Weird, another movie I could’ve sworn I’d reviewed already but I either didn’t or it was in another, pre-Textpattern life. This movie gets better each time I watch it yet will for ever retain, for obvious reasons if you’ve seen it, its mystery. Like Roman Polanski’s other Satanic marvel Rosemary’s Baby, The Ninth Gate keeps an unsettlingly perfect balance between near-oddball comedy and real horror – take the twin book restorers, a sort of odd sight to begin with, the way they talk with such ease about the reality of the Devil etc, it’s so reminiscent of the weird joy you feel from the “bad guys” in the final scenes of Rosemary – they’re actually excited by this stuff. Then there’s Frank Langella’s OTT performance, again the glee you get from him while he sets himself on fire at the end that turns to horror as he realises it’s all gone really, horribly wrong, it’s hilarious and horrific at the same time.

Johnny Depp, it goes without saying, is perfect. I love in particular how he plays the character of Corso with a lot of weakness. After leaving the Baroness Kessler’s building when he sees the black, platinum-blonde, mustachioed heavy standing across the road, you really believe that Corso is afraid, he’s not the kind of hero who you can expect to defend himself, and you really feel for him as he rushes into the nearest café. That scene also contains a wonderful shot as he watches out on the street for the bad guy to leave, as night falls and someone inside the café turns a light on, surprising Corso, turning his clear view of the street into his own reflection in the window.

What the hell exactly happens at the end, I couldn’t say. There’s a variety of interpretations, I guess. I think really, though, the whole “ninth gate” business is just one helluva glorified McGuffin which triggers a great, intriguing trip set to Wojciech Kilar’s catchy, almost mischievous score. I’ll be humming that damn tune for days again now.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 17th, 2005 at 6:57 pm and is filed under 4 hearts, Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.