1408

Please note that this review refers to the theatrical version, and not the Director's Cut DVD release which features a completely different ending.

Mike Enslin is a cynic. He is the author of books that detail and debunk popular ghost stories and haunted hot-spots, and it quickly becomes obvious that he is somewhat disenchanted with the life that he leads. That is, of course, until he receives an invitation to Room 1408 at the Dolphin Hotel, a room in which lies his and arguably John Cusack's biggest challenge yet.

It soon becomes apparent that 1408 is not your standard horror movie, as what follows, after an enjoyably creepy encounter with hotel manager Gerald Olin (Samuel L Jackson), is essentially 90 minutes of John Cusack in a room. On his own. Save for, of course, whatever lurks inside 1408. It is a challenge that Cusack rises to expertly; we all know he's a good actor and a brilliant everyman (I don't remember a film in which I've wanted to see him crash and burn), but 1408 allows him to display his range to great effect as the room confronts him with the physical dangers of the present and the emotional tragedies of his past.

While it's relatively light on big scares, 1408 instead creates a powerful sense of unease that combines wonderfully with Cusack's portrayal of a man enduring his own private hell. Each challenge thrown up by the room takes the movie somewhere new and unexpected, ensuring that the movie never really gets tired or repetitive, and as a result each scene in the room is tense, surprising, and very, very creepy. However, that's not to say that it doesn't lose its way occasionally. Some of the CGI usage is quite ineffective, and about two-thirds through the movie it feels like it's about to go the wrong way, but it recovers well for the final act, and its haunting ending ensures that you'll remember it long after you leave the theatre.

A brilliantly acted, well developed version of King's short story, 1408 is a different type of horror movie, but in all the right ways. Very good!

Just when you thought it was safe to check into a New York City hotel, along comes Mikael Hafstrom's chilling "1408." Not since Norman Bates terrorized guests at his motel has a paying customer received such treatment during a night's lodging. Although somewhat more cerebral than viscerally frightening, "1408" delivers its share of shocks and frights, and viewers will stay in their seats not to miss the film's twists and swerves. In a cruel blow to fans of 1970's soft rock, listening to the Carpenters' hit "We've Only Just Begun" afterward may stimulate nightmares and certainly will never be the same again.

John Cusack, a cynical writer who has sunk from producing intimate novels to hack work about haunted inns, is lured to a Manhattan hotel where room 1408 is off limits to visitors, because of its long history of inhospitality. With only a knapsack, but tons of baggage from family misfortunes, Cusack insists on a night in room 1408, despite the management's objections. Cusack triumphs over the staff and settles into the chamber's banal decor, which he idly describes piece by piece into his pocket recorder for the intended article. The evening starts to look like a genuine snooze, when the room's unsettling turn-down service, a chorus from the Carpenters, and a radio that begins an ominous countdown unnerve both Cusack and viewers.

Although the "night in a haunted house" routine has been done endlessly since movies began, Hafstrom for the most part effectively plays his audience with an eerie, often jarring, soundtrack, clever cutting, and a minimum of effects. "1408" is a ghost story, not a horror or slasher flick, and, as effective haunting tales have shown ("The Haunting," "The Uninvited"), the unknown, the unseen, and the unexplained are far more frightening than CGI effects. Although reminiscent of "The Shining," another Stephen King adaptation, this film was evidently made on a modest budget. Thus, Hafstrom worked largely with a one hotel-suite set and one mid-level actor. Besides Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson also appears as the enigmatic hotel manager, who warns Cusack about the room, yet seems to know more that he shares. Cusack is fine as always and carries the film effortlessly and literally through Hell and high water. While perhaps not as scary as the premise suggests, "1408" nevertheless provides intelligent entertainment for lovers of old fashioned ghost stories.

If your horror movie tastes run less towards chainsaw-wielding maniacs and more towards things-that-go-bump-in-the-night, then this is the movie for you. Based on a short story by the great Stephen King, "1408" is one of the genuine movie sleepers of summer 2007.

John Cusack gives a tour-de-force performance as Mike Enslin, a successful writer who specializes in the investigation of paranormal activity with a particular emphasis on hotel rooms that have the reputation for being haunted. The twist is that Enslin is, essentially, a nonbeliever who spends most of his time and energy debunking the very subject off which he is making his living. The 1408 of the title refers to a room in a swanky, five-star Manhattan hotel in which, we are told, no fewer than fifty-six guests checked in but never checked out, having met their untimely demises there in the decades since the establishment opened. Determined to put an end to the "foolishness," Enslin moves into the room convinced he will ride out the night in utter peace and safety. He has, of course, another think coming.

As adapted by Matt Greenberg, Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, "1408" succeeds mainly by keeping it straight and simple and by focusing so intensely on the character of Enslin and his relevant back story. The multi-layered plotting keeps us guessing from first moment to last, so that we never quite know whether what Enslin is experiencing is really happening or whether he is suffering some form of mental breakdown brought on by the death of his young daughter and the subsequent breakup of his marriage a few years back. Along with director Mikael Hafstrom, the master craftsmen responsible for the film's phenomenal art direction and sound recording draw us into the strange world they've created where nothing is quite what it appears to be and where we spend most of our time nervously scanning the edges of the frame to see what surprise is next poised to jump out at us.

Cusack, who has long been underrated as a performer, gets the chance to really show us his acting chops in this role. He allows us to clearly see the fear and vulnerability hidden beneath his character's wisecracking, cynical exterior. Samuel L. Jackson and Mary McCormack also excel in the small but crucial roles of the wise hotel manager and Enslin's estranged but faithful wife, respectively.

For those who can remember a time when fright films had more on their minds than simple blood and gore, "1408" is like a refreshing, restorative tonic on a hot summer day.

Here's why. Stephen King's psychological horror rarely ever shows its face on the screen the way it appears in his writing. This movie captures a lot of the mental torture that Stephen King writes so well (embodied in room 1408). I typically always see Cusack as playing himself in every movie he's in. Fortunately, this role appeals to that character. I would say see it and judge for yourself. I specifically enjoyed the background music and director's choice of camera angles. I also appreciated the mix of surprise horror and psychological. All too often, a horror film loads up too much on one side and it just doesn't work out well!

The word "horror" has become increasingly twisted in modern cinema to be equated with paper thin excuses for characters being subjected to senseless violence and various cheap shocks intended to make the audience sporadically jump rather than actually be subjected to an all-consuming sense of overwhelming fear. With that in mind, it is refreshing to see a literary adaptation from Steven King, largely considered the godfather of the modern horror story, which resists falling prey to such trappings, and instead concentrates on generating more carefully thought out scares, preying on deep seated societal terrors. As such, director Mikael Håfström's 1408 proves a merciful throwback to the days of psychological horror thrillers, concentrating more on the mind than the bile duct, and a solid enough effort to help re-instigate the initial traits of the genre into the modern mainstream.

While the film's premise of a jaded writer (Cusack) with a haunted past attempting to debunk legendary horrific sites having his cynicism tested by unknown forces surrounding an ominous hotel room with a death toll of 57 may sound implausible out of context, the film's execution is just intelligent and self-aware enough to make it work. Håfström's firm and capable directorial hand keeps things suitably grounded in reality when some of the film's more far-fetched plot points threaten to overwhelm the credibility of the work as a whole (for starters, the question as to why a hotel with such a macabre past would be allowed to continue to operate, let alone have clientele is never addressed, and the ending twist may leave audiences divided as to its effectiveness...). But 1408 looks and feels like such a staunchly quality work that such complaints often disintegrate once the film picks up upon the introduction of the titular room and the viewer is wrapped up by the superbly executed suspense generated throughout.

And while the film does dip rather heavily into conventions of previous similar works (the horrifying events Enslin is subjected to feel almost like a checklist of horror movie plot devices) the element which really makes the film worthwhile and excuses many of the inevitable lapses in logic is the psychological angle, leaving the audience consistently guessing as to whether the paranormal events are actually happening or whether the whole thing is occurring in the protagonist's feverish mind. While the screenplay varies between cleverly crafted lines and typical horror melodrama, the film proves an intriguing experiment in making use of a single space, and instead of the film being shot primarily in a single room proving limiting, Håfström manages to make it consistently fresh and engaging in its ever- changing state. The uncommonly innovative cinematography adds to the scare factor, as does Gabriel Yared's musical score, despite its frequent descent into horror cliché.

Despite the film being for the most part essentially a one man show, the inspired casting of John Cusack as Mike Enslin proves the film's most promising attribute. With only four walls and a floor to interact with for the bulk of the narrative, Cusack's quirky charisma proves the perfect element to provide a fresh touch to what could have collapsed into commercial formulaic monotony. With a brilliantly tuned, entirely credible rendition of a scarred cynic descending slowly into madness, Cusack resists the temptation to ham it up, and instead remains coolly understated, making it all the more unsettling as his composed exterior slowly unravels. Perfectly delivering many of his character's wittily verbose lines, Cusack sells the role with a commanding credibility few other actors could have mustered. Samuel L. Jackson also makes a strong impression in his brief scenes, and despite the almost unnecessary inclusion of his character, Jackson makes it worth the audience's while with a weighty gravitas which perfectly amps up the tension for the ensuing horror. Mary McCormack also does her best as the hideously conventional "distanced wife still attracted to the protagonist" figure, and emerges with a decent performance despite her almost criminally underdeveloped role.

What could have descended into commercial drivel under different circumstances instead proves a surprisingly intelligent and capably crafted psychological thriller, a merciful diversion from the trashy gore-fests inundating cinemas these days. While comparisons to earlier King adaptation The Shining among other works are inevitable, and despite the frequent reliance on formula, somehow new frights are extracted from age-old conventions, and with a strong directorial touch and an endlessly engaging lead performance 1408 proves a gruesomely entertaining bright spark in a fading ember of a genre, one which even the most jaded horror fans can appreciate and enjoy.

-8/10