>>REVIEW
1408
STARRING John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson
DIRECTED BY Mikael Hafstrom
Opens Friday, June 22
There was a time when people would flock to theatres to see the next John Cusack film. After breaking out as Lloyd Dobler in Say Anything, Cusack became everybody’s favourite actor, starring in High Fidelity, Grosse Pointe Blank and Being John Malkovich. Since then, his choice in scripts has been questionable at best, culminating in the unwatchable Identity (2003), an alleged psychological thriller about mysterious deaths that take place in a hotel. Which brings us to his role in 1408 – a psychological thriller about mysterious deaths that take place in a hotel. We’ve come a long way in four short years.
It’s tempting to write this off as another easy paycheque for Cusack, but, to great relief, 1408 is a masterpiece by modern standards. Of course, compared to the recent slew of gory horror films released over the past several years, anything more subtle than a circular saw to the femur is art.
The setup for the film is predictable. Mike Enslin (Cusack) spends his whole life debunking supernatural myths and is specifically interested in hotels. When he hears of the horrors that take place in room 1408 of the Dolphin Hotel in New York, he can’t resist the urge to spend the night there. Not even a stern lecture from hotel manager Gerald Olin (Samuel L. Jackson) can dissuade him. Occasionally, the movie goes a little over-the-top trying to drag the audience along with it — for example, the first time the number 1408 appears in print in the film, Enslin helpfully shows us that the numbers add up to 13.
Of course, Enslin ends up in the room, and it turns out that it is haunted. At this point, the movie could go either way. Luckily, it casts most horror clichés aside and is a legitimately psychologically intense movie. Enslin not only sees the traditional ghosts and goblins, but is confronted with painful memories from his past, almost as if the room is a combination death trap and cathartic healing centre.
Visually, the film is stunning, as the room changes in almost every scene and shows acute attention to detail –– and the horror of this film really is in the details. A lamp that had recently been thrown at the window lies intact on the floor in the next scene.
With a great one-man show performance from Cusack and an artfully staged false ending, 1408 is a pleasant surprise. But good luck if you have to stay in a hotel anytime soon. |
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