1408 [Blu-ray]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

A writer renowned for debunking infamous paranormal events is confronted by a force that he cannot explain upon checking into room 1408 of the notoriously haunted Dolphin Hotel. Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is an author who specializes in horror, but who only believes in what he can see with his eyes and touch with his hands. Having constructed an entire career on his ability to dispel superstitious "haunted house" rumors, Mike is convinced that the afterlife is a manmade construct designed to offer false comfort to the weak minded. Mike's latest project is a book entitled "Ten Nights in Haunted Hotel Rooms," and it seems that in room 1408 of the Dolphin Hotel, this skeptical scribe may finally find proof of the supernatural. Implored by the hotel manager (Samuel L. Jackson) not to enter room 1408, Mike defiantly procures the key and prepares to dispel yet another spectral sham. Now, as is the case with many of life's most profound epiphanies, the writer who thought he knew it all is caught entirely off guard at the precise moment he least expected it. Subsequently faced with undeniable proof of an afterlife, Mike may have a best-seller on his hands if he can simply survive until sunrise. Mary McCormack and Jasmine Jessica Anthony co-star in director Mikael Håfström's (Derailed) adaptation of an original short story by horror icon Stephen King. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

DVD FEATURES:

• Number of Discs: 1
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV, Color
• Subtitle: Spanish
• Features:
  • Feature commentary by director Mikael Håfström and writers Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski
  • Alternate endings
  • Deleted scenes with optional commentary
  • The secrets of 1408
  • John Cusack on 1408
  • Inside room 1408
  • Theatrical trailer

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       John Cusack - Mike Enslin
       Samuel L. Jackson - Gerald Olin
       Mary McCormack - Lily Enslin
       Jasmine Jessica Anthony - Katie Enslin
       Tony Shalhoub

• Director:

  Mikael Håfström

• Producer:

  Lorenzo Di Bonaventura

• Screenwriter:

  Scott Alexander, Matt Greenberg, Larry Karaszewski

• Cinematographer:

  Benoit Delhomme

• Composer (Music Score):

  Gabriel Yared

• Editor:

  Peter Boyle

• Production Designer:

  Andrew Laws

• Art Director:

  Stuart Kearns

• Associate Producer:

  Kelly Dennis, Antonia Kalmacoff, Jeremy Steckler

REVIEW:

• A taut, compact ghost story that also manages to weave a satisfying tale of psychological descent, 1408 may not offer much new to Stephen King fans, but it does manage to quicken the pulse more than a few times during its terse 94-minute running time. While many longtime King devotees may regard 1408 as little more than an abbreviated cannibalization of themes already covered to potent effect in The Shining (an accusation that may well be of merit if one is inclined to judge an artist on his earlier body of work), director Mikael Håfström and his screenwriting team deliver a solid little frightener that still proves malevolently unpredictable and comes off more like a feature-length Twilight Zone episode than a forgotten page out of the pop-horror specialist's formidable bibliography. Readers know that King's stories are frequently punctuated by tormented characters who stumble upon an inexplicable phenomenon that is initially beyond their comprehension but slowly overtakes every aspect of their existence -- and with his tragic past and hardened skepticism, supernatural debunker Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is the perfect King protagonist. Yet, despite the fact that Enslin is a character that virtually any King fan will instantly recognize, actor Cusack does well to inject the familiar King archetype with just enough identifiable human emotion to make him a believable person as well. Likewise, screenwriters Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, and Matt Greenberg fare decidedly well in their efforts to toy with the viewer by subverting various ghost-story standards and drawing on the kind of nightmare logic that is sure to shake anyone who has struggled to awaken from a quickly worsening nightmare -- a tense scene on the ledge of a tall building being a decidedly potent example of this. Released into theaters at a time when many high-minded critics were vehemently lamenting the proliferation of such sadistic horror films as Hostel and Saw, 1408 draws on such classics as The Haunting and The Innocents in order to deliver supernatural thrills that never get too graphic for the future generation of horror enthusiasts. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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