Normal Adolescent Behavior

Six "20-something" high school students have been best friends forever. Upon coming of age, they decide to avoid adolescent sexual angst by pledging to only screw around with each other. But, things get sticky for the sextet when hot Amber Tamblyn (as Wendy Bergman) gets a load of hunky new neighbor Ashton Holmes (as Sean Mayer). Should Ms. Tamblyn stay with her sex buds - Kelli Garner (as Billie), Raviv Ullman (as Price), Stephen Colletti (as Robert), Julia Garro (as Ann), and Edward Tournier (as Jonah) - or split for Sean?

Surprisingly, nobody considered having Mr. Holmes join the group. This would have made the film more dynamic, and could still deal with the "one" v "multiple" partners debate. Also, Holmes could teach Ms. Garner (the only one who never broke the rules of the group) how to give a good spanking; because, as the group's unofficial leader, she really should know. The spanking scene between Tamblyn and Holmes is about as daring as the sexcapades get - although some more adventurous fun is implied to be going on.

For some reason (possibly, to deceive you into thinking there is more nudity in this film), the studio decided to re-title this film "Normal Adolescent Behavior: Havoc 2" somewhere along the way to its DVD release. Be advised, "Normal Adolescent Behavior" has nothing to do with "Havoc" (2005), which was a good story derailed by some strained performances (Freddy Rodriguez was good, though).

This film features a very connected Tamblyn (from "General Hospital", and the daughter of Russ Tamblyn) giving writer/director Beth Schacter an excellent lead performance. Tamblyn shows the dramatic fire of young Sally Field; hopefully, she'll have a long, successful career. And, you may recognize "Raviv Ullman" is indeed "Ricky Ullman" from "Phil of the Future", showing dramatic range of his own.

Ms. Schacter works incredibly well with the cast. In probably the best-written of the secondary roles, Ms. Garner shows why she should be a more well-regarded actress. Actually, all the supporting cast members, including "Watchmen" comic reader and cookin' little brother Daryl Sabara (as Nathan), leave you wanting to see more of their film work... so, can anyone explain, after seeing him in this film, why Mr. Tournier has only ONE feature film credit?

******* Normal Adolescent Behavior (4/27/07) Beth Schacter ~ Amber Tamblyn, Ashton Holmes, Kelli Garner, Ricky Ullman

This movie is called Havoc: 2 Normal Adolescent Behavior I am guessing it is part two to Havoc starring Anne Hathaway which I thought was really bad. But this movie was fairly good it shows you that perfectly smart teens can do things you wouldn't expect I mean its like a teenage swingers club if you ask me.

I mean all the sex they never really did anything normal with each other like go to the movies and stuff so there was nothing ever normal about their behavior. Then again it also makes you question a one on one relationships. It seems like the guy was trying to save her and I wish there was a better ending like you see him burning the box and her actually acknowledging her brother but it wasn't like your typical happy ending.

I saw this film at the Tribecca film festival earlier this year. To be completely honest with you, i think that it may be one of the worst movies i've seen. i was on the fence with my decision because some of the acting was very good, but i finally came to the realization, that this movie was dull, pretentious, obnoxious, poorly written and not well put together at all. Beth schacter seemed pretty pleased with herself at the premiere. I was not pleased, at all. The scenes did not flow together at all. It was amazingly noticeable when a scene changed. The dialogue was flimsy, and often times hipocritical.Half of the point was to show these teenagers as teenagers, but then they would just come out with these insanely mature things to say. It left you sitting there saying "where the hell did that come from?" Another thing...teens and sex. NOTHING new was said on the topic. Alright, teenagers are engaging in rather risky sexual behaviors at younger ages, heard it before, what else you got? Tone in the movie was probably the first thing i noticed. The movie would just take you through moods like it wasn't no thing. It would make you chuckle at one point, then INSTANTLY try to get you sad and somber. It expected you to switch emotions like you would a lamp. It wasn't working, at all. Finally, I have a question for Ms. Schacter. Just what was the message about teenagers you were trying to get across? Cuz it seemed to me you were sort of confused yourself. Are you trying to say that being a teenager is one of the greatest times of life? That we should all be nostalgic for our days of puberty? Or are you trying to say that as teenagers, we are all selfish creatures, taking no regard for others feelings while living in a world of 'me'? I honestly don't want this movie released, it's not shocking, it's not interesting, it's not controversial, and there's nothing new said here, at all. Life is too short for such a pretentiously dull movie.

I have to disagree with those who didn't like the film. I saw it at Tribeca as well and I thought it was terrific. That said, I think one's perspective on this film has a lot to do with what you bring to it.

If your own adolescent experience was intensely emotional and you were sexually active at a young age, then this film feels like someone stole your diary. Yes, scenes are highly charged and the characters' reactions are large. But if you lived it, you reacted that way yourself.

As I watched it, I felt that I had been in the place of almost every character at one point or another: the inexperienced person overwhelmed with jealousy and with a terribly romantic idea of love, the hyper-experienced person shunned and judged for their choice outside the bounds of "normal", an average member in thrall to the charismatic leader, and the manipulative leader who fears the loss of their group if anyone exits or enters without permission. I played each and every one of those roles somewhere between time I was 16 and 21.

Ultimately, this is a film about our petty obsessions and the intensity with which they rule our lives. If you loved reading Scott Spencer's "Endless Love", Nabokov's "Lolita", Patrick Süskind's "Perfume", or "The Witching Hour" by Anne Rice, you will probably be drawn to this world.

I was astounded by the very negative reviews I read here, I thought the movie Normal Adolescent Behavior was fantastic. The use of the group-sex pact I thought, really showed how people grow up and evolve. While some viewers may say it was over-the-top, I have to disagree, although the situation is pretty unusual, those kinds of things happen every once and a while, things that sound so bizarre, parents don't even take the rumors seriously. It was so thought-provoking, days after seeing this film I kept analyzing what relationships really mean, a major theme of the movie. You see how with all of these so-called "liberated" sexual practices in teen culture, such as nameless sex partners and girls going down on boys for status hurts teens' ability to have healthy sexual relationships. I, as a highschooler can also vouch that things such as the party scenes are not unrealistic, just kept very quiet. I talked to my mother about the issues of this film, and any movie that can spark discussions between teenagers and adults about sex, I think, is a good thing.