The Ninth Gate

The Ninth Gate

1999

Director- Roman Polanski

Cast- Johnny Depp, Frank Langella, Lena Ollin, Emanuelle Singer, James Russo, Jack Taylor, Barbara Jefford, José López Rodero

           

     Johnny Depp plays Dean Corso, an expert on rare books and quite amoral. He isn’t above using his expertise to hoodwink unsuspecting buyers and sellers in order to make a profit. He is hired by Boris Balkan (Langella), a fanatical collector of occult books, to investigate The Ninth Gate, a book reputed to help the reader summon the devil himself. Only three copies are known to exist and Corso sets out on a world spanning trip to compare the three copies to each other. 

            Enter into this two women; Liana Teflger (Lena Ollin) and a mysterious green eyed girl (Emanuelle Singer) who seems to turn up at the most unexpected times. Liana is a priestess of sorts in a coven of rich hedonists who engage in superficial devil worship. She wants the book for herself. Corso soon finds out that people are willing to kill for the book, particularly his employer, Boris Balkan.

            As Corso’s investigation continues, he uncovers the secret of the books that might enable the reader to summon the Prince of Darkness. Corso, Liana and Balkan come into conflict over who will have the secret and be able to use it.  Helping Corso along the way is the mysterious girl who knows more than she should and may possess some supernatural powers.

This is one of the best put together films I’ve ever seen and certainly belongs in any satanic canon or top ten list. Roman Polanski (who also directed Rosemary’s Baby) paid so much attention to detail that you can watch this film again and again and keep picking up little nuances. This is also the rare movie where Johnny Depp showcases his acting skills instead of playing the quirky oddball that he seems to be typecast as in his Tim Burton films. Frank Langella, who has experience playing supervillains (Dracula and Skeletor) tones it down and is subtly menacing .Subtle might be the best way to describe this entire movie.  Also of note is an appearance by 70s horror star Jack Taylor, who places the owner of one of the books.

Don’t watch it if you want thrills and chills, but if you want to be mentally engaged with an intricate occult thriller, this is the film for you.