Devyataya

I have recently discovered some interesting Russian horror movies such as: ´The devil's pass´, 'Queen of spades', or 'The ninth', and, despite of the fact that I did not expect them to be good, to my surprise, not only did I like them very much but also they turned out to be as good as the American ones. One of these is, 'The ninth' directed by Nicholay Khomeki and starred by Evgeniy Tsyganov and Daisy Head.

The plot is quite simple although it caught my eyes from the very beginning. The action takes place in Saint Petersburgh, where a series of brutal crimes and mutilations against women are committed. As a result of this, a detective called Sergey Rostov, played by Evgeniy Tsyganov, is sent there to solve out the crimes and to arrest the killer. With the help of an English medium, Olivia Reed (Daisy Head), he will go in search of the murderer.

Apart from the plot, one of the main reasons to watch it is the extraordinary performances of the main actors: the Moscow born actor Evgeniy Tsyganov and the English actress Daisy Head. I had never seen Russian actors on a film before so I was absolutely delighted by the outstanding performance of Evgeniy as detective Rostov. An example of his versatility as an actor is the scene where he remembers the death of his wife, he is utterly expressive and convincing. In addition to this I would say that he does not have anything to envy to handsome American or European actors, he is as handsome as them. He should be taken into account to act in European and American productions. The female role is played by the English artist Daisy Head, who is quite good as Olivia Reed.

Another positive point is the gothic atmposphere of the Saint Petersburgh streets. It reminds me of the London streets where Jack the ripper used to kill and mutilate his victims. The staging is brilliant and the music is also a little bit scary.

To sum up, I highly recommend everybody to watch it. They will not be disappointed at all and they will find that there are also good horror films in Russia.

An interesting movie about serial killing. A movie that combines the efforts of the police and a medium. The latter was not or did not intend to help, but you know how it is ... at first you have to and then you want to. Wait that sounded differently than I meant it to sound. But I think you know the point I was trying to make.

If you like horror thrillers, that do show grizzly details (so not for the faint hearted), then you may have some fun with this. It's not perfect by a long shot, but it is decent overall. With a story that is able to hold your attention until the end.

Seances, book of the dead, ritualistic serial killings and putting everything together.

I've watched 10-15 Russian films and for the most part, they have been ok. I've come to enjoy their attention to color and costuming very much and it may be what really keeps me interested in watching more.

There is a lot of CGI stuff in these films. Mostly used as backdrops or enhancements, they are quite noticable and the beginning of this film in particular, it was almost too much. After the opening scenes, they weren't so blatantly obvious though.

The action scenes could've used a bit more finesse as they looked very choreographed.

The story here is decent but it lacks depth and detail. There's enough to keep you engaged but I kept waiting for things to be explained more. I was disappointed that the rituals were not explained but they were still intriguing.

My guess is that there may be sequel to this and if so, I liked this enough to want to see what else may happened. So, I thought it was pretty good. If you like period horror/thrillers check it out.

'The Ninth' appear to be supernatural, but it is actually a very plausible mystery thriller - with a difference. The director carefully kept the 'supernatural' elements very subtle. I also enjoyed the setting in the 19th Century, making everything more believable.

This is a classic who dunnit murder mystery thriller. The killings are a bit graphic, as the killer mutilates each victim according to images from a book. However, the film never becomes bloody or gory. A medium helps the police, and discovers the killings are part of a ritual, and linked to her past.

'The Ninth' is visually stunning with crisp clear photography and wonderful visuals and cinematography. The actors also did a great job - especially Evgeniy Tsyganov as Detective Rostov, whom I really enjoyed in this role. 'The Ninth' was better than expected, and kept me guessing until the end. Very good indeed.

I am a big fan of Russian cinematography but I need to say I don't like when they try to copy Hollywood blockbusters,in this movie you have a combination of Penny Dreadful,Peaky Blinders,Sherlock Holmes.......but why,be original and don't copy the Hollywood ! The movie is not bad and you can kill time watching it but all the time you will have the feeling of Déjà-vu !