1408 = good

Rating: 10/10 (28 June 2007)

Ruining precisely how things go bump would be spoiling most of the fun of 1408. The usual slamming shut and sudden disquieting aside, 1408 is more creepy than outright scary and much of its success is due to John Cusack's performance. Praise is long overdue on Cusack as one of our best everyman actors who can convey just enough cynicism and yet still allow an audience to root for him. This is never more evident in the pre-room scenes, particularly those with Jackson, sparring wits with another master of matter-of-fact delivery, but Cusack also sails through the film's more questionable turns with a command of the situation. For all the additions made to Stephen King's short story, it's a shame the screenwriters missed the obvious allegorical connotations to the final decision Enslin is presented with. A stronger metaphor for life in the face of death there could not have been, but I'm satisfied enough with 1408 being a stronger horror film in the face of garbage like Hostel Part II.
Jens Naeyaert