Stir of Echoes / The Ninth Gate

After he is hypnotized at a neighborhood party, Tom changes. He sees things he can't explain and hears voices he can't ignore. As the horrific visions intensify, Tom realizes they are pieces of a puzzle, echoes of a crime calling out to be solved. But when his otherworldly nightmares begin coming true, Tom wants out. He desperately tries to rid himself of his eerie, unwanted powers - only to be seized by an irresistible compulsion to dig deeper and deeper into the mystery that is consuming his life. When at last he unearths the truth, it will draw him into the long-buried secret of a ghastly crime, a vengeful spirit...and the lethal price of laying that spirit to rest.

THE NINTH GATE: Johnny Depp unlocks the gates to hell in Roman Polanski's newest thriller. Depp stars as Dean Corso, an unscrupulous rare-book dealer who is hired to locate the last remaining copies of "The Nine Gates of the Shadow Kingdom," a demonic manuscript that can summon the Devil. Corso becomes embroiled in a conspiracy involving murder, theft and satanic ritual, and ultimately finds himself confronting the devil incarnate.

The Ninth Gate, on the other hand, is a lazy motion picture that undeniably boasts strong atmosphere and intrigue, but fails to deliver upon its potential. The movie ultimately leads nowhere, a destination so unfulfilling it makes the previous two hours ten minutes a total waste.


Both perfect in environment...   February 20, 2003
N. Zacharis (Athens, Greece)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I think both films really pass on the climate they want and this contributes to their success and makes them much more interesting for the viewer.
In Stir Of Echoes, the mysticism and the unexpected always are on hold and in The Ninth Gate, fear for what will happen next, prevails.
In stir of echoes we have the technique of hypnotism which is very interesting and not usually used in a movie, and in the ninth gate we have the dark, ruthless book collector, who asks the also dark Depp, to find for him, a Satan's book...
Both films keep you anxious 'til the end with a slight difference that makes Stir of Echoes a better movie. The ending plays a big part in these movies and in stir of echoes it is better and very iteresting..Chills you to the bone...


No Dep(p)th   April 17, 2002
Mr. Gavin Strathie (London)
7 out of 9 found this review helpful

This had a lot of potential but ended up being rather disappointing. The main problem is that the story is a very deep and complex work which is brilliantly written (by Arturo Perez-Reverte under the title The Dumas Club) and the film simply does not match it for credibility. Depp's acting is wooden and featureless and although Langalla is convincing, Seigner's role in the film is never properly explained. All in all, a rather directionless effort that could have been far better given the right approach.

The plot involves Depp as an unscrupulous rare book dealer who is employed to track down 2 remaining copies of a Satanic Text that explains how to summon the Devil. His employer is a rich business man with an obsession with the Devil who also owns a copy of the book called "The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows". He wants Depp to find out if one or any of them are fakes.

Depp then high tails it off to Europe to interview the reamaining owners and is soon encountering all sorts of sinister accidents. he is followed by "The girl" (Seigner) who appears to be his ally. It soon becomes apparent that there is a hidden agenda as people start dying. Eventually Langella, arrives on the scene to act out the ritual but its flawed and he dies. The girls identity is never revealed and this is a mistake( In the book, she is revealed as one of Satan's rebel angels). The film ends unsatisfactorily with Depp entering the Ninth Gate himself but we are led to believe that it's for love of the girl which is inaccurate. If Polanski had followed the book more accurately, it would have been more effective.


9th Gate   October 27, 2001
brian r schaeffer (fort collins, co United States)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful

Johnny Depp in another superb performance. The Corso character carries the hokey premise, and the location footage in Europe is great. This film is a must see for anyone who wants a piece of Ned Flanders.