Occupying the middle ground between horror and thriller, supernatural mystery movies like The Ninth Gate might be something of a niche market, but they still deliver plenty of thrills and chills.
Roman Polanski directs Johnny Depp as a rare book collector who begins experiencing strange and violent events after coming into possession of text said to have been written by the Devil himself.
There’s plenty of other titles out there that throw standard plot and story elements together to create a cocktail of mystery, horror, thriller, action, and even tragic romance, and we’ve got ten of the best to check out below!
10 Supernatural Mystery Movies Like The Ninth Gate
1. The Devil’s Advocate (1997)
A modern blend of Dante’s Inferno and Faust, Taylor Hackford’s The Devil’s Advocate finds Keanu Reeves’ smalltown lawyer headhunted by a massive New York firm, but nothing is as it seems.
Al Pacino quietly inserts himself into the story, but by the end of the movie, the legendary actor is going for broke, dialing it up way past eleven in what may be his single best performances ever.
Movies like The Ninth Gate are hardly rooted in realism, and as far as sheer entertainment value goes, The Devil’s Advocate is one of the best examples of the big-budget Gothic thriller.
2. The House of the Devil (2009)
Writer/director Ti West has built a reputation as one of low budget horror’s most prominent auteurs, and his third full-length feature sees a college student take a babysitting job unlike any other.
Movies like The Ninth Gate embrace the supernatural premise without falling into self-awareness at the expense of dramatic tension, one of the areas where House of the Devil excels.
A razor-sharp, intelligent and tense slow-burner, there’s no shortage of suspense even though the basic setup of the story is something that’s been seen and done a million times before.
3. Angel Heart (1987)
Heavyweight actors Mickey Rourke and Robert DeNiro go head to head as a private detective and the mystery man who hired him in Alan Parker’s noir-tinged psychological thriller.
Everybody Rourke’s character talks to seems to wind up dead, as Harry Angel gets drawn further and further into a web of intrigue that soon takes a turn into supernatural territory.
Underappreciated at the time, Angel Heart is one of many movies like The Ninth Gate that have seen their reputations improve over time, and it’s now regarded as an influential cult classic.
4. Stir of Echoes (1999)
Kevin Bacon gives one of the most underrated performances of his career in Jurassic Park writer David Koepp’s supernatural chiller about a man haunted by visions of his missing teenage neighbor.
The mystery and horror elements are offset by some strong character work and some allusions to the standard procedural thriller, with the end result being a solidly entertaining mashup of genres.
As the plot thickens, the air gets thicker with intrigue and suspense, marking Stir of Echoes one of the more superior movies like The Ninth Gate that’s definitely worth checking out.
5. Lord of Illusions (1995)
A famed magician dies on stage in a mysterious accident, leading to a private investigator having to defend his widow from a cult in Clive Barker’s splashy yet sophisticated blend of genres.
As you’d expect from the man behind Hellraiser and Candyman, there’s no shortage of horror elements either, although the continuing escalation of the plot comes dangerously close to coming off the rails.
That being said, strong work from the cast along with a genuine sense of intrigue and originality elevate Lord of Illusions to cult status.
6. In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
John Carpenter is one of the greatest horror directors of all-time, so you shouldn’t be surprised to discover that this isn’t his only entry on our list of movies like The Ninth Gate.
A horror novelist goes missing, causing an insurance investigator to pick up the breadcrumbs of the case in one of the filmmaker’s more underrated efforts.
The writing, directing, acting and special effects are all undeniably impressive, even if In the Mouth of Madness’ overly-ambitious narrative often results in the movie becoming a little unwieldy.
7. The Number 23 (2007)
Jim Carrey makes a rare detour into dramatic territory as he descends into madness after discovering a book that leads him to become obsessed with the number 23.
The last time Carrey and director Joel Schumacher teamed up it was for Batman Forever, and it would be a massive understatement to say that this dark and twisted thriller is an entirely different beast.
The plot is hardly reliant on realism or plausibility, as is the case with most movies like The Ninth Gate, but fans of the genre will get a kick out of the multiple twists and turns.
8. The Order (2003)
Also known as The Sin Eater, Heath Ledger headlines Brian Helgeland’s horror-infused mystery as a young Catholic priest who travels to Rome to investigate the mysterious death of his mentor.
Movies like The Ninth Gate aren’t exactly designed to appeal to the faith-based crown, and The Order didn’t exactly go down with the religious demographic when it was released.
If you can overlook a nonsensical story, there’s some enjoyment to be taken from an over-the-top genre flick that takes itself far too seriously given the inherent silliness of the central conceit.
9. Prince of Darkness (1987)
The second John Carpenter film on our list of movies like The Ninth Gate, Prince of Darkness focuses on a priest accidentally discovering a vial that contains the essence of Satan.
Needless to say, some of the liquid escapes and begins turning a series of scholars and scientists into deranged murderers, leading to a battle for survival.
Prince of Darkness unashamedly embraces the B-movie concept without directly winking at the audience, and it’s gone on to enjoy a well-deserved second life as a cult classic.
10. Gothika (2003)
Halle Berry’s psychiatrist wakes up as a patient in her own hospital and accused of murder in Mattheu Kassovitz’s psych-ward thriller.
The dark and washed-out color palette creates a sense of foreboding unease, especially as the conspiracy at the center of the story is unraveled.
The best movies like The Ninth Gate keep their cards as close to the chest as possible, revealing them only one at a time, an M.O. that Gothika sticks to right until the surprise twist ending.