Disturbing Behavior

Steve and his family move from Chicago to Cradle Bay (which based on a road sign is outside Seattle). We later learn his brother Allen died, and that has something to do with the move. At his new high school, he meets Gavin and U. V., who take drugs and listen to depressing heavy metal music. Gavin has the hots for Lorna, but she's a Blue Ribbon, a member of a group of students that help out in the community and help each other study. Gavin wants nothing to do with these people.

It turns out the Blue Ribbons aren't as goody-goody as they first appear. To call them snobs is an understatement. Anyone who isn't a member is treated like dirt, but of course new members are accepted all the time. The organization had its beginning with a deadly car wreck, and Dr. Edgar Caldicott played a large role in getting it started.

This film reminds me of an episode of 'Smallville', except only the villains (who appear to be the good kids) have the super powers. Or maybe they're not actually super powers. This film had its own version of Belle Reve, where all the Smallville freaks seemed to end up eventually. Also, there was the loud alternative rock music in some scenes and the pleasant classical-style background music in others. I really liked the music in Roscoe's Yogurt Shoppe and in the asylum (I'm referring to Barry Manilow).

I actually found the bad kids appealing in this movie--Gavin, Rachel, and Dickie in particular. The real standout character, though, is the demented janitor Mr. Newberry, who comes across as if Gilbert Gottfried had played the Bill Murray role in 'Caddyshack'. Another good though brief performance came from Julie Patzwald as Betty Caldicott.

This was a little on the violent side, but I guess for the type of movie it wasn't too bad. A lot of bad language seemed to have been cleaned up for TV. And I'm not sure whether this is something that was edited out, but in one scene, the position of a girl's head relative to her date suggests something that happened in Bill Clinton's White House.

It wasn't a classic by any means, but it wasn't too bad.

I caught this film on a late night TV slot (around 1:00). Since it was an evening of surprisingly watchable movies up until then (Michael Chrictons 'Runaway' & Clint Eastwoods 'White hunter, black heart') this mix of teeny horror and x-files type paranoia sci-fi was just the kind of icing on the cake I needed before finally calling it a night.

Even though it obviously suffers from some plot holes and studio interference, I must say that I still found it much better than other late 90's 'Scream' influenced (and included) teen horror revival stuff. Sci-fi element was, even though lacking in any deeper explanation, believable enough, especially the part with problems arising due to puberty related hormone/neurotransmitter surges (i.e. Lorna's sexual turn violent outburst at Steve's house) etc.

All in all, not really a shining example of cinematic art but still bearable enough for a late night entertainment.

I thought the movie was very entertaining, even with the similarities to several other movies in mind. I thought the acting was very good, and we should expect to see a lot more of the young actors/actresses in this film, especially Katie Holmes. I can't wait to see more work from her.

In Cradle Bay on Crescent Island, football jock Andy is parked with a girl. His demeanor turns and kills her. Then he kills a cop and Officer Cox (Steve Railsback) lets him go. Gavin Strick (Nick Stahl) watches from afar. The Clarks from Chicago arrive in town after losing the oldest son. Gavin befriends Steve Clark (James Marsden) who explains the school is ruled by a clique called Blue Ribbon. Steve is taken with edgy girl Rachel Wagner (Katie Holmes). Dorian Newberry (William Sadler) is the school janitor and rat catcher. Steve and Gavin discovers the parents working with Dr. Edgar Caldicott (Bruce Greenwood). Gavin is picked to be the next candidate by his parents.

I like the Bodysnatcher feel to the story setup. There are probably too many kills too early and it probably effected the ending. The actors are all good in their roles. However the movie ends badly. I think the writer couldn't figure out a clever way to end the movie. It's too bad because the movie seems to be set up for a tense thriller. Instead, it's done without any finesse and it's unsatisfying.

After the suicide of the teenager Allen Clark (Ethan Embry), his family decides to move from Chicago to the quiet Cradle Bay Island seeking a peaceful life for the siblings Steve (James Marsden) and Lindsay Clark (Katharine Isabelle). When Steve joins the local high-school, the outcast Gavin Strick (Nick Stahl) befriends Steve and introduces his also rejected friend Rachel Wagner (Katie Holmes) to the newcomer. Gavin exposes to Steve in the refectory the punks, the nerds and the different tribes of the school and he defends the weird theory that a sinister force changes the behavior of the annoyingly perfect "Blue Ribbons", a group of good students that wear identical jackets and gather in the Yogurt Shoppe. Further he tells that he had witnessed the blue ribbon Andy Efkin (Tobias Mehler) killing their schoolmate Mary Jo (Natassia Malthe) that is missing and a police officer, but the local Officer Cox (Steve Railsback) covered the murders. Steve does not believe in Gavin words, but when his friend is submitted to the treatment of Dr. Edgar Caldicott (Bruce Greenwood) and immediately changes his behavior, joining the Blue Ribbons, Steve and Rachel decides to investigate the mystery discovering the dark secret of the perfect behavior.

"Disturbing Behavior" has an intriguing beginning, with a murder and a group of former troublemakers and potheads transformed in perfect students, like in the classic "Invasion of Body Snatchers". However, when the paranoid Gavin changes his behavior, the plot becomes silly and flawed, and the conclusion is awful. I saw this movie for the first time on 25 March 2000 and I keep my original opinion that this movie is reasonable, but could be great with improvements in the second-half of the story. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Comportamento Suspeito" ("Suspicious Behavior")

Note: On 24 May 2024, I saw this film again.