|
The Ninth Gate [DVD] [2000] | ![The Ninth Gate [DVD] [2000]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CMPWT4KXL._SL160_.jpg) | Director: Roman Polanski
Actors: Johnny Depp, Frank Langella, Lena Olin, Emmanuelle Seigner, Barbara Jefford
Studio: Uca
Category: DVD
List Price: £9.99
Buy Used: £1.55
as of 21/11/2009 02:13 GMT details
You Save: £8.44 (84%)
New (15) Used (31) from £1.55
Seller: wantitcheaper
Rating:  30 reviews
Sales Rank: 5207
Format: PAL, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), French (Original Language), Latin (Original Language), Portuguese (Original Language), Spanish (Original Language)
Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region: 2
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 128 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
UPC: 044007824122
EAN: 0044007824122
ASIN: B00005AYET
Theatrical Release Date: March 10, 2000
Release Date: October 6, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
| |
| Similar Items:
| |
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
For a while it looks like Roman Polanski's IThe Ninth Gate/I, adapted from the novel IThe Club Dumas/I by Arturo Pérez-Reverte, might recapture the beautiful uneasiness of such masterpieces as IRepulsion/I and IRosemary's Baby/I. The horror of a Roman Polanski picture is not about spectacle and shock but a goose-pimply sense of evil lurking just outside the frame and hidden behind the faces of slightly unsettling characters. Here, a calm, almost sleepy Johnny Depp plays cynical, unscrupulous rare-book hunter Dean Corso, who's hired by demonologist Boris Balkan (Frank Langella) to authenticate a rare volume that, legend has it, was co-written by Lucifer himself. Dean leaves a Gothic looking New York (re-created in Europe by Polanski as a sinister city of shadows) for Portugal and Paris to compare Balkan's volume with the two copies known to be in existence and uncovers a mystery with unholy ramifications. He also finds himself at the centre of a conspiracy that involves Balkan, a widow who will stop at nothing to retrieve Balkan's book (Lena Olin, who gleefully bites and claws her way through the part), and a mysterious guardian "angel" (Polanski's wife, Emmanuelle Seigner) who shadows his every step. IThe Ninth Gate/I is full of rumbling menace and deliciously unsettling imagery, but Polanski's languorous direction and purposefully vague story render a film that's eerie without every becoming thrilling. It's perpetually on the verge of becoming interesting--right up to its obscure final image.-ISean Axmaker, Amazon.com/IpbOn the DVD/b: Roman Polanski provides us with his first ever DVD commentary here, and makes his eye for detail and atmosphere very apparent in talking about design and his use of the camera. He also announces his love for the quality of DVD since he's always hated VHS. You also see him briefly amongst other interviewees in a two-minute featurette. There's also a trailer, 10 pages of production notes, and generous cast and crew information. One novelty is a gallery of IThe Nine Gates/I books' spot-the-difference satanic drawings. Best of all is an isolated track of Wojciech Kilar's excellent score, which is as well preserved by this transfer as the rich palette of earthy browns used by Polanski to paint the screen. --IPaul Tonks/I
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 30
 Truly misunderstood masterpiece September 17, 2008
J. Macleod (Germany)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
I have never written a review before and doubt I will again, but there is so much misunderstanding about this masterpiece that I feel compelled to add my praise and insights.
br /This is the only film I have ever seen that rivals the complexity of a classic novel.
br /When first I saw it I was, like most people, rather confused - especially by the ending. It seemed a terrible anticlimax. However my respect for both Depp's choice of script and Polanski as a great film maker left me uneasy in my disappointment; I felt it was far more likely that it was my interpretation and understanding rather than their portrayal that was found wanting. I also had a gnawing sense of having missed something subtle but vitally important. I mulled over the film for a couple of days and slowly started to understand. I then went back and watched it again; the second viewing seemed to confirm my gradual revelation. I watched it again, pad and pen in hand taking notes, much as I did working through the various texts of my University literature days. It became clear.
br /
br /The end is not vague, it is not an anti-climax at all; it is in fact a great achievement. Rarely in the best literature one encounters a sudden twist or change or revelation that forces one to reinterpret everything in the novel to that point; this is the best example of this that I have seen on film.
br /
br /Not to give it away, but the film seems to portray a pursuit to obtain knowledge of the occult steps that lead to passage through the Ninth Gate and the immortality which that entails. When Depp's character finally acquires this knowledge, we expect to watch him fulfil the steps one by one until this passage to immortality is achieved. But in an apparent and disjointed anticlimax Depp is suddenly shown passing through the Ninth Gate. It is then that we must reinterpret the entire film in this light.
br /
br /It is only on reflection that we understand that the film has not been a pursuit at all; we realise, simultaneously with Depp's character, that in his pursuit of the nine steps he has actually fulfilled them all bar one. The guardian demon that has accompanied him through his pursuit has actually been guiding him to fulfil the very requirements that he seeks knowledge of. When he obtains this knowledge he realises that his own journey has already taken him down the path to the entrance of the Ninth Gate itself; he is already there and done what is required to enter.
br /
br /In this respect the film is one of those rare media experiences that becomes a true journey, a truer rendition of Heart of Darkness than is Apocalypse Now. And the subtlety and apparent ambiguity that many find detracting and confusing is actually integral and instrumental to this achievement.
br /
Mmm... November 16, 2006
S. Denyer (UK)
20 out of 25 found this review helpful
Definitely a love-or-bored-by film. In terms of plot it draws from similar territory as Dennis Wheatley; there's a bit of real-life history involved, without beating viewers over the head with it. It doesn't beat viewers over the head at all, especially the ending -- people rewatching to see if they missed anything seems to be a common experience.
br /
br /Corso's is a slow corruption, suggesting that evil prefers its recruits to be drawn in by fascination and imagination rather than by making showy gestures or dressing up. The film score's at times genuinely unsettling, and the deaths more macabre than in-your-face shocking. In terms of setting it has to take place before mobile phones caught on, with which items a lot of the menace and isolation would be drained out of the story.
br /
br /It's one of the few movies I watch fairly regularly, and you should be able to get it at a reasonable price if you feel like giving it a go. Sit down with one or two people late in the evening for best viewing.
