High concept Bringing Satan to book.
Plotline Horror maestro Roman Polanski (Rosemary's Baby, Repulsion) directs a supernatural thriller starring Johnny Depp (below) as a rare-book expert, hired to track down the surviving copies of an ancient tome, The Nine Gates Of The Kingdom Of The Shadows (snappy title or what?). It turns out that anyone who collects all the copies will be able to summon the Devil himself.
Handsome devil Johnny goes for the bookish look: specs and a goatee beard. He ends up looking like a sexy version of Leon Trotsky.
The devil she knows Playing a mysterious woman who helps Depp's character, Emmanuelle Seigner gets her kit off, as she did in two other Polanski films, Frantic and Bitter Moon. She's clearly not shy about revealing all to Roman, but then she is his wife.
Scores on the doors The 'Nine Gates' mentioned in the old book's title are obviously significant. Some viewers have even claimed that you should pay special attention to the number of doors Depp is seen to enter during the film.
Ancient Roman As you might have guessed, the demonic book was published in 1666. It's more surprising to learn that Polanski, once an enfant terrible, is now 66. But his Ninth Gate colleagues say he still displayed childish glee when devising the nasty deaths that befall several characters.
Verdicts 'A sly and elegant detective story' - New York Daily News. 'About as scary as a sock-puppet re-enactment of The Blair Witch Project' - New York Times.
The Ninth Gate
Cert: 15
