Writers Keep Their Own Ghosts
Cusack Checks in to Stephen King's 1408

What would it take to make you stay in a supposedly haunted room for the night? For writer Mike Enslin (John Cusack), it's all in a night's work. When working on his latest guide to the "Best Haunted Hotels," he gets an anonymous tip that leads him back to New York where he left behind a few ghosts of his own. Originally conceived as part of an audiobook collection of Stephen King short stories titled Blood and Smoke, 1408 is a good adaptation of King's work but more emotionally gut-wrenching than frightening.

1408
Mike Enslin (John Cusack, left) won't be swayed by the Mr. Olin's (Samuel L. Jackson) requests to stay in a different room in 1408. (Dimension, 2007)
Directed by: Mikael Håfström
Written by: Matt Greenberg and Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski, based on the short story by Stephen King
Starring: John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Jasmine Jessica Anthony, and Tony Shalhoub

Rated PG-13 (for thematic material including disturbing sequences of violence and terror, frightening images and language)
Running time: 94 min.

FilmGuru's Rating : 5 out of 10.

Cusack plays Enslin, a good writer, but a skeptic in all things supernatural. His lack of belief in spirits is mirrored by his lack of faith in God, following the death of his daughter. As a result, his "research" into hauntings is usually accompanied by large amounts of refreshments from the hotel mini bar.

After receiving an anonymous postcard, Mike investigates room 1408 in The Dolphin Hotel. He discovers multiple suicides and unexplained deaths have occurred there over the last 100 years.

Before he can go into 1408, however, Mike gets one last lecture from the hotel manager Mr. Olin (Samuel L. Jackson). In addition to some grotesque details Mike's research didn't uncover, Olin warns him that no one has lasted more than an hour in room 1408.

First, let me say for the record that if Samuel L. Jackson tells you not to go into a room, you do not go into the room. This guy could get me to avoid the Academy Awards if he gave me that same speech. When he wants to, he can be incredibly persuasive.

What follows is an expected series of weird happenings, as Mike goes from complete skeptic to curious investigator. His sense of reality gets shaken by subtle changes in the room, as mints mysteriously appear on the pillow and the toilet paper is neatly refolded after he uses it. Soon, the distinction between real and unreal is blown out of the water as Mike goes to war with the room.

The story is interesting despite the cliché turns it takes. Mike's inability to move past the death of his daughter is necessary for the story. Nevertheless, the film seems to center on this loss instead of any real horror. Like other stories about writers, the majority of the action is happening in Mike's head, which works great on the page but doesn't always translate well on film. (The FilmGuru's Maxims of Horror Films #1: It's easier to show blood on the screen than it is to show fear.)

Other pieces of the story don't work quite as well. Mike's estranged relationship with his father is difficult to figure out and seems unnecessary in the final cut. Mr. Olin's true nature is up for debate, and viewers are never quite sure if his more devilish nature is part of Mike's imagination or not.

Films adapted from Stephen King novels and short stories do not have the best track record. There are a few notable exceptions, and everyone has his or her favorite. Personally, I think the best of the lot is Misery, because Kathy Bates and James Caan gave such tremendous performances. The worst was The Lawnmower Man, because it had nothing to do with King's work.

That said, I tend to see most movies that draw on King for a storyline (or sometimes mere inspiration), but they don't always give me the same thrill as the written word. On the whole, though, short stories seem to fair better than his longer works. Take, for example, last summer's Nightmares and Dreamscapes that aired on TBS.

Likewise, director Mikael Håfström takes a good short story and reimagines it for the visual medium. 1408 is not flashy, particularly gory, or overly scary. It's just a good story told well.