Why is it that in every horror movie, cell phones don’t work? They’re trash: no matter where you are, they won’t get a signal! In this case, our main victim here is Angela, an overworked businesswoman that begins her night of stress when her car won’t start. She calls a cab, but she’s locked out of her own office building because everyone else left, retiring to their families for Christmas dinner. That’s right, it’s Christmas eve, her car won’t start, she’s stuck in a building where she can see freedom right out of the glass automatic doors, and her family is at home, awaiting her arrival. Since the doors on the upstairs floor of the building are locked, Angela heads back down to the parking garage to find a different exit. But uh-oh, the lights go out and the doors get locked as she’s down there, so she’s deserted in parking level two, or P2. Her cell phone just won’t work because she’s too far down (but you can see the streets from where she is). But it gets even worse, as if that’s not enough to ruin your normal night, let alone Christmas eve! Angela ends up getting knocked unconscious in the dark by a weird parking attendant known as Thomas, played by Wes Bentley (Ghost Rider). Unfortunately for Angela, we find out that the not-so-friendly Thomas turns out to be a psychopath, intent on presumably “having his way” with Angela.

Can Angela escape Thomas? Who else will be caught in Thomas’ wrath? Will cell phones ever work?

I don’t know about this film. It’s really not that bad, but I’m not exactly glad that I watched it. It’s kind of repetitive, like you’re simply watching the same thing over and over. However, P2 is thrilling in some places, but boring in others. The scene introducing Thomas’ psychopathic side is really awkward to watch, which was very creepy and well-done. Another highlight was a very cringe-worthy scene involving one of Angela’s coworkers tied to a wheelchair and a car. I’ll say no more.

The acting is pretty solid in P2. One thing that makes P2 memorable is the sadistic nature of the villain, who does a good job being scary, even if he doesn’t look that intimidating. Unfortunately, that doesn’t exactly mean that the entire movie is scary. Angela, played by Rachael Nichols (Charlie Wilson’s War) is a good victim, running around the parking garage with one of the most revealing dresses ever shown on the big screen. There is enough character in Angela to feel sympathy for her, as she’s constantly being tormented by Thomas. Besides the brief appearances of other side characters, that’s basically the cast.

One annoying thing about P2 is the lack of consistency. I know it’s really cruel to pick on small continuity errors, but some are unforgivable. Like when all Angela has to do to get her phone to get a signal is to stick it a couple of inches through the garage grates. That’s a stretch. I know, they had to advance the story somehow, but is it necessary to maybe add some other means of communication that Angela can acquire?

I can’t really comment on the direction by Frank Kalfhoun, mainly because it doesn’t improve the movie nor make it worse. It’s mainly the writing by him and Alexandre Aja that bring the film down hard. Characters make questionable decisions, but one particular one almost got me flinging a shoe at the TV. I don’t really want to mention the scenes that were ludicrous in fear of revealing how the film comes to an end. It also feels like it’s a little too long and the creators could cut some meaningless material out of P2.

Overall, I think the film was not a bad experience to watch, but rests on the line between good and bad. In some places, I liked it a little bit, even if I’ve seen the same idea drawn out millions of times. Would I recommend it? Not to most people. But if you can scout out the good in the bad and remain optimistic on an otherwise dreary film, you might fine P2 enjoyable. I personally think that it’s nothing special.