Line #35 Film/StrangeBehavior


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/strangebehaviorposter.jpg]]
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3	''Strange Behavior'', also known as ''Dead Kids'' (not to be confused with the [[Film/DeadKids 2019 film]] of the same name) is a 1981 New Zealand SlasherFilm directed by Michael Laughlin and starring Creator/MichaelMurphy, Creator/LouiseFletcher, Creator/DanShor, Fiona Lewis, Arthur Dignam, and Creator/DeyYoung. Music/TangerineDream composed the score. The plot centers around a series of bizarre murders being perpetuated against teenagers in a small Illinois town while the local university is conducting secret [[BrainwashedAndCrazy mind control]] experiments on the town's youth.
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5	It was intended to be the first film in a trilogy, but following the box-office failure of its sequel ''Film/StrangeInvaders'', these plans were put on permanent hold.
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8	!!This film provides examples of the following tropes:
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10	* AmbiguousTimePeriod: There is a vaguely retro, 1950s-eque look to the film, but also some modern touches that suggest a present-day or near-future setting.
11	* AnachronismStew: In addition to the 1950s elements, Dr. Parkinson wears a hairstyle straight out of the 1940s.
12	* AssholeVictim: Waldo. Leads to WhoMurderedTheAsshole being invoked when Chief Brady is interrogating the boys.
13	* BadHabits: Sarah the flirty partygoer shows up to the costume party dressed as [[Series/TheFlyingNun the Flying Nun]].
14	* BigBadDuumvirate: Dr. Gwen Parkinson, director of the mind control operation at the university, and her [[spoiler:(not actually)]] deceased mentor Dr. Le Sange.
15	* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:Averted in the climax even as it's set up with both Pete and Chief Brady captured but Caroline and Barbara knowing where they are. In the end Dr. Le Sange defeats himself when his plan backfires. Played more straight when Pete rescues Lucy from drowning.]]
16	* BloodIsSquickerInWater: Happens after the injured Lucy falls into the pool after escaping the killer in the woods.
17	* BrainwashedAndCrazy: Dr. Parkinson is conducting secret mind control experiments at the local university, turning seemingly ordinary young people into cold-blooded killers.
18	* CowboyCop: Chief Brady heading to the lab alone with a shotgun during the movie's climax.
19	* CreepyBasement: Location of the movie's first kill.
20	* DecadeThemedParty: Apparently the guests to the party at the start of the movie were invited to show up as [[The60s 60s]] TV characters. Lucy, Oliver, and Pete however just wear ordinary party clothes.
21	* DisconnectedByDeath: Mrs. Haskell is killed in the middle of describing the killer.
22	* DisruptingTheTheater: Pete and Oliver keep talking during Dr. Le Sange's recorded lecture, causing a student to repeatedly shush them.
23	* DontGoInTheWoods: Waldo and Lucy are attacked near the forest, and Lucy is then chased through it.
24	* EyeScream: Pete is injected in the eye with a mind control serum by Dr. Parkinson.
25	* EverybodySmokes: Perhaps its part of the movie's deliberate throw backs to 1950s movies, but it's still jarring how often the kids smoke in this movie, most notably Dey Young's character Caroline.
26	* EvilBrit: Dr. Parkinson speaks with her actress' natural British accent despite the middle American setting.
27	* EvilIsHammy: Dr. Le Sange hams it up even during his lectures.
28	* EvilMentor: Dr. Le Sange to Dr. Parkinson.
29	* [[spoiler:FakingTheDead]]:[[spoiler:Dr. Le Sange does this]]
30	* EurekaMoment: Chief Brady realizing that the victims are connected to the men who previously investigated Dr. Le Sange.
31	* ForbiddenZone: Dr. Le Sange's old office at the university.
32	* GenreThrowback: To low-budget paranoid horror thrillers of the 1950s, complete with over-the-top villain names and the concept of voices from beyond the grave.
33	* HiddenInPlainSight: [[spoiler:Dr. Le Sange was disguised the whole time as one of Dr. Parkinson's assistants.]]
34	* JumpScare: Nothing involving the actual murders, but it happens when Pete surprises Caroline at the lab after she locks up and shuts off the lights.
35	* LeaveNoWitnesses: The reason the killer goes after Lucy and Mrs Haskell.
36	* LiteralGenie: [[spoiler:Dr. Le Sange gets killed after ordering the mind controlled Pete to kill his father, Chief Brady, forgetting that he Dr. Le Sange however had conceived Pete when having an affair with his late mother.]]
37	* MalevolentMaskedMen: [[spoiler:Oliver]] kills Waldo while wearing a [[Creator/TorJohnson Tor Johnson]] mask which was just laying around at the 1960s costume party. You can see it in the background of the kitchen.
38	* MyCarHatesMe: How Waldo and Lucy end up getting attacked by the killer.
39	* MeaningfulName: Dr. Le Sange (''Dr. Blood'') is involved in violent experiments. Who would've guessed?
40	* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: A few of the extras were obviously New Zealand locals and no effort is made to explain their accent.
41	* NothingIsScarier: The slowly opening door to the empty closet after Mrs. Haskell discovers Timmy's body. Nobody ever pops out, but the anticipation is there.
42	* NotSoSimilar: Caroline rebuffs Pete's notion that they're both at the lab to make money, pointing out that working the front desk is a lot different than being subject to experimentation.
43	* OldFlame: Sarah for Pete apparently. She spends the party trying and failing to regain his attention.
44	* PhlebotinumPills: Pete is given one during the lab's tests, allegedly to improve his intelligence, but probably as part of the mind control.
45	* PoliceAreUseless: Somewhat averted. While the killer does get away with a few murders at first, Chief Brady does figure out who's doing the killing pretty soon. His decision to go alone and armed to the university without backup however was pretty reckless and gets him captured.
46	* PowerOutagePlot: Galesburg has apparently been suffering recurring power outages for dramatic effect. Bryan is killed during one of them.
47	* ProductPlacement: You would've thought the movie was sponsored by Coke from how often it appears in scenes but director Michael Laughlin was apparently just a big fan.
48	* PsychoKnifeNut: The killer always uses a knife despite other methods arguably being more practical and less conspicuous.
49	* ScaryScarecrows: The fate of Bryan's body.
50	* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: To test the allegedly mind enhancing