The Ninth Gate
by Roman Polanski
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Barbara Jefford, Emmanuelle Seigner, Frank Langella, Johnny Depp, Lena OlinDirector: Roman Polanski
Brand: DEPP,JOHNNY
Writer: Roman Polanski
Producer: Adam Kempton
Producer: Alain Vannier
Producer: Antonio Cardenal
Writer: Arturo P?rez-Reverte
Writer: Enrique Urbizu
Writer: John Brownjohn
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 133 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-05-22
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Lions Gate
Movie Reviews of The Ninth Gate
Movie Review: EYE-ROLLING STUPIDITY 4 OUT OF 10
Summary: 2 Stars
You'd think a film about finding the gateway to Hell might be interesting, but no. The Ninth Gate is a disastrous film and is a film I'm sure Johnny Depp would rather forget. This is probably one of the dumbest (And most boring) religious thrillers ever made. It's inconsistent, jumbled, confused, and not quite sure what it wants to be. Here's my opinion for why I think you should keep this gate closed.
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: Dean Corso (Johnny Depp) is a man who is hired by avid book collectors to track down rare books and investigate their authenticity. He is then hired by a man named Boris Balkan who wants him to investigate the authenticity of a book he recently acquired that supposedly can conjure the devil and open the gateway to Hell. So he gives Dean Corso the book and sends him to Portugal and France to compare it with two other copies that are about the same topic, but have different things about them such as differences in pictures. But then people start dropping dead around Corso, and someone is out to kill him and get the book. Along his journey to finding out the mystery to the Ninth Gate, he meets a mysterious woman who seems to have powers (I couldn't help but shake my head when there were scenes in which she glides down to Corso). Together they are taken on a dangerous journey full of mystery, deceit, and devil worship. The story doesn't go anywhere interesting and you're left bored senseless at the ridiculous plot.
MUSIC: This is one of the only areas of the film that actually worked. The musical score was decent and it seemed to fit the mood for the most part, but it was kind of dreary and dull at times.
ACTION: This film is very dull. This film can't seem to decide what it wants to be. Sometimes it tries to be a thriller. Sometimes a horror film. Sometimes a mystery. Sometimes it tries to be action. Sometimes it tries to be suspense. The problem here is the fact that none of these areas work. This in turn, turns the film into a garbled and inconsistent mess. It doesn't work as a thriller because well, there is nothing thrilling about it. It's not horror because it just isn't scary at all. It's not mystery because it's a cliched mess in which it doesn't take all that much time to figure out whose behind it. It's not action because it's badly done and full of terrible fight scenes. Then it doesn't work as suspense because you're never afraid (Not to mention excited) about what comes next because you already know what's going to happen. Let's also not forget this film features some of the most pointless sex/nude scenes I've ever seen. They are not done tastefully and they are laughable. Sadly, you can't pull a "so bad it's good" value out of this film, so don't even try.
ACTING: Johnny Depp is a good actor in most of his films, but he clearly dropped the ball in this film. He looked and sounded bored through the entire film as if wondering to himself, "Why the hell am I even here? I was in Sleepy Hollow and Edward Scissorhands, dammit! Is this what I've reduced myself to?" The other actors don't fare any better and are actually worse. Many of the actors seem comatose in their roles and display no emotion or believability. Then when the villains get into worshiping Satan you can't help but mock them because it's completely ridiculous and certainly in no way terrifying. When the actors do try and display emotion, they come off as a complete joke. Casting mishaps are aplenty in this film. But then again, I don't know whether I should blame the actors or the script, or maybe both. Still, this area is a complete mess.
OVERALL: While it may have a few interesting scenes and decent music, that will never excuse how bad of a mess this film is. It tries to be too many things at one, and it doesn't succeed at any of the genres it tries to be. It's a dreadfully dull film with no mystery or intrigue because you can always guess what happens next thanks to the terrible, cliched script. It has no good acting and you won't care about what happens to any of these people. A dull and thoroughly un-thrilling religious thriller that's also emotionally removed. Skip it.
THE GOOD: A few interesting scenes and decent music.
THE BAD: Terrible script, bad acting, it's dull and slow-moving, no scares, no mystery, no thrills, no cool action moments, and it's definitely not suspenseful.
Summary of The Ninth Gate
Johnny Depp unlocks the gates to hell in Roman Polanski's newest thriller. Depp stars as Dean Corso, an unscrupulous rare-book dealer who is hired to locate the last remaining copies of "The Nine Gate of the Shadow Kingdom," a demonic manuscript that can summon the Devil. Corso becomes embroiled in a conspiracy involving murder, theft and satanic ritual, and ultimately finds himself confronting the devil incarnate.Art House & International DVD Video
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