Satanism Today - An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore and Popular ...

194 The Ninth Gate
The Ninth Gate
In The Ninth Gate, director Roman Polanski
returns to diabolism, a theme that brought him
fame as the director of Rosemary’s Baby. The core of
the plot for this 1999 film—a quest for knowledge
that will enable one to tap Satan’s power—is timeworn.
Other tired themes are the pursuit by sinister
Satanists (yawn) and the notion that one can open
a doorway to hell. The latter idea is reflected in the
title of the grimoire sought by the central character
(an unscrupulous rare-book dealer played by
Johnny Depp), The Nine Gates to the Kingdom of
Shadows. Despite the familiar landscape, however,
Polanski managed to turn out an intriguing film
that explores themes rarely plumbed in horror
movies, such as the real seductiveness of evil.