PET is another boring kidnap thriller that revolves around a psycho keeping a woman captive and caged in his basement. I know such films are very cheap to film, but it takes a lot of creativity and technical prowess to make them actually interesting, and sadly that isn't the case here. Former hobbit Dominic Monaghan plays an ordinary blue collar worker who becomes obsessed with a woman he knew in his younger days, and his obsession knows no boundaries. There's a certain slickness to the direction as well as character depth you don't normally find in the genre. However, it's also entirely routine and unexciting, with cliche after cliche building to an entirely expected outcome.

Seth (Dominic Monaghan) works at the animal shelter. He runs into waitress Holly (Ksenia Solo) on the bus. She doesn't remember him but he remembers her. He has had a crush on her since school and starts becoming obsessed. Claire (Jennette McCurdy) is her roommate and she is still hounded by her ex Eric. Seth tries to ask her out but she rejects him. He steals her notebook. He sets up a cage in the basement of the animal shelter and kidnaps her. Security guard Nate is usually the only one around and nobody can hear her over the animal noises.

This has a couple of actors that I like. The first half of the movie struggles to pick up the pace in a seemingly predictable kidnapping film. There is a reveal of something different and more interesting around the halfway point. This may work better to compress the first half and do the kidnapping earlier. Monaghan may also be better off playing it less creepy and more of a good Samaritan. This takes the standard horror and gives it a twist. It has potential but doesn't fully achieve an engaging movie.

As you can surmise from the title and cover art, this is a story about a man, Seth (Dominic Monaghan) who keeps his unwilling precious, Holly (Ksenia Solo) in a cage. What is slightly different is that he doesn't torture her, he wants to "save her" from herself. The cage is located underneath an animal shelter where Seth works, but is close to being terminated. The second twist is that the captive appears to be crazier than her captor, and then there is the question of who is really in control.

The film was good for what it was in a crowded genre of "B" films. Claire (Jennette McCurdy) added a depth to this genre you don't normally see, making the film more of a psychological thriller than a horror.

Guide: F-word. Brief sex. No nudity.