gavin6942 A scientist is experimenting with teenagers and turning them into murderers.Although this movie is supposed to be taking place in suburban Illinois (the home state of director Michael Laughlin), it is actually the first horror film shot in New Zealand. Not until many years later, with Peter Jackson, would such horror films (notably "Bad Taste") really showcase the New Zealand scenery.The cast is impressive, with the Oscar-winning Louise Fletcher ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest") in a small role and a young Dan Shor (perhaps best known as Billy the Kid from "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure"). Shor makes a great leading man, and it is a shame he never seems to have risen above supporting actor.The song "Lightnin' Strikes" was included because the writer (Bill Condon) was a big fan, but it also happens to be very appropriate for a horror film with its imagery of a stormy night. Heck, it also makes for a great group dance (surprisingly). Condon, incidentally, became a director in the late 1980s, and went on to direct some huge successes, including two films in the "Twilight" series.Severin has released the film on Blu-ray under the alternate (and inferior) title "Dead Kids". The disc is packed full of special features, including multiple commentary tracks. Even those who have enjoyed this film many times will be able to find something new here.

TheHrunting This came out during the slasher boom around the early '80s, except "Strange Behavior" dodged the norm from the infamous films of the heyday such as "Halloween," "Friday the 13th" and "Prom Night," as there isn't one killer at large and the murderers aren't cold-blooded psychopaths with twisted pasts, even if their bizarre motivations make them act like maniacal blood fiends.The continually annoyed and stressed looking local Chief of Police--who never dons a traditional uniform as everything is usually hunky dory--must investigate these mysterious deaths. The strange part is the audience hardly ever witnesses the small town in the grip of fear. Some innocent gets sadistically killed and others go about their lives as if the grass is always greener on the other side with frivolous humor and their regular routines intact. This is the type of plot where there's an "elephant in the room" and only one man detects it, as this focuses on a connection between the Chief, experimenters at the local college and the Chief's late wife fitting right smack in the middle. The story thickens when the Chief's son opposes his stubborn father to make decisions as his own man but gets ensnared by the affiliation."Strange Behavior" throws in some distractions to lighten the load from watching violence and blood, such as a subplot between the Chief's son and the newly met, easy-going, blond secretary, as well as the chipper step mother who wants to fill the role of late wife. This takes cues from "Halloween" type killings meets "Altered States"-esque mad science meets "Bond"-like villains meets small town TV mystery/sitcom/love connection. This had the makings to be an esteemed film, though the filmmaker's ambitions were aiming sky high in an attempt to appease a viewer with scenes of the surreal and macabre, as well as the person who wants established, down-to-earth characters, though both sides bump heads to compete and this hardly feels steadily creepy or like it could actually happen as it doesn't fully come together and keep one on the edge of their seat. Even a potential for one last scare wasn't capitalized on. This could have learned from the weirdness that "Dead & Buried" had: to keep the atmosphere alive by feeding throughout. (Also submitted on http://fromblacktoredfilmreviews.blogspot.com/)

BA_Harrison Set in the US, but shot in New Zealand by an Australian, Strange Behaviour stars Dan Shor as teenager Pete Brady who unwisely volunteers as a test subject for an experimental drug, in order to raise some much-needed cash. What Pete doesn't know, however, is that the scientist who has developed the treatment is a few sandwiches short of a picnic, and is turning his human lab-rats into knife-wielding assassins.'Strange' is a very fitting word for this early 80s movie, which opts to buck the trends of the day—gratuitous gore and nudity—to deliver a very unique horror experience. Although the basic premise of a mad scientist using human guinea pigs to carry out nefarious acts might be considered fairly routine material for the genre, this film proves to be far removed from other similarly themed fare, and totally unlike the mainstream horrors of the era: there is a small helping of nasty violence in Strange Behaviour, but it is director Michael Laughlin's distinctly offbeat style and the promise of much weirdness that has lead fans of cult/drive-in movies to seek out the film.An impromptu formation dance routine at a 50s themed party, set to the sound of Lou Christie's "Lighting Strikes"; a psycho bitch scientist (played by Fiona Lewis) who is handy with a syringe; a gratuitous toenail clipping scene; Jimmy Olsen from Superman in crap fancy dress; Louise Fletcher NOT playing an evil cow; a creepy kid in a rubber mask and a murderous fat girl: it's all very quirky, and yet, somehow, it works—at least until the lacklustre final act, which fails to keep the levels of lunacy sufficiently high, and which is capped by a very abrupt ending that sorely needs a clever twist or suitably bizarre revelation to round off things in a satisfactory manner.

lastliberal This video nasty, released as "Human Experiments" with 26 seconds cut in 1994, and also known as "Dead Kids" in the US was one of the 74 films banned in Britain.Now, some may be grossed out quickly by Michael Murphy clipping his toenails at the breakfast table, Yech! I assure you there are more hideous things awaiting. It has lots of exciting scenes like the knife in the head, blood and screams, more blood and more screams.What it didn't have, however, was anything that would make this something to ban. Those 26 seconds must have been horrendous.I did enjoy seeing Louise Fletcher in a good role.