Strange Behavior

"Strange Behaviour" is a lot better than I'd expected it to be. It has some startling imagery, some genuinely frightening scenes, and finally manages a sense of atmosphere.

It is also an original twist on the slasher formula that was probably stale even in 1981 - at least if the parody film "Student Bodies", made that same year, is anything to go by. Seasoned horror junkies have seen hundreds of slashers at least. We all know the trope of the killer wearing a distinctive mask, which is often removed in the final moments to reveal the killer's identity. But in "Strange Behaviour", the movie has more than one killer, and in fact deals with the question of mind control. In this movie, any of the younger characters can kill at any time, so it's not a question of whodunit. It's more like who's going to go crazy next.

For its cool ideas, occasionally shocking imagery and at least one frightening scene, "Strange Behaviour" is a winner. Unfortunately it is held back by some narrative incoherence and charisma-less lead performances. I still say check it out.

Lastly, I want to say something about the movie's unusual pedigree. It's an American production that was meant to be filmed in Australia, but when the filmmakers couldn't find any cities in Aus that resembled the screenplay's setting in Illinois, they moved the production to New Zealand! How is NZ any more or less Midwestern USA than Australia? And, to top it all off, the movie is considered an "Ozploitation" flick?

No wonder the plotting is a little confusing. The cast and crew probably didn't know where the hell they were, or were supposed to be, or what they were actually making.

In a small New Zealand (as Illinois) town, future acclaimed filmmaker Bill Condon (as Bryan Morgan) is stabbed in silhouette after his parents leave him home alone. Elsewhere, aging teenager Dan Shor (as Pete Brady) is having trouble persuading "top cop" father Michael Murphy (as John) to sponsor an application to Galesburg College. To raise money, Mr. Shor accompanies pal Marc McClure (as Oliver Myerhoff) to the college's psychology department, where the lads are paid $200 to volunteer for some supposedly harmless experiment. Administered by creepily sexy Fiona Lewis (as Gwen Parkinson), you can bet the experiment has something to do with the film's rising body count...

"Strange Behavior" features some of the usual genre missteps, but they're interjected with freshness. The characters are introduced uniquely. Shor shows his cheeks, and Mr. Murphy clips his toenails at the breakfast table. Louise Fletcher (as Barbara Moorehead) is okay, but in a much smaller role than heralded. Best of all is a sixties TV costume party kicked off by Lou Christie's hit single "Lightnin' Strikes" (1966) and ending in what can be described as "Uncle Fester" stabbing "Hoss Cartwright" to death. The Tangerine Dream soundtrack is sweet. Director Michael Laughlin, working with Mr. Condon, nicely mixes fright with fun, and they neatly construct an unexpected plot twist.

****** Strange Behavior (10/16/81) Michael Laughlin ~ Dan Shor, Michael Murphy, Fiona Lewis, Louise Fletcher

Chock full of haunting images, chilling murders, and good performances this slow, laconic but amazingly effective horror flick has stayed with me since I saw it when it was originally released. The film is best in its portrayal of teen life in a small college town in the midwest (though it was shot in New Zealand). Taking it's cue from there, the film moves along at a leisurely, but ultimately disquieting pace revealing that all is not so sleepy and calm in this rural environment.

Co-written by Academy Award-winner Bill Condon ("GODS AND MONSTERS") the story shows remarkable intelligence and wit in the vein of some of the best Roman Polanski flicks (e.g. "THE TENANT" and "REPULSION").

Best if seen in the movie theater to appreciate it's glorious widescreen landscapes. Wish this picture was out on DVD.

A small town Sheriff (Michael Murphy) finds himself involved in a deadly mystery while investigating a string of brutal murders.

Mixing slasher sensibilities with sci-fi, STRANGE BEHAVIOR is ultimately a novel, entertaining horror film. Turning teens into mindless killing machines, the mad science aspect is preposterous, but allows for some nice, eeevil characters to emerge, like Gwen Parkinson (Fiona Lewis), complete with her perfect, (pre-) Sean Young in BLADE RUNNER hairstyle! Murphy is, as always, solid in his role, bringing a believable, down-to-earth feel to his character. One always senses that he's just being himself.

This Aussie / Kiwi co-production was the template for the pallid American remake decades later...

Definitely a film with its own personality, Strange Behavior can best be appreciated by those that remember when films didn't require fast editing to appease the short attention spans of MTV-weened young'ns. With lines like the one about the "fat ones" delivered by the great Charles Lane and a vision of a 1950s style small town set in the "present" (something director Michael Laughlin and writer Bill Condon again brought us in Strange Invaders), the film was a splendid hybrid of old fashioned Twilight Zone ambiance and the fun, then-fresh exuberance of New Wave music and sheer sense of FUN. To top off the great mix: a Tangerine Dream score.

Mad Scientists, teens partying (but in the pre-MTV, pre-home computer kind of ways), mysterious killings, and....strange behavior! Oh, and the kind of impromptu group dance that was a heck of a lot more fun than the big dance scene in Footloose! Where else would a sudden dance sequence just seem to fit into a film -- the way Strange Behavior smoothly incorporates old-style thrills with humor and wit, having a bunch of teens break out into dance to the song "Lightning Strikes" doesn't seem so unusual, especially since the theme of the party was 1960s TV characters! Disguising the location of New Zealand as an Illinois town was quite a treat as well.

The story could have easily been done a number of times: small midwestern town, teens used as behavioral science subjects, mysterious murders by different killers...but of course the collaboration of Laughlin and Condon assures us this is not going to be typical. the focus is not to scare you out of your wits, but to offer something more mysterious. Add to that a very great choice for the cast (including more seasoned actors the likes of Michael Murphy, Fiona Lewis, Louise Fletcher, Charles Lane and others, plus the ever-smoking Dey Young and Dan Shor bring a likable aspect as well without being pushy teens) and an eye for design, Strange Behavior rises far above the cookie-cutter horror (particularly slasher) films of that time, and even in the present. There are many master shots that go for lengthy takes, and those of us that care more for story and dialogue can savor what's going on. I wouldn't be surprised that younger audiences that are used to fast cuts and one-liners would find this film too slow (and then again youth that are smarter might embrace this as other films from over 20 years ago). The minimal bloodletting works just as well, and the needle-in-the-eye trick can still illicit a good squirm today just as it did in 1981.

It's great to see that Strange Behavior has influenced other films: Fiona Lewis' hairdo inspired the one Sean Young had in Blade Runner, and it's obvious the lackluster film Disturbing Behavior from 1998 was, to put it kindly, "inspired" by Strange Behavior. Joe Dante even wanted Fiona Lewis for Innerspace based on her being seen in this film.

Strange Behavior is a great reminder of how things were so much more based on literal creativity and storytelling. Nowadays, it's all about special effects done digitally and pushing soundtracks from bands or music styles no one's going to care about 10 years from now. Laughlin and Condon were smart enough to give us elements that remain to this day unique, memorable, and never wearing out their welcome. Sure, by today's standards the film may not seem so shocking, but having come from being a "teen" back in 1980, it was refreshing for its time and has well earned its cult status. Sure, even the songs in it are more cool than what's considered a hit these days!

Thank goodness Elite Entertainment has released the DVD in the film's original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, which also gives that widescreen feel of the 1950s thrillers in which Strange Behavior resembles so well. It makes my life much more fulfilling knowing such gems as this one are being given the respect and care in their restoration. Ignore the lower IMDb rating that it has at this time (just over a 4), because I feel it's being given a low rating by those who are too familiar with recent "shockers." The general reviews by the press were quite good for Strange Behavior back when it was released, and I for one feel that I do know a bit more about what quality is since I've experienced these kinds of films and their evolution up through to today's more slicker productions. It's also why you're hearing more references to older TV shows and songs in today's advertisements: they just don't make 'em like they used to, and there's just more distinction and personality in things from way back when! Or at least, some of them, since this film definitely was different from anything else when IT was released. Long live Strange Behavior!