Review by Gary Tooze

Production:

Disc:

Video:

Audio:

• Commentary with director Roman Polanski

• Promo Featurette (2:02)

• Two trailers in SD (1:49 + :44)

• Trailer for The Eye (2:10 in HD!)

Bitrate:

 

Description: Dean Corso is highly skilled at his work, a position which requires dexterity, cultural expertise, nerves of steel... and few scruples. Known for locating rare books for wealthy collectors, Corso is hired by eminent book-lover and scholar of demonology, Boris Balkan. Corson's mission: to find the last two volumes of legendary manual of satanic invocation "The Ninth Gates of the Shadow Kingdom," compare them Balkan's first volume, supposedly the only one of its kind, and ascertain the authenticity of the series. Corso accepts the challenge. From New York to Toledo, Paris to Cintra, he immerses himself in a labyrinth full of pitfalls and temptations, disturbing encounters, violence and mysterious deaths. Protected by an angelic creature and guided by a force more powerful than himself, Corso solves one by one the mysteries of the dreaded Book and discovers the real purpose of his mission.

 

 

The ambiguous conclusion is less than satisfying but the suspenseful build with creepy Euro-haunts keeps us intrigued. Polanski hints at greatness but although he doesn't achieve - the ride is, somehow, worth it. The Ninth Gate has moments of the director's uncanny stealth and as a whole it's better than most critics will admit.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

 

Audio :

Many would consider the DTS-HD Master 7.1, at a whopping 4766 kbps, to have a leg up above the visuals. Considering the content though - it's not the most aggressive score with only a few instances of active separation (the collapsing scaffolds and the train as 2 examples). This may be at the crux of why the film doesn't work for some people. The film's audio doesn't export all the creepy atmospheric subtleties typical of, and often overused by, the genre. Wojciech Kilar's classical-infused original score works well as his efforts did with Polanski's Death and the Maiden (an unjustly underrated film, btw). There are only English or Spanish subtitle choices and my Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

Extras :

BOTTOM LINE:
I don't dislike The Ninth Gate as others seem to. Perhaps the expectations of a Polanski horror unfairly biased people's opinion. This is certainly no masterpiece but this, my third viewing, was still enjoyable. Depp is his usual excellent self and the Arturo Perez-Reverte story builds well. Anyway, I could still find lots of things to like about it - weak Polanski is still worth a spin or two.  The Blu-ray is imperfect but for less than $14 - and including the Polanski commentary - gives it great value. Yes, at this price we recommend!