“Even Hell has its heroes, señor.”

ZombieDog’s rating: Johnny Depp dances with the devil in the pale moonlight and manages to escape with his life.

ZombieDog’s review: I grew up in the ’70s, and while I wouldn’t say that I’m particularly nostalgic for it,  films from that era get me every time. It was a particular treat to stay up and get pulled into the late night movie. Films from that decade were dialogue-intensive and driven by plot and character development. You know, how movies actually should work. I still don’t consider myself a critic, but I desperately hope to share my love and enthusiasm for whatever movie pulls me into its particular world.

The movie that grabbed me this time was The Ninth Gate. It’s hard to describe this film because I’m finding that singular terms don’t really encompass dynamic films, but if I had to categorize it, I would call it a slow methodical adventure through a twisted subculture that that almost dares you to watch.

Johnny Depp is Dean Corso, a man who deals in rare books. He is less than honorable in his dealings and not above shady practices to make money. What’s really important about these initial scenes is that we are also introduced to the rare book world itself and the people (bibliophiles) who play there. It’s a bizarre place, and Depp fits right in, as his Corso meets with client Boris Balkan (Frank Langella), who tasks him with finding a book written by the devil himself.

To find the true book, Corso has to examine three potential candidates while learning that somewhere contained in these books is a riddle that will summon Satan himself. Almost immediately we get a sense of paranoia, and he gives the first book to a trusted friend and asks that it be put in a safe. Corso’s fears are confirmed after he finds his friend murdered. Instead of calling the police, howeer, he moves past the corpse to where the book is kept, grabs it, and takes off for the airport. I wouldn’t say this necessarily defines him as an opportunist, but it does show that Corso puts his survival first.

Shaken by the events, Corso desperately tries to get out of the contract yet reluctantly continues. The mystery becomes clearer when he travels to Europe to verify the other two books. The paranoid atmosphere only gets thicker, and it becomes clear that something is truly happening.

Before we progress in this review, there is something about The Ninth Gate that has to be addressed by any viewer. That’s the fact that director Roman Polanski was charged in 1977 with drugging and raping a 13-year-old girl. It’s fair to say that this is a pretty foul act, and to make matters worse, he fled the country.

So what are we to say about this? In aesthetics, a branch of philosophy that studies art and beauty, there is a very strong idea that each individual work must stand by itself. Art history also reinforces this idea that the work stands apart from the artist. I find this incredibly difficult to reconcile. Is it possible to separate van Gogh from his work, to not know he was a tortured soul and that somehow that aspect of his life came into his art? After all, we’ve learned a great deal about Johnny Depp and his personal life since 1999 that was less-than-flattering. Yet it doesn’t make the work that he did any less significant or wonderful.

This is probably as political as I will ever get on these reviews, but it’s up to each individual to decide if an actor or anybody who produces works for appreciation should be dismissed because of their private life. I am nowhere close to an answer to this question. I would also suggest that you use all the information you encounter to decide who is worthy of your praise and appreciation.

Going back to The Ninth Gate, we learn that this just isn’t about rare books, it’s a bizarre subculture filled with people who are unhinged in their own right. There’s a feeling that the practice is less than genuine because it’s mixed with individuals engaging in drugs and sex, however there is an undertone that they take Satan a little too seriously.

About that time, Satan shows up and starts to play games with them. The Dark Prince doesn’t reveal himself to just anybody, and that makes it all that much better in a world devoid of morality based on greed and malevolence. Corso is just a tourist here, and while he’s not the most moral of individuals, he just wants to get paid and go home.

The Ninth Gate has everything a great movie should have: great casting, great cinematography, powerful storyline, pacing, and tone. It is a bit out there though, and it really asks you to take a journey. This is absolutely a ’70s-style movie, and it has that slow burn feel would go with it. Let me just suggest, light up a giant blunt, sit back and let yourself get absorbed. I personally think there’s something here for everybody.

As an side, this movie personally influenced me in that the bag Johnny Depp carries around (The Johnny Depp Action Satchel) became part of my everyday routine: