Brightlyme i know i wasted 90 mins of my life.

Organnall Too much about the plot just didn't add up, the writing was bad, some of the scenes were cringey and awkward,

Motompa Go in cold, and you're likely to emerge with your blood boiling. This has to be seen to be believed.

Scotty Burke It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Paularoc The best thing about this movie is its basic premise - eight people are invited by an unknown person to attend a party in an Art Deco designed penthouse. Once there, through a radio, they are informed by the "ninth guest" that it is impossible for them to leave because all the exits have been electrified and the phones disabled. The radio voice then informs them that each one of the guests will die. And one by one, the guests do start to die. It is fascinating how reminiscent this plot is of Agatha Christie's 'And Then There Were None,' her most famous book published five years after this movie. Of course, her book and the films later based on it are far superior to this movie. The two leads, Donald Cook and Genvieve Tobin really aren't given much to do and their characters are pretty bland. Even so, the 'Ninth Guest' is intriguing and sufficiently entertaining to be worth a watch.

jonfrum2000 This movie just became available on YouTube. This is an adaptation of the book The Invisible Guest, and follows a similar plot to Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians, while predating it by almost ten years. The plot is simple - people have been invited to a party by an unknown host, and are being killed off for their 'crimes.' In an interesting twist on the genre, this story is set in a modern penthouse apartment rather than a dark old house. And while the 'second butler' is introduced for laughs, he is on the screen for a mercifully short time.Don't expect a lot here - I gave it a '6', thinking it's just above neutral. I did watch it to the end, but I wasn't always engaged, and the clunky romance element didn't help it much. Also in its favor, in a negative sense, there was no bumbling police to spoil what there is of drama. Worth a watch for those who like the genre, but not something you'll watch a second time.

kidboots This is a suspenseful little mystery produced by Columbia, with imaginative and stylish use of lighting and camera angles. Genevieve Tobin plays Jean Trent and if you have never seen her in a film you have missed a really special actress. Her role in this movie is just a very pretty, frightened heroine but she could do much more. Hard to believe from this movie but given the chance she was sparkling, sassy and had a snappy way of delivering her lines that even the introduction of the code couldn't dampen (see her as a wise cracking Della Street in "The Case of the Lucky Legs" (1935)).Eight people are invited by a mysterious host to a dinner party to be held in his or her honour. As everyone gathers at the party, the host is absent and the servants have been issued with strict instructions to answer all questions with "I do not know"!! After exploring the grounds they find 8 coffins - "one for each of us" - and are then told by the host, who communicates through the radio, that at the strike of each hour one of them will die. The first one to die is Osgood, a cowardly crook, who plans to poison all the guests himself but cuts his finger on the poisoned cap. Just before the next victim, Margaret Chisolm (Nella Walker) is slain, she is exposed as a bigamist, who has made a name for herself in society, with money from her husband, who she has had locked up in an insane asylum. All eyes, of course, turn to Tim Cronin (Edward Ellis) - Osgood was his enemy and Mrs. Chisolm had snubbed his daughter. As the night slips away the guest's lives are exposed as each reveals secrets about themselves and each other.Even though my copy had a few minutes missing around the 20 minute mark, it doesn't take long to realise what is going on. The film is filled with actors you know, but can't quite place. Donald Cook was an under-rated actor of charm and sophistication who first came to notice playing James Cagney's responsible war weary brother in "The Public Enemy". Studios found him a dependable player and he found roles in a variety of films from Ruth Chatterton's brother in the teary "Unfaithful" (1931) to even playing her long lost son in "Frisco Jenny" (1933). Hardie Albright, who played Henry Abbott, was another actor who didn't live up to his initial build up.Highly Recommended.

Michael_Elliott Ninth Guest, The (1934) *** (out of 4) Forgotten horror/mystery from director Roy William Neill turned out to be a real gem. Eight people are gathered at a house for a party, none of them knowing who invited them. Then a radio turns on and the host announces that before morning all but one will be dead. The film only runs 65-minutes but there's some nice suspense in the film as we never know who's doing the killing and why he has such an interest in these eight people and their dirty secrets. The great twist ending was ruined because I read a review over at the IMDb but I still had a good time getting there.