1408 (directed by Mikael Hafstrom)
John Cusack seems like an odd choice to star in a psychological thriller, but as he did with Identity, he proves that he's up to the task in 1408, a return to form after a string of comedic Limburgers.
Neu-horror directors take note: it is possible in this day and age to make a film scary/terrifying without automatically having to reach for the prosthetics and fake blood. Perhaps the most frightening thing about this particular picture is that the Carpenters' "We've Only Just Begun" plays on the clock radio to signify true terror.
1408, based on the Stephen King short story, involves a spook writer (Cusack) who decides to visit New York's Dolphin Hotel to see just how haunted it really is. Naturally, no film is complete without the presence of Samuel L. Jackson, who already whupped it up earlier this year in Black Snake Moan. SLJ plays the manager of the Dolphin, who warns Cusack's character against the "f****** evil" contained in the room of the movie's title. I'm wondering if Sam's agent (or perhaps Sam himself) had it written in his contract after Snakes On A Plane that he'll not appear in a movie unless an f-bomb gets dropped. So much for the Pixar movies, Sammy.
I digress. One of the more moving elements of the film is the backstory of Cusack's wife and their deceased daughter. The scene where Cusack believes his daughter has returned is powerful and affecting, a rarity in the world of "horror" (though the makers of the film are loath to classify it as such, and for good reason).
With all of the Stephen King novels that have made their way to the screen, 1408 is a welcome addition to the canon--perhaps not quite The Shining (which King hated), but certainly no Pet Semetary either.
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