1408Movie Reviews

Poster art for "1408."

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Avg. Critic Score: 64 out of 100 Generally favorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
15 Iffy for 15+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 80
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    Swedish director Mikael Hafstrom creates a compelling ride of a movie. Every beat of the film is weighted with significance, and our mounting dread becomes almost intolerable. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    This is the old stuff, the good stuff, the tried-and-true stuff of shrewdly accomplished audience manipulation. Read full review

  • 75
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    Heebie-jeebies are guaranteed. Read full review

  • 75
    USA Today |

    At his best, King's most effective creatures are not the ones behind creaking doors, but inside crooked minds. Read full review

  • 75
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    A deft Stephen King freak-out. Read full review

  • 70
    The Hollywood Reporter |

    Even with its flaws, 1408 deserves to be appreciated by connoisseurs of acting and bravura filmmaking. Read full review

  • 70
    The New York Times | Jeannette Catsoulis

    The movie is most effective in its early scenes of prickly menace, and while the Dolphin is no Overlook (the haunted hotel in "The Shining"), its old-world creepiness is exactly right. Read full review

  • 70
    Los Angeles Times | Carina Chocano

    In the grand scheme of things, the Dolphin Hotel is no Overlook, but it's no cheesy slaughter motel either. Read full review

  • 70
    Variety |

    For star John Cusack, it's a perfect fit. Read full review

  • 63
    Boston Globe | Wesley Morris

    As thrillers go, 1408 leaves too much room for fun. Read full review

View more reviews for 1408 on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 15+ Hotel room horror is more mental than physical.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this horror film is more about psychology than gore, though the main character, Mike, does sustain some bloody injuries from the various attacks on him (flying furniture, collapsing architecture, and more). He also suffers increasing emotional distress and irrationality, remembering both his young daughter, who died of a disease (scenes show the wasting girl and arguments between her parents), and his resentful, despairing, wheelchair-bound father. The nightmare-style narrative is illogical and sometimes disturbing, including ghosts, loud noises, jump scenes, and grotesque images of insects and bloody corpses. Mike drinks frequently and smokes once (very dramatically). Language includes one use of "f--k" and plenty of other words: "s--t," "ass," "bitch," etc.
  • Families can talk about the enduring appeal of ghost stories and haunted house tales. Why are they so popular? Do you think strong emotions can continue to "occupy" a place? How does the movie make room 1408 seem scary before viewers even see the inside? How does Mike's past become part of the room's arsenal of disturbing imagery? Families can also discuss why people like being scared at the movies. What makes some horror movies better at accomplishing this than others?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: Cynical writer learns to cope with grief and guilt through supernatural experiences; much of the movie takes place in a room described as "evil."
What to watch for
  • violence false5 Violence: A surfer is hit by a wave and sinks underwater, then appears unconscious on shore; some brutal violence is indicated in newspaper and file photos (bodies are bloody, dead by suicides -- including drowning, throat slicing, gun shots, and hanging). A couple of ghosts jump out of the hotel room window (woman screams as she falls); hand smashed by window bleeds (bloody smears on walls, in sink, on shower curtain); man almost falls off building ledge; room "assaults" Mike, first overheating, then freezing, then collapsing, crashing, bleeding, and burning.
  • sex false0 Sex: Dead bodies in a tub appear very briefly undressed (not explicit); bikinis and swimwear on beach.
  • language false3 Language: Moderate language, used in frustration and fear. One "f--k," plus repeated uses of "s--t," "ass," "damn," "hell," and a few of "bastard," "a--hole," and "bitch."
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: Dell laptop, Yahoo email.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false3 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Mike drinks frequently (cognac, hotel liquor bottles); Mike thinks he's been "dosed." Mike's mirror image smokes; a former smoker, he ritually keeps a cigarette near him so he might use it if necessary -- by film's end, he does.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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