| | | The Dolphin Hotel Invites You to Stay in Any of its Stunning Rooms. Except One.
Features: DVD
Based on a story by Stephen King, the Dolphin Hotel hides a deadly secret a long-closed room so evil, no guest has ever survived an hour within its walls. But when a skeptical writer Mike Enslin defies the grave warnings of the Dolphins manager and insists on spending the night, 1408 reopens for business.
"...a compelling ride of a movie. Every beat of the film is weighted with significance, and our mounting dread becomes almost intolerable." Desson Thomson, The Washington Post
"A deft Stephen King freak-out." Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
"Ranks with The Shining as one of the best Stephen King adaptations ever!" Pete Hammond, Maxim
"Heebie-jeebies are guaranteed." Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
"An entertainingly hairy paranormal affair." Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
Editor's Note
The PG-13 rating given to 1408 belies this film's truly terrifying effects on its audience. Though it's far less gory than its peers, it has frightening moments and a creepy mood throughout. John Cusack (IDENTITY) plays Mike Enslin, a gifted writer who has turned his talents to paranormal travel books. His stays in haunted hotels never shake him, but he's intrigued by New York's Dolphin Hotel. Room 1408 has been the site of dozens of deaths, and this is a selling point for the skeptic in Mike. Despite the warnings of the hotel manager (Samuel L. Jackson, BLACK SNAKE MOAN), Mike resolves to stay in the haunted room. No one has lasted more than an hour in 1408, and Mike has his work cut out for him.Though Cusack got his acting pedigree in comedies, he proves he's able to adeptly carry a horror film. He's in practically every frame of the film, often alone, and he's great at making the audience share in his fear. This is the second English-language film from director Mikael Hafstrom (DERAILED), and he does a good job of establishing tension. A lot of the credit is due to the film's sound crew, whose detailed work goes far in giving 1408 its unsettling feeling. Like THE SHINING, this is based on writing from horror master Stephen King, and it's a similarly creepy tale set in a hotel. But in its execution, 1408 is far more indebted to classic horror films such as the original 1963 version of THE HAUNTING.
| Features | Audio: English, French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Dubbed: French | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: GENIUS ENTERTAINMENT |
| Release Date: 2/2/2010 |
| Original Release Date: 2007 | | Catalog ID: 80531 | | UPC: 00796019805315 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Standard 1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew | John Cusack | | Mary McCormack | | Samuel L. Jackson | | Tony Shalhoub | | Andrew Laws - Production Designer | | Benoit Delhomme - Cinematographer | | Bob Weinstein - Executive Producer | | Gabriel Yared - Original Music By | | Harvey Weinstein - Executive Producer | | Matt Greenberg, et. al. - Screenplay | | Mikael Hafstrom - Director | | Peter Boyle - Editor | | Stephen King - Based On Short Story By | | Stuart Kearns, et. al. - Art Director |
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| | Professional Reviews | Entertainment Weekly
"[I]t's a deft Stephen King freak-out....What happens to Cusack is a roller coaster of a head trip..." -- Grade: B 06/22/2007 p.52USA Today
3 stars out of 4 -- "[A] faithful and creepy adaptation....Cusack's performance slowly reveals a man trying to exorcise his own demons by debunking others." 06/22/2007 p.6D New York Times
"Directed by Mikael Hafstrom with old-fashioned restraint and a stylish use of close-ups..." 06/22/2007 p.E8 Total Film
3 stars out of 5 -- "A terrific performance from John Cusack as a cynic on a paranormal mission nudges this towards the higher end of King adaps." 09/01/2007 p.40 Empire
3 stars out of 5 -- "Cusack, a master of understatement, plays it cool and quiet, so when he does freak out, it's all the more powerful." 09/01/2007 p.48 ReelViews 8 of 10
If elements of 1408 seem a little familiar, it shouldn't be a surprise. Here's John Cusack, once again having lodging problems (see also Identity). Here's a supernatural debunker faced with something that refuses to be debunked (see also The Reaping). And here's a movie about a room-for-rent where people go in but don't come out (see also Vacancy). Yet, despite all of these recycled plot elements bobbing around, there's nothing stale about 1408, which is easily the best horror film of 2007. Too often, we see a movie with a great setup like this ruined by a subpar ending. However, 1408 deftly sidesteps that trap, delivering a conclusion that somehow manages not to disappoint while at the same time leaving things open-ended enough that viewer interpretation comes into play...The PG-13 rating might argue that 1408 is for teenagers, but that's a mistake. This is the most mature horror movie of the year - far more adult and sophisticated than the tedious Hostel Part II. If you like to be creeped out by movies, this is one to see. It reminds us what it's like to be scared in a theater rather than overwhelmed by buckets of blood and gore. - James Berardinelli
Reel.com 9 of 10
Director Mikael Hafstrom's adaptation of Stephen King's short story 1408 is an immensely satisfying middle finger to screenwriting manuals and formulas everywhere, a movie that breaks the rules without feeling overly self-conscious or gimmicky. A skillful visualization of King's tale, as well as a film that works independently on its own terms, it proves that cinema is every bit as capable as the written word of conveying the internal qualities--thought, emotion, etc.--for which movies as an art form are supposedly ill-equipped...In fact, the most impressive thing about the movie is that for all it has in common with novels and plays, it's exhilaratingly cinematic--through impeccable camera placement, editing, and sound design, Hafstrom orchestrates an exercise in suspense that puts most of the summer franchise movies to shame...Cusack's strong performance, and the elegantly constructed screenplay by Matt Greenberg, Scott Alexander, and Larry Karaszweski, allow 1408 to take detours into emotionally subtle scenes of the sort that were familiar in earlier King adaptations like Christine and The Dead Zone...Scary, smart, and moving, it's a terrific summer entertainment for grown-ups. - Jim Hemphill
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