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Folklore in The Ninth Gate Everyone Missed

Folklore in Film

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A mortal’s guide to the many mysteries of 1999’s The Ninth Gate: what’s up with those illustrations? Is that blonde woman the devil? Was Aristide Torchia a real dude?

00:00 Intro
00:43 The Ninth Gate vs. The Club Dumas: The Book vs. the Movie
02:24 Who Wrote The Ninth Gate?
02:41 Comparing the Different Versions of the Nine Gates Illustrations: Aristide Torchia (AT) vs. Lucifer (LCF)
03:00 The First Gate
04:08 The Second Gate
04:45 The Third Gate
05:30 The Fourth Gate
06:33 What Is the Number of the Beast? 666 Explained
06:49 The Fifth Gate
07:42 The Sixth Engraving
08:41 The Seventh Gate
09:34 The Eight Gate
10:29 The Ninth Gate
12:45 Who Is Green Eyes (The Blonde Woman) in The Ninth Gate?
13:46 Where Is Satan?
15:10 How Do Dante’s Nine Circles of Hell Factor into the Movie The Ninth Gate (1999)?
17:08 History and Folklore’s Most Famous Satan-Summoner: Faust
18:34 The Historical Italian Philosopher (and Magician) Who Inspired The Ninth Gate’s Aristide Torchia
21:27 The Nine Types of Magic (According to Giordano Bruno)
23:35 The History of Tarot: From Parlor Game to Occult Curiosity
25:18 The Boris Balkan—Giordano Bruno Connection

Got demons and devils on your mind? You might like these:

-Folklore in The VVitch Everyone Missed
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-Folklore in Krampus Everyone Missed
-Folklore in Hokum Everyone Missed
-Folklore in Nosferatu (2024) Everyone Missed
-Folklore in Army of Darkness Everyone Missed

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-Irish Myths in Your Pocket: https://amzn.to/3Qi5xjg
-Saint Patrick in Your Pocket: https://amzn.to/3ZWMWxG
-The Woburn Chronicles: A Trio of Supernatural Tales Set in New England’s Most Mysterious City https://amzn.to/4e8JU0v

Like the music in the video? That was me! I record under the stage name Bard of Boston:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5B2NU...
Amazon: https://amazon.com/music/player/artis...
Apple: AppleMusic: bard-of-boston

I also have a new musical project, Cottage Songs:
Greenies

20 Comments

@FolkloreInFilm Creator 9 days ago Pinned

*pulls back dusty bookcase, out falls the transcript for this video, complete with links to resources and references* https://folkloreinfilm.com/2026/09/22/folklore-in-the-ninth-gate-everyone-missed/

@JohnVKaravitis 2 weeks ago

It's a fantastic little movie. I NEVER get tired of watching it!

@michaelhooper6227 2 weeks ago

Super underrated movie

@StoryTimeSlim724 2 weeks ago

I remember my dad buying this from the bootleg man at a flea market. Shoutout to the bootleg men and women of the 90’s and 00’s

@ThePromethean-v6e 2 weeks ago

In the book, the character's name is Lucas Corso. If you look at the cards in the film, one set seems to illustrate the fates of the ancillary characters; you could see Balkan, Kessler, Telfer, etc. in the AT engravings. However, the LCF engravings seem to tell Corso's story.... Lucas Corso's Fate [LCF].

@nerdjournal 2 weeks ago

I kind of always thought Green Eyes was the literal Gate. And the act of sex was symbolic of a key entering a lock and unlocking the final gate. But maybe I was just crazy.

@lotsofspots 2 weeks ago

Something else to note, the Ceniza brothers, Pablo and Pedro, are Paul and Peter in English - considered two of the most significant Apostles. Peter traditionally holds the keys of the gates of Heaven.

@robertmeyer922 2 weeks ago

Keys in left hand because he has to take the so called, "Left Hand Path".

@JagdmitT 2 weeks ago

Here I was thinking I stumbled on a year old video about one of my favorite movies.
The in i realize the video is like an hour old
You earned yourself a sub :)

@clearlight221 2 weeks ago

If you look, the keys in his hand are crossed. Crossed keys symbolize the union of opposing forces, supreme spiritual and temporal authority, and the unlocking of hidden esoteric knowledge. They also represent liminal access, across magic and folklore, possessing a key—or crossed keys—grants the bearer passage across sacred thresholds, deep into the mysteries of the unseen world. The fact that it is in his left hand shows that behind the door are secrets and a doorway down the left hand path (LHP), which is typically associated with demonic or goetic magic and revelation.

@kivsto8130 2 weeks ago

The floating down the stairs scared me the first time I saw this

@stepheng1523 2 weeks ago

One of my favorite movies, end up watching it every time its on tv. I love the euro flavor, and the bibliophilia

@ravendelacour1917 2 weeks ago

Many occult initations reveal that the goal you are looking for has been there all along but you've been too blind to see it. Green Eyes being the Devil or Devil-adjacent entity but no one can see it unless properly initiated would fit that pattern. The treasure really was the friend we met along the way. :)

@michaelpaulfx 2 days ago

Best breakdown video of this movie I’ve seen yet!

@tm-nm5hk 2 weeks ago

Second engraving is the Heirophant. The clue is the keys, see RW deck & Thoth as well. Great video.

@milkmustache1050 12 days ago

An absolute masterpiece. Watch it in the highest quality you can.

@yeoldenew 2 weeks ago

When is saw this movie I walked out of the theatre and even though I was a plumber back then I suddenly got the urge to become an antique book dealer and take up smoking