Disturbing Behavior (1998)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

David Nutter

Writer (WGA):

Scott Rosenberg (written by)

Release Date:

24 July 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Perfection is every teenage student's co-pilot.

Plot:

The new kid in town stumbles across something sinister about the town's method of transforming its unruly teens into upstanding citizens.

Plot Keywords:

High School | Jock | Jacket | Albino | Teen

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

James Marsden	...	Steve Clark
Katie Holmes	...	Rachel Wagner
Tobias Mehler	...	Andy Effkin
Nick Stahl	...	Gavin Strick
Steve Railsback	...	Officer Cox
Bruce Greenwood	...	Dr. Edgar Caldicott
Katharine Isabelle	...	Lindsay Clark
William Sadler	...	Dorian Newberry
Ethan Embry	...	Allen Clark
Terry David Mulligan	...	Nathan Clark
Susan Hogan	...	Cynthia Clark
A.J. Buckley	...	Charles 'Chug' Roman
Robert Moloney	...	Ferry Guy
Derek Hamilton	...	Trent Whalen
Dan Zukovic	...	Mr. Rooney

Also Known As:

Disturbing Behaviour (UK)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, sexuality, language, and drug content.

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

Australia | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby SR

Certification:

USA:R (No. 35786) | Iceland:16 | Germany:16 (cut) | Germany:18 | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Australia:M | Belgium:KNT | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | France:U | Norway:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The personifications of good and evil in the town are named Newberry and Caldicott, which happen to be the names of the two prestigious book prizes awarded by the American Library Association for Excellence in Children's Books (one for novels and one for picture books).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Right after the altercation in the English classroom, we see a shot of the chalkboard, and the teacher has misspelled the word "tomorrow," using two "m"s instead of one.

Quotes:

Steve: Be the ball.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Other Final (2003)

Soundtrack:

Million Rappers

Disturbing but entertaining

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.