"A Bookish Devil"
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What You Need To Know:
A graying Depp looks tired, the leading girl seems unsure of her role, and Frank Langella as the collector hasn’t been as tacky since playing DRACULA in the 1970s. Suspense is non-existent, and the scares are pedestrian. Though containing information on Satan and Satanism, all followers of Satan in the movie turn out to be obsessed or buffoons. Yet, Satan and Satanism are not to be trifled with. God abhors such activity. Containing some foul language and moderate violence, this occult movie shows Satanists will receive their just rewards for trifling with evil.
Content:
(B, OOO, AbAbAb, LL, VV, SS, NN, A, D, M) Very mild moral worldview with strong occult, anti-Christian content where people desire the appearance of Satan, including depictions of a Satanic ceremony, but movie shows Satanists receive their just rewards for trifling with pure evil; 6 obscenities & 4 profanities; moderately strong violence including man hangs himself, assault, attempted murder by attempting to hit man with car, kicking, punching, man burns himself, man strangles woman, woman smashes bottle over man’s head, one shooting, & threats of violence; heavy kissing, woman gropes man, implied fornication, & depicted fornication; upper male & upper female nudity; alcohol use; smoking; and, shady business deals, image of corpse in pool & pledges to Satan.
More Detail:
Those who like looking at old books and European locations may be able to tolerate sitting through THE NINTH GATE, but the thriller lover won’t find thrills here. Instead, they will find some very bad dialogue, lots of boring filler, a little bit of mystery, some meaningless sex, and a lot of Satanic mumbo-jumbo.
Johnny Depp stars as a rare book appraiser, Dean Corso. Boris Balkan (Frank Langella) is a brooding character who has an extensive library of rare books, all on Satan. One book in his collection, called BOOK OF THE NINE DOORS TO THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS, supposedly is one of three ever written. An authentic copy would allow the trained bearer of the book to be ushered into the presence of Satan himself. Boris is not able to make the book work, so he hires Mr. Corso to compare it with the other known copies to see if it is indeed authentic.
So, Corso is paid handsomely and sent off to Portugal and France to track down the two other copies. As he searches, he is met by a beautiful stranger, only known as The Girl (Emmanuelle Seigner), a sort of guardian angel who floats a little and knows how to throw a karate kick. Corso also is met with danger; someone else wants to unlock the secrets of the books and meet Satan too. Through some corny dialogue, a few murders and a few sexual encounters, Corso also becomes obsessed with the Ninth Gate.
Roman Polanski created what is considered one of horror’s greatest modern masterpieces, ROSEMARY’S BABY. That movie mixed pathos with genuine horror. Here, Corso plods along through some attractive settings and once in a while becomes involved in a little chase scene or a few lines of instruction on Satanism. A graying Depp looks tired, Seigner seems unsure of her role, and Langella hasn’t been as tacky since playing DRACULA in the 1970s. Suspense is non-existent.
Because the plot and scares are so pedestrian, THE NINTH GATE isn’t effective as a Satanism primer, but it does include plenty of discussion about Satan. Followers of Satan in the movie turn out to be obsessed or buffoons, and the movie won’t be much of an encouragement to would-be followers. (By contrast, THE LOST BOYS made following evil very seductive and appealing.) Yet, the promises that ultimately drive Corso are the same ones Adam and Eve heard in the garden, equality with God and eternal life. Satan is up to his old tricks and apparently is still making converts to his lies.
Perhaps, the greatest danger is THE NINTH GATE website, which includes lots of information about Satan and Satanism. Satan and Satanism are not to be trifled with. God abhors any such activity. Those who would dwell on it, even with mild curiosity, are putting themselves in harm’s way. THE NINTH GATE, however, treats Satan almost as a McGauffin, a mere plot device to get the action going, but problem is, there isn’t much action – a non-thrilling thriller.
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