Smart and original adaptation of a great book September 13, 2007
Maciej K. (Belgium)
13 out of 17 found this review helpful
I like Hollywood blockbusters and they are my usual poison but from time to time I simply MUST take a break and watch something that is NOT Hollywoodian, is not a sequel and doesn't involve too many car chases, superheroes, explosions, laser beams and idiotic dialogues. If you are looking for such a thing, you will not find much better that "The Ninth Gate".
br /To begin, one precision - this is the adaptation of a great novel, "Club Dumas" by the Spanish author Arturo Perez Reverte. The book is amazing but very, very hard to adapt to the screen - so Polanski had to make many changes. As the result, you can now watch a great movie and read a great book, in whatever order you like, without being disappointed by one of them.
br /This movie is about ancient books, people who collect them and people who live by trading them - and it is an amazing thing how passionate this world is. It is a great achievement of Polanski that he managed to keep a very honest pace of events, when placing the action mostly in librairies, bookshops etc. The gallery of persons shown in this movie is, typically for Polanski, made of characters mostly excentrical, frequently upsetting, sometimes very funny, but never, not even once, boring.
br /This is in large part one Johnny Depp show, and this is a great show. His character (Dean Corso, trader in ancient books) is in this movie slightly less antipatic than in the novel, but clearly he is not a totally nice guy. The way Johnny Depp acts in this movie confirms the impression I had for many years now - he is not only handsome, he is simply one of the greatest actors alive (and doesn't even need dreadlocks and gold teeth to prove it).
br /Emmanuelle Seigner plays a character that is totally ambigous (she is just The Girl - we never know what is her name) and I will not reveal anything more about her. She is beautiful, mysterious, tempting but distant and she certainly is leading the main hero somewhere. But we do not know where - until the last image.
br /Lena Olin (Liana Telfer) and Frank Langella (Boris Balkan) are other stars of the show - they are supporting characters and appear less on the screen, but they are both very important.
br /However the real "hero" of this movie could only be... a book. This book is called - what else - "The Nine Gates" and was written by a heretic alchimist around year 1515. The Inquisition then burned the author with all the copies which was possible to find - and the further we advance in the movie, the most we realise, that for once, for this one time, the Inquisition could very well have done the right thing! You desserve to discover the rest of the story by yourself.
br /This is an amazing movie. Reading some of the previews below I couldn't understand how you can be bored by it? Thanks to Polanski's unique touch there is more atmosphere in every scene of "Ninth Gate" that we actually can take in. There is a pair of extremely handsome and talented actors. There is the discreet but beautiful musical score by Wojciech Kilar. There is a deep and very very dangerous mystery. There is an almost sadistic, totally unsuspected twist towards the end. And there is finally, well hidden in the shadows, one writer, who really doesn't need an agent to take care of his bookwriting career.... See this movie ! It is worth it!
A Bookworms' Paradise. June 30, 2004
17 out of 24 found this review helpful
Do you like books? like libraries and dusty bookshops? Then this is for you.pA film set in the world of the book collector might sound a bit dull. Thankfully it's also an excellent mystery thrillerpThis is the 4th time I've watched it and I'm still seeing things in it (although this could be to do with me being slow).pIt's funny at times, so easy going and a pleasure to watch. That's mainly down to Polanski who is a genius, and Johnny Depp who is perfect for the part of Dean Corso.pPart of the reason I enjoy watching this film is that it's 'safe' - it's never threatening to the viewer There's a 'european' feel, it's so slick and there are so many nice 'touches' from the master.pCorso (Depp) has an immunity, a 'purpose'. It's figuring this out that's the key to the film.pThe ending can be a disappointment to you if you're expecting 'answers'. You have to just accept it. Maybe that's what makes me want to go back and re-explore the film.
Spooky, Mysterious and brilliant. April 18, 2001
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
This film was unfortunately only out in the cinemas for a short time, which is a shame because more people would have seen it if it was shown for longer. The Ninth Gate is brilliant because it is like a book of spooky folklore, leaving clues along the way and the end leaves you thinking. I fully recommend it, but watch it with others.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 30
|
|
|
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à.r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. | |
![Nick Of Time [DVD] [1996]](http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00005UPNM.01._AA75_PU_PU-5_.jpg)
![Secret Window [DVD] [2004]](http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B001CB42DC.01._AA75_PU_PU-5_.jpg)
![Secret Window [DVD] [2004]](http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002SCZOO.01._AA75_PU_PU-5_.jpg)
![The Man Who Cried [DVD] [2000]](http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00005KIVS.01._AA75_PU_PU-5_.jpg)
![Sleepy Hollow [DVD] [1999]](http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000KRNMQW.01._AA75_PU_PU-5_.jpg)