which the widow (who has managed to temporarily regain Balkan's copy of the book) is leading the gathering of pathetic self-styled Satanists in an even more pathetic, sterotypical black mass. The scene at its opening is so mundane, you want to groan. Then as it progresses, you realize that is part of the director's intentional imagery to show how stupid the theories about conjuring up and dealing with Old Scratch have always been.

This guy is supposed to be the all powerful Prince of Darkness, right? This is the guy who can take your soul into hell for all eternity if you agree to the arrangement. And yet throughout history it is believed that if you draw a circle around a pentagram on the ground or floor and stand in it, then mutter a few incantations, the Devil will appear with his forked tail between his legs and do whatever you ask. This is the powerful adversary of the Almighty? Polanski has a very refreshing spin on that idea.

In The Ninth Gate we see Satan as a stronger contender--one perfectly capable of appointing his "chosen one" among men. Tired, evidently, of insulting requests to preside as Master of Ceremonies at orgies and to give individual megalomaniacs the power to rule the world, the Devil has decided to run the show himself and to confer the honors of being his Commander in Chief on a person who has proven himself a champion on the battlefield of mundane evil.

As for that "obscure" ending, we see Curso walking alone toward the last eerie combination of Tarot symbols--The Star (hope) imposed over the twin towers of The Moon (a card generally having to do with the deepest and sometimes most sinister elements of the occult). One tower is behind the other, giving the appearance of the two merging into one Tower (symbol of total destruction). Evidently the party games are over.

A richly textured, beautifully filmed and well-acted modern gothic tale. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Marvelous...haunting
Review: I approached this DVD with caution, never having seen the film before and noting its three-star review here, but I came away incredibly satisfied.

I partially blame the trailers for this film for the disappointment expressed in some of these reviews (the rest of the blame rests simply on the closed minds of today's moviegoers). When I first saw the trailer I expected a terrifying occult film filled with demons and supernatural happenings. That would've been an easier film to make. What I saw, however, was so much better.

This is a slow-paced film, which moves along quietly, gracefully, and keeps you glued to the screen for its entirety. Cast performances are all wonderful, especially Depp, of course, who continues to choose the most interesting projects in film today. There are no grotesque demons and very few special effects. Polanski's subtle touch creates images that etch themselves in your mind nonetheless. One example is the wheelchair-bound Baroness careening across the room to burst into her office (don't want to spoil any more). Suffice it to say that certain images in this film are as terrifyingly memorable as Kubrick's twins in THE SHINING, for example.

Although this film is not a "horror" film by any standards, I found myself genuinely scared throughout. Evil is always just around the corner. You never doubt its existence and you're terrified of the moment when it may reveal itself.

Rating:
Summary: Great movie!
Review: I have just viewed the film ,"The ninth gate" and I thought it was great. I bet you're wondering why I only gave it three stars if it was so great. Well, it really was great. There some were strengths and weaknesses. Let me explain.

To begin with, The Ninth Gate had its strengths. 1. It had a very original and creative plot. 2. Fun, entertaining, and suspensfull. 3. just flat out GREAT!and thrilling

In addition to The Ninth Gate's strengths, there were weaknesses. 1. Not a concluding ending. 2. A character's role was unexplained. 3. Did not xplain how the ninth page was missing.

Well, from these 6 descriptions, it may not explain what you wanted to know or find out. But there is a good way to find out what I am talking about. Maybe.....See the movie! I hope that this review was of some help to you or inspired you to see the film. And believe me, thi film is a great way to spend 2 hours and 3 minutes. Take my word for it.

Rating:
Summary: Ninth Gate = Pretty bad last 15 minutes
Review: I wanted so badly to like this movie. I did like it, up until the very end. It was a bit long and in the last 45 minutes they started to loose me. If I had one question to ask it would be this, When did HELL turn into the most desirable location to take your summer vacation? Seems that everyone in this story just couldn't wait to cash in their chips and join Satan for a ride on the Hell Express. Anyway, rent it if you must. Buy it if you are just itching to throw away $20.00.

Rating:
Summary: A Decent Film by Roman Polanski
Review: Roman Polanski is a bit of a bizarre filmmaker who tends to make rather macabre and gloomy films. His "The Tenant" and "Repulsion" illustrate this trait rather bluntly. And so it is with his latest offering, "The Ninth Gate," as well. The film looks like a Roman Polanski film right from the very start, with its muted hues, supernatural themes, and depressing atmosphere. For some reason, all of Polanski's films are quite depressing. Oh well.

Anyhow, the film concerns an egocentric book mercenary (for lack of a better term), played by Johnny Depp, who is hired by an avid and mysterious book collector (Frank Langella) to authenticate his copy of a very rare and potentially very powerful book. The investigation takes Depp's detective all throughout Europe, and we meet some quite eccentric characters along the way who fit in perfectly with Polanski's style. My personal favorites are an amusing pair of twin book-keepers who shed some light on the book. There is also a mysterious woman who seems to follow Depp's every steps. What is her agenda? Did Langella hire her to keep an eye on Depp? What is her interest in the book? I won't tell - watch the film and find out.

"The Ninth Gate" is rather deliberately paced. Some TV ads had depicted it to be a fast-paced, explosion packed, sexual romp. This is the exact opposite of what the film really is. The film really takes its time developing mood and supernatural tone, and for the most part, it succeeds. If you're patient and allow the film to establish itself, then you'll probably enjoy this film. Unfortunately, most viewers, jaded by MTV or Hollywood-style quick-editing, may find this movie too boring and tedious. That is a pity. Polanski belongs to an old school of filmmaking, like the late Stanley Kubrick, wherein the craft of the filmmaking process itself is more important than the number of blockbusting special effects one can pack in.

I found this film to be quite intriguing and gripping. It falters a little at the conclusion by becoming perhaps a little too over-the-top, but overall it is a fine work by a master filmmaker.

As for the newly-released DVD, I have a few comments. The picture and sound are quite good, though not reference quality. There is a slight graininess to the picture, but that is deliberate and was also evident on the actual theatrical release (just as in Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut, too). The subwoofers stay quiet for the most part, but then this is not a loud film (until the ending, anyways). Polanski contributes a commentary track, but I find him a little dry and difficult to understand; I could have used subtitles with him, perhaps. Unfortunately, there are *no* subtitles on this DVD. The disc contains the usual cast/production notes info and a variety of trailer/teasers, a few of which are Easter Eggs but nothing special. There is a nice isolated soundtrack for the score, though, which is rather eloquent and sets the proper mood for the film. And there is a small storyboard section and a gallery of artwork from the film, too. Overall, it is a well produced DVD, though I would have liked a few more extras on the DVD. Still if you liked the film, you'll be happy enough with this DVD.