Nine Miles Down (2009) Reviews

• A mind is a terrible thing to lose...

  borderline_maniac2009-12-05

  I just watched this movie without any greater expectations, though I was curious about the kinda mysterious plot. Adrian Paul - he may forgive me - is not exactly t h e reason that attracts a cineaste like me to the box office nor even my DVD-player - usually. Today I made an exception, because the short description of the movie was too intriguing for me as being a huge fan of the thriller-, mystery- and horror genre; and the film delivered all of these. Sure, it's a B-flick with B- and C- (Kate Nauta, "Transporter 2") faces and mainly an intimate play by the two main characters, a male investigator who meets a mysterious yet very appealing young woman at a broke down drill site, somewhere in the Arabian desert. I like movies that deal with illusions, delusions, previsions - and the occult. The question, our "hero" Jackman (and the audience) is asking himself over and over again is: Is this reality - or just an illusion? And there is another, highly philosophical question, "9 Miles Down" is dealing with: Is hell a place - or just a state of mind?? And remember: When it comes to hell, it also comes to guilt - always. Though the acting wasn't on a Strasberg level, it was OK. The Suspense could have been an ounce higher and the plot just a little bit more subtle, so my rating is "only" a 7 out of 10 - but a very good one, almost an 8.

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• Much better than expected

  kanenasanonas2011-01-23

  When you see a 5.5 rating usually you expect near-trash stuff. Well it turned out to be so much better than expected. The strongest thing about this film is, you get what you expect from a thriller (suspense, twists, gore etc), but in a believable way. You don't get bored and constantly you have to question whether reality or insanity is driving the characters of the film. Adrian Paul is above average, Kate Nauta is fine but surely cannot pass as a... scientist. If it was shot with bigger star power, it would get the rate it deserves, but still a 7/10 is fine, considering the budget. Now the 100 people that rated it with 1 or 2, where surely expecting something else. My recommendation: see it

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• surprisingly better than the 10 last Hollywood movies of the kind

  henry-tv2009-12-08

  In so many details "Nine Miles Down" was very different from the average blockbusting US-made movie telling this kind of tale. Following Jackman through that somehow horrific place in the desert is a promising start into a solid, almost old fashioned end-of-the-world adventure. Normally, nowadays the story tends to dwindle to something stupid. Not here. You can really stick with it, from the very beginning the whole thing is intriguing and every single step and turn makes sense. If there is danger, the guy uses his brains, he turns around, and a blind spot doesn't automatically mean a noisy monster jumping out of it. Dialogues are kept short, but to the point, and casually even enter deeper realms. No cheap effects, thrilling story, good acting, and guessing participation is guaranteed to the very end.

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• Hell Is in Our Minds

  claudio_carvalho2013-02-11

  The GNE security agent Thomas 'Jack' Jackman (Adrian Paul) travels to the Jebel Afra drilling station in a remote area of the Sahara desert to seek out twenty-five scientists from the research team of Professor Borman (Anthony Waller) that are missing and without any contact with the base. Jack finds the station deserted and weird marks painted with blood on the wall. On the next morning, Jack meets the gorgeous and sexy Dr. Jennie J.C. Christianson (Kate Nauta) alone in the base and she explains that the research team had drilled very deep and released something. After that, they have been affected and started killing each other and shows the bodies of Professor Borman and another scientist in the refrigerating chamber. J.C. wants to leave the place a.s.a.p. but Jack contacts the operator Kat (Amanda Douge) and she tells him that they should wait for the police. Further, they had met a Russian scientist wandering with sample of gas. Jack, who misses his wife that had committed suicide and killed their two children, continues to investigate the station and find videotapes from Dr. Borman advising that his team had released evil from the depths of hell. Jack has visions and daydreams and believes that J.C. is actually a succubus that wants to seduce him to leave the location. What is the mystery in that remote station? "Nine Miles Down" is a surprisingly good low budget horror movie, basically in one location and great performances of Adrian Paul and the extremely gorgeous and sexy Kate Nauta. The plot is engaging and well- developed keeping the mystery until the very last scene. In the end, hell is in our minds indeed. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "Nove Milhas para o Inferno" ("Nine Miles to Hell")

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• Decent, but that's about all

  Heislegend2009-12-17

  There's really not many directions you can go with this type of movie. Anybody whose seen the pathetic attempts to reboot The Exorcist (i.e. Exorcist: The Beginning) has seen this premise. I'm not really sure it was a great idea to begin with, and beating it to death isn't helping. Still, this movie's got some going for it. Most of the horror is based on jumpy, sudden moves of creepy imagery. Yes, that's a bit cheap but that doesn't make it less effective. The actors do fine. Not outstanding, but they get the job done. The story is pretty basic. Security officer Brit McStudly and scientist Dr. Hotpants (ok, not their real names but they were clearly chosen for their looks rather than talent) get stuck in the middle of nowhere in a research/drilling station where things have apparently gotten very real. So the two of them hang out there and one of them may or may not be under assault by demons. There's some vague connections to religious angles and a good deal of psychological tension. Again, decent...but not great. Would I recommend it? Sure, if you've got nothing better to do. It's not stellar but it's far from the worst thing you've ever seen (then again this is IMDb so I'm sure at least one person will claim it is...and that person will be an idiot).

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