Pet: Wenn du etwas liebst, dann lass es nicht los

Pet starts off as a regular B-movie psychological thriller about a kidnapping, and with a great twist in the middle, turns into something special. But something goes wrong shortly after the twist, the film doesn't deliver what it teases the audience for more than an hour. As if that twist has no consequences, and there is no definite climax. The idea is a breath of fresh air for the sub-genre, but it is poorly executed. Despite its dullness here and there, "Pet" is still worthwhile for the sake of the aforementioned twist and a must-watch for the fans of Dominic Monaghan.

Pet (2016): Seth (Dominic Monaghan) works in an animal shelter where he discovers a forgotten basement. His attempts to get Holly (Ksenia Solo) to date him are rebuffed. He stalks her online, at the Café where she works, follows her. When her ex punches him he gets more determined. He abducts Holly and imprisons her in a cage in the basement. Holly is no ordinary victim though, she has unexpected depths. Quite a few surprises and plot twists in this dark thriller. Although there are some gory and shocking scenes the emphasis is on psychological horror, paranoia and manipulation. Directed by Carles Torrens from a script by Jeremy Slater. 7/10.

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.

A socially maladjusted animal shelter maintenance man cannot avoid lusting after an old high school schoolmate. She thoroughly rebuffs him yet he won't take no for an answer. Because he's clearly psycho he decides to kidnap her and hold her captive. From there you're only wondering how she will escape or if she will escape. As I was hunkering down preparing for some crazy hunter/prey interaction the movie strayed a bit off course. At first I was thrown but then I thought, "this could be cool. Strange, but cool." Well, it never got any better than strange. It never entered the realm of cool. If anything it got weird and a little ridiculous. The potential was there it just didn't deliver.

May have had my expectations a little high for this one after hearing about it quite a bit. Overall still a good thriller, more than horror, with a decent twist or so (even if they become a little predictable for any horror/thriller/mystery buff. I do, however, recommend this to anyone that likes any of those above categories. The acting is quite good. The story, while not totally unique, does hold it's own and bring it's own flavor to this film. I truly don't think you will be bored. The gore, while not over the top, is convincing and done in good pacing. Solo does a great job in her acting role. She brought this movie frr me to add aa couple more stars.