P2: A bloody Christmas
By CHRIS SNYDER
Observer Staff

If you’ve already seen the trailer for the new psychological thriller “P2,” you’re probably asking yourself a couple of questions: “Two? Did I miss ‘P1?’” or “How is this a Christmas movie?”

Thankfully, the answer to the first question is “no,” it is merely referring to the second level of a parking garage where the story is set, and with any luck there won’t be a “P3.” As for what classifies this a holiday film, there are presents, snow, several beloved Yuletide anthems, including Elvis’ “Blue Christmas,” a man in a Santa suit, and, oh yeah…lots and lots of blood.

Photo by Summit Entertainment
Thomas the creepy parking attendant says
he just wants to help Angela.

Writer Alexandre Aja, who has worked on both the French thriller “Haute Tension” and the 2006 remake of “The Hills Have Eyes,” has once again created a disturbing film with an all too realistic and up close look into the mind of a psychopath.

Angela Bridges (Rachel Nichols) is working late on Christmas Eve in Manhattan, and after an awkward encounter with a drunken coworker at her office’s holiday party the night before, she is more than ready to leave. Already late to spend the evening with her sister’s family in New Jersey, things start looking more glum when she gets to the parking garage where her car won’t start. She is stuck…on P2. Never before has a film’s title been visible so often in nearly every frame on every wall, almost to the point of annoyance.

The only other person left in the building, a quirky bumbling parking attendant known only as Thomas (Wes Bentley), offers to help her out. Bentley was creepy enough as the morbid camera-wielding neighbor in “American Beauty.” In “P2,” he plays his character like a more unhinged Norman Bates, in what seems to be an attempt at “Psycho” set in a parking garage. The game of cat and mouse that the audience expects gets off to a late start, with an extensive amount of dialogue between Angela and Thomas that includes a forced dinner scene with wine in Thomas’ decorated office reminiscent of the one in “Misery.” When it does, you are in for a ride, but like Angela, maybe not necessarily the one you were hoping for.

The action is a bit too in-your-face, leaving little to the imagination, a key element in a successful thriller. Nichols plays a believable young woman in distress who eventually has enough and begins to take things into her own hands. There are very few jump-out-of-your-seat moments and more cover your eyes and try to hold down your popcorn.

Toward the end of the film, Angela goes from a conservatively dressed young businesswoman to a stand-in for Stephen King’s “Carrie.” And this is one of the main reasons why the film ultimately fails; it tries to make up for a lack of an intelligent suspenseful storyline with gratuitous scenes of horrific violence. These are not your run-of-the-mill horror scenarios, but ones with excessive gore and one very gut “wrench”-ing display of animal cruelty. Animal lovers beware. In terms of a gore factor, it ranks right up there with–if not beyond–the “Saw” series and Eli Roth’s “Hostel.”

‘Fred Claus’ falls short
By VANESSA CAMOZZI
Observer Staff

With its family-friendly PG rating, “Fred Claus” tries to please both adults and children, but it becomes a mismatched marriage between the two, and ultimately fails to click with viewers of any age.

Director David Dobkin teams up with Vince Vaughn, who also co-produced the film, for the first time since “Wedding Crashers.”

Dobkin’s Christmas comedy is laboriously over-plotted. It begins with a narrative voice-over introducing viewers to the entire Claus family, immediately demonstrating to the audience that this is not going to be a movie about jolly old St. Nick, but rather about Fred Claus, Santa’s older and lesser-known black-sheep brother.

Initially, Frederick (as he is annoyingly referred to by his mother, played by Kathy Bates) is happy about the addition of his newborn brother. He promises to be the best big brother there is. But after a few years of being left out and less adored by their mother, he begins to resent and hate little Nick, who has been appointed to sainthood. This, we are told, is because of his unwavering generosity and spirit.

The movie tells us that when someone becomes a saint, the gift of immortality extends to the immediate family. But the movie is over-riddled with inconsistencies. We never quite figure out how or why everyone is his or her current age.

Fred eventually flees his hometown. It cuts to present-day Chicago where Vaughn’s character plays a witty, charming and fast-talking repo man who carries a bitter taste in his mouth for all things Christmas.

Fred is on the outs with his oddly-cast, meter-maid girlfriend (an underdeveloped role played by actress Rachael Weisz) and needs $50,000 to start a business. He finds himself in jail on his girlfriend’s birthday after a business venture goes awry but not before he is chased around by a dozen or so Santas through the streets of Chicago. So off he goes to the North Pole where he can get the money he so desperately needs.

Additional characters are introduced along the way, including Kevin Spacey’s well-acted role as an efficiency expert at the North Pole who has the authority to shut down Santa’s entire operation, although it’s never really explained why. Vaughn does a good job playing his usual quirky character, but unfortunately his time is expiring on how long audiences will continue to watch him as “that guy.” The plot continues to thicken with a few charming moments along the way.

Ultimately it’s a movie that demonstrates the intrinsic struggles and flaws we all possess. It’s a story about sibling rivalry, uniting, bonding and forgiveness, which is presented in a charming and sweet manner. But with such a stellar cast–most of the main characters either have an Oscar, or have been nominated for one–you leave the theater wanting just a little bit more.

Other upcoming holiday movies:

Film	Release Date	Starring	Premise
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium	Nov. 16	Dustin Hoffman, Natalie Portman and Jason Bateman	A magical toy store grows sad when its 243-year-old owner (Hoffman) decides to hand the reins over to a young assistant (Portman). With the help of an accountant (Bateman), who has been brought in to audit the store’s books, and a 9-year-old, the young assistant works to bring the store back to life.
Christmas in Wonderland	Nov. 16	Matthew Knight, Chris Kattan, Cameron Bright, Tim Curry and Patrick Swayze	Three kids find a bag full of counterfeit money at a mall in Canada and go on a spending spree, outwitting both criminals and police along the way.
This Christmas	Nov. 21	Loretta Divine, Delroy Lindo, Columbus Short, Sharon Leal and Keith Robinson	A large family reunites for Christmas for the first time in years.
The Perfect Holiday	Dec. 13	Gabrielle Union, Morris Chestnut, Queen Latifa, Charlie Murphy, Cat Williams and Faizon Love	A single mother of three meets the man she thinks might be the one for her. Unbeknownst to her, he’s a department-store Santa. There’s an ex-husband thrown into the mix and some kids.