A great film, depending on which version...

Rating: 10/10 (6 April 2011)

Every so often, I come across a movie that I had never heard of and had no expectations for whatever that surprises me with a great storyline, an awesome script, and a stunning cast performance. This was one of them.
Based on a short story by Stephen King, 1408 stars John Crusack and Samuel L. Jackson. Be aware, though, there are two very different versions of the film between the various releases; and, whether you love it or think its mediocre will depend on which version you see (and, of course, your own personal taste). The version that I think is a creative masterpiece is the one the studio released for the European market. The European release was also released in the US on Pay-Per-View On-Demand as the "Director's Cut" and is also the default version of the Blu-Ray release.
The US release of the film that distributed in movies theaters and shown on premium cable TV is a last minute studio cut, an effort on the behalf of the studio to give the film "greater appeal for an American audience". The flawed thinking here was that Americans like "optimistic" endings rather than the gloomy endings the likes of The Twilight Zone are known for. Suffice-it to say, the studio cut out the entire original ending and shot a new shorter, lower budget, not-so-scary and not-so- inspired one to replace it. Additionally, the US release cut out some important secondary character subplot elements.
John Crusack and Samuel L. Jackson give stunning performances. However, the US version cuts out one of the movie's best performances by Jackson, one that adds a great deal of depth to the character performed by Crusack. I am just baffled as to why studio execs would meddle with a filmmaker's artistic work. Studio heads are not artists and should not interfere with their work, especially rewriting an entire ending.
With the different versions of the film now off my chest, what I really loved about it was the fact that most of the film takes place inside a single location - a hotel room - and revolves around a single main character. Going into it, I wondered how on Earth could a solitary room and character possibly be scary. Without giving anything away, believe you me, Stephen King's warped imagination ingeniously has a way! With the Stephen King short story as the backbone, the movie's brilliantly written screenplay adds bone-chilling, cliff-hanging suspense and thrills that builds upon character development.
If you like the original version of this film as much as I do, other great movies of the same genre that I recommend are Wind Chill, White Noise, and The Mist.