Rachel Nichols stars as an executive named Angela who’s working late at her New York Office building on Christmas Eve. She’s expected at her sister’s house in New Jersey for a family gathering, so she’s very happy to finally get the business done and head out of work. But when she goes down to the parking garage--on level P2, to be exact--Angela’s frustrated when her car won’t start. Thomas (Wes Bently), the friendly and ever-polite security guard on the parking levels, is only too happy to help Angela out. But despite the use of a battery charger, Angela’s car is still dead.
So Angela calls for a cab, and waits for it in the building’s lobby. The only
trouble is, once the cab arrives, she can’t get to it--thanks to the fact that
all of the lobby doors are locked down for the holiday. Angry that she’s missing
out on her holiday plans, Angela goes back down to the parking level to find
Thomas. But Thomas has some holiday plans of his own, and they include
Angela…whether she wants to be involved, or not. If you think P2 sounds like a
reject from the Lifetime cable network, think again.
When I first heard about P2, I figured it was just another lame stalker/horror
flick, with the heroine valiantly fighting against all odds, despite constantly
making dumb decisions. But, surprise, it’s actually very good. Alexandre Aja,
the director of the Hills Have Eyes remake, as well
as the superb High Tension,
produced and co-wrote the script. And director Franck Khalfoun keeps the action going at a
brisk pace without resorting to anything that’s too over the top. Wes Bently
gives a good performance as the deranged Thomas; he plays it like a nice,
pleasant boy with too much pent up rage.
Rachel Nichols is also very good as the indomitable Angela, who looks like a
young Jodie Foster from certain angles. Clad only in a white dress and wearing
handcuffs, she still manages to wage a cat and mouse game with Thomas that’s
thrilling to watch--all without making any stupid horror movie heroine mistakes.
The script is very imaginative, taking into account that the audience isn’t dumb,
as it tries to cover all the bases. The DVD comes with a commentary, along with
a bunch of run of the mill 'behind the scenes' documentaries. Give P2 a try, and you may wind
up having second thoughts about parking your car in a parking garage late at night. --SF
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