NINTH GATE

I'm surprised that there aren't more movies made about the exciting world of rare-book collecting. It has gorgeous women, evil schemes, murder, intrigue, and the promise of supernatural power. There's even a car chase! Before you rush out and rent this movie, be aware that it's not the Rare-Book-Room-Librarian version of "Raiders of the Lost Ark." While it is a really good movie, not everyone will enjoy it. Consider these questions: Can you handle a slow pace? Are you skilled at seeing the implied or symbolic meaning of cinematic objects or characters? Are you comfortable with ambiguity? Do you prize cinematography over explosions? Are you willing to watch people smoke constantly for over two hours? If the answers to all of these are "Yes," you may enjoy this film. Two "No" answers may be enough for you to avoid it, three is plenty. Watch something directed by Richard Donner instead. For the most part, my criticisms are minimal. For example, I have hard time imagining that true antique-book collectors would handle a 350-year-old book with bare hands, or smoke around it. I mean, people who collect comic books obsessively enclose their collections in archival-plastic envelopes and refuse to let people touch them. So why would something unimportant like comic books be fiercely guarded and something valuable, like an ancient book, be casually tossed in a satchel? However, the more I think about this movie, the more I like it, which is the opposite of what usually happens. If you liked the movies below, you'll probably like this one (and vice versa): Jacob's Ladder Last Temptation of Christ The Prophecy Overall Rating: 7 (where 1=Worthless, 10=Fabulous) Eight-Facet Info Rating, rated on a scale of 0 (None) to 4 (Lots!)):

© 2002 Evan M. Nichols