The Ninth

A decent Russian crime drama set in the late 19th century in the style of Sherlock Holmes. A series of ritualistic murders is taking place in St. Petersburg, the killer kills his victims according to the elements, and mutilated female bodies lie in the dark streets. The film has a pretty raw atmosphere, nice visuals, interesting characters and enough violence to keep me from getting bored. On the plus side, I liked that I couldn't guess the killer. Fans of dark and brutal mysteries should give the film a chance. Story***, Action>No, Humor>No, Violence****, Entertainment****, Music***, Visuals****, Atmosphere****, Suspense***. 7/10. (02/11/2020)

A slightly different Russian film. The filmmakers tried (successfully) to bring some humor into a dark theme via the narrator. It wasn’t bad at all, and I would have liked to give it one more star, but I couldn't. In fact, I felt that the writer got slightly lost in all the mystery, and the investigation of the series of murders seemed extremely implausible (at times even stupid), which was a shame. The potential was there but it was wasted. (02/05/2021)