When this came out in 1999, many people used it as evidence to claim that Roman Polanski had lost his touch. His films seemed to be getting increasingly unwatchable (Bitter Moon, anyone?) and The Ninth Gate was the final nail in the coffin. So when he bounced back to critical acclaim, with last year's The Pianist, many people, including me, were surprised. Let us hope that Polanski is inspired to make better films now. As it is, the Ninth Gate is a testament to those trying times in his career.
Rare book dealer Johnny Depp is hired by a millionaire book collector, to track down the two other copies of a rare Satanic book, The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows, which he owns a copy. The millionaire, played by Frank Langella, is obsessed about authenticating his copy, and if during the research, his is uncovered to be a fake, the real one should take its place. Depp must do this, by whatever means possible. Hence, a large cheque which is thrust in his direction.
The ideas are good- you've got weighty themes such as religion, Satanic ritual and the black arts, but the scriptwriters (of which Polanski is credited as one) fail to take the concept any further. This is probably due to the impenetrable plot, which presents the viewers with half-clues, vague character insights but fails to include any clear direction. Thus, you get a Lynchian ending devoid of any of the charm or wit displayed by David. In other words, you get a pretentious mess.
However, that is not to say the film is without it's virtues. The lead performance by Depp is both strong and highly charismatic. Again, as he proved with this year's overrated Pirates of the Caribbean, Depp can be relied upon to bring grit and grace to otherwise lukewarm films. He gets decent support from Lena Olin and from an extended cameo from Langella. The first half of the film manages to entertain, and contains several excellent directorial flourishes courtesy of Polanski. The pace is kept fairly consistent (give or take the odd slow scene) until the end, despite the narrative drying up long before. The film even manages to survive a particularly out of place sex scene.
The Ninth Gate is a film that had greatness in its grasp. A great director and a superb leading actor on board, if treated with care and precision by the scriptwriters, then perhaps this would have been a cult classic. As it is we get a half a good movie, and half a bad one, strung together with a terrible plot and multiple loose ends. People have baffled over the Ninth Gate, trying to resolve the questions it asks about religion and the macabre. Here's a response to these people: don't bother. Whatever you're looking for is not there.
Rare book dealer Johnny Depp is hired by a millionaire book collector, to track down the two other copies of a rare Satanic book, The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows, which he owns a copy. The millionaire, played by Frank Langella, is obsessed about authenticating his copy, and if during the research, his is uncovered to be a fake, the real one should take its place. Depp must do this, by whatever means possible. Hence, a large cheque which is thrust in his direction.
The ideas are good- you've got weighty themes such as religion, Satanic ritual and the black arts, but the scriptwriters (of which Polanski is credited as one) fail to take the concept any further. This is probably due to the impenetrable plot, which presents the viewers with half-clues, vague character insights but fails to include any clear direction. Thus, you get a Lynchian ending devoid of any of the charm or wit displayed by David. In other words, you get a pretentious mess.
However, that is not to say the film is without it's virtues. The lead performance by Depp is both strong and highly charismatic. Again, as he proved with this year's overrated Pirates of the Caribbean, Depp can be relied upon to bring grit and grace to otherwise lukewarm films. He gets decent support from Lena Olin and from an extended cameo from Langella. The first half of the film manages to entertain, and contains several excellent directorial flourishes courtesy of Polanski. The pace is kept fairly consistent (give or take the odd slow scene) until the end, despite the narrative drying up long before. The film even manages to survive a particularly out of place sex scene.
The Ninth Gate is a film that had greatness in its grasp. A great director and a superb leading actor on board, if treated with care and precision by the scriptwriters, then perhaps this would have been a cult classic. As it is we get a half a good movie, and half a bad one, strung together with a terrible plot and multiple loose ends. People have baffled over the Ninth Gate, trying to resolve the questions it asks about religion and the macabre. Here's a response to these people: don't bother. Whatever you're looking for is not there.