Directed by:
Mikael HåfströmCinematography:
Benoît DelhommeComposer:
Gabriel YaredCast:
John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Tony Shalhoub, Len Cariou, Andrew Lee Potts, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Benny Urquidez, Johann Urb, Angel Oquendo (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
Based on a short story by Stephen King, a man who specializes in debunking the paranormal checks into the infamous room 1408 in the Dolphin Hotel, only to discover the terror is real. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (10)
1408 is not exceptional either in terms of script quality or directorial approach, but at the same time, it is an honest genre film without unpleasant mistakes and pandering. In the flood of endless teenage massacres, inconspicuous vampire and zombie slasher films, and cheap thefts of famous films from the past, this psycho-horror feels honestly old-fashioned according to the rules of the old genre school. In addition, Cusack acts excellently and Samuel L. Jackson complements him very well in the smaller role of the hotel manager. The appropriate duration and several decent special effects scenes with a functioning atmosphere make this film an above-average work in its genre. Overall impression: 70%.
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A bit of a naive ghost story, the kind of which there have been many. And even though John Cusack is playing for dear life and all that fear is palpable, my adrenaline level didn't rise an inch during his growing madness. Besides, the filmmakers didn't know where to go and resorted to more and more obvious twists and turns, almost crossing the boundary of kitsch several times. On the other hand, they came up with a very interesting ending, which was certainly not very shocking, but it surprised me. A decent 3* for the effort, the actors and the decent atmosphere.
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I like Stephen King a lot. It's just that not all adaptations of his books are excellent. Unfortunately, I haven't had the privilege of reading the book, so I can't compare this time, but if I were to rate the movie, and I probably should since I'm typing this blabber here, it would be four stars. But for what, though? For the atmosphere? John Cusack's performance? The storyline? The satisfying ending, where the wife's bulging eyes confirm that her husband really did experience something? I add it up, I scratch twice, and yeah, it's a well-deserved 4 stars. Definitely for me.
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I really like and seek out movie adaptations of Stephen King's horror stories, like The Shining and Misery, which is why I was quite disappointed after watching Room 1408. The film gradually builds up an eerie atmosphere and of course, as a horror film, there must be some scares here and there. The "monster" this time does not have a physical form, it is a room with a symbolic sum of numbers 13, which when it "devours" someone, it does not return them as they were before (if at all). As good as that sounds, I found the final few destructive sequences quite wild and kind of out of place. All in all, a kind of mediocre horror film (which is a shame with King) that, while it fits its genre, didn't do anything to significantly engage me as a viewer.
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It’s no easy feat to bring Stephen King to the silver screen in a respectable form. While some have managed to successfully adapt several of his non-horror pieces, as for his scary stories, only one has been good. So it rather surprising that in the end it was a routineer like Håfström who managed to do something to even up this sorry imbalance. Because of limited space, 1408 relies solely on the central character. Luckily Cusak turned out to be an outstanding choice. His charisma supported by a good measure of cynicism, together with his unmistakable croaky voice holds the picture’s head above water even during the weaker moments. The fundamental problem here is that after the wonderful opening hour, the creators didn’t head straight for the finishing line, but needlessly and even unbecomingly drag it out. It begins with a wonderfully created atmosphere, lots of ideas and several borrowings from other stories by King (e.g. “The Ledge"). But in the second part, the tempo drops sharply, the story starts to get out of its depth and the atmosphere almost completely disappears. And there aren’t even any ideas anymore, just over and over variations of the same thing we have seen earlier on in the movie. As a result, 1408 ends up being the same as its literary counterpart is in comparison to other works by King. In other words, an example of above average filmmaking craft, but it definitely won’t stay lodged in your memory. P.S.: Of the three existing endings, by far the best is the not so happy one.
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