1408 (Director's Cut) (2007)

Written by Matt Greenberg & Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski Directed by Mikael Hafstrom I, for one, would not call myself a Stephen King fan. I've enjoyed a few of his books, and even less of his movies, which for the most part, don't compare to the books. So to say my expectations for this movie were low would be a understatement. A few months ago when this movie first came out my roommate downloaded a TS and I watched the first hour and then fell asleep and missed the last half of the movie. My memory being what it is, I had to rewatch this whole film, and upon returning to it, I was more into it than the first time I watched it. The story centers on Mike Enslin, an author who writes books about supposedly haunted places, where he spends the night and records his experiences. While Mike is an author on the subject, his personal belief system revolves around the fact that he doesn't believe in ghosts or the afterlife, so going into 1408 he doesn't expect to see anything, just like every other place he stays at. He does his research and learns the stories about all the deaths in the room, but he's still a hard sale on it being haunted. His experiences inside the room change his views on hauntings, because the room begins to dismantle his belief system by bringing him his past with a vengeance. This is one of the few movies that's actually creeped me out, and the first one I can think of since 1999's Stir of Echoes. The visuals bring about the air of psychological uncertainty, leading the viewer to be just as confused and uncertain about the room's hauntings just as it does to the main character. I really liked the visual representation of his fears, which are all immaculately done by way of camera angles and changes in the visual reality of the story. John Cusack often plays very similar characters, all of which are some extension of his own personality. For this story however, it works to great effect, as his personality is likeable and relatable. When the room forces Enslin to retreat into his own mind, he is forced to face his own fears and shortcomings, which is where this film really finds its heart, in the imperfections of its main character. Also, the fantastic direction and key use of CGI add to the unsettling atmosphere of the film. Definitely worth checking out for horror fans and those annoying "psychological thriller" fans alike. 7.8/10