– Customer review on 13/04/2007

The sleazy book dealer Corso (Depp) is hired by the obscure obsessive Balkan to find the only other two copies of his rare book in existence. The book is called 'The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows', and Balkan wants to authenticate his copy of this 17th century occult work, said to have been written by the devil. And thus begins an almost 'Angel heart'ish (remember that one with Rourke and De Niro) escapade, filled with physical and supernatural catalysts and obstacles

– Customer review on 05/01/2007

I saw Roman Polanski's "The Ninth Gate" -- a horror film often poorly compared to his earlier "Rosemary's Baby" -- on a Saturday night when it began at 10 p.m. It is a good flick for late night on a Saturday -- it's about an unscrupulous rare book dealer (Johnny Depp in an effective role) that makes a deal with a similarly unscrupulous collector (Mr. Overactor Frank Langella) to visit Europe and determine if Langella's first edition book is authentic.

Only catch is it's a first edition of a book written in the 1500s that portends a visit by the devil from those who read it. Depp takes the case (and a big check with a promise of more to come) and goes on a European travelall to check out the other two books in existence.

Strange things begin to happen, weird people start showing up (including a protective angel) and mayhem begins to break out. Depp's investigation leads to death, fire and some interesting discoveries about the books. Langella shows up for a final scene of devil worship where his overacting takes on a new dimension.

This is an interesting and fun movie, for the most part. The mystery story is very involving and the European travelogue, through Spain and France, is very interesting. The film has many suspenseful moments and Depp is unusually good in his role.

This is a poor man's "Rosemary's Baby", however, and it lacks both the fit and finish of Polanski's other venture into devil worship. Still, it is a pretty good late night horror effort, one you can return to a few times to figure out whether that protective angel is actually a member of the devil's brigade or not.

– Customer review on 08/09/2006

A wierd, devil - cum - literary thriller from Roman Polanski...

The ever watchable Johny Depp stars as a pretty sleazy Dean Corso - a rare books dealer who is hired to find out if the copy of an ancient occultic book is a forgery or not. The book is a copy of The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows by 17th century author Aristide Torchia, which claims to contain details of how to summon the Devil. Trouble is, I've got no idea what happened... so it didn't wind up that thrilling...

– Customer review on 05/09/2006

Lena Olin and Johnny Depp star in this facinating Roman Polanski movie about good, evil, rumoured ancient books and the race to find the gate between earth and hell. This movie is both dark in a sense that only modern films can be, but retains the mysterious qualities of an old detective film. The ending is well obscured, so it ends up being a prize, which is well worth the wait. I can't recommend it any more highly.

– Customer review on 23/03/2006

Stylish and sinister thriller from the masterful Roman Polanski. A neurotic book detective (played to perfection by Johnny Depp) finds himself obssessively searching for a book that will open the nine gates to hell and unleash the devil. Ambiguous, sophisticated and very involving. Not one of Polanski's classics but still a strong well made movie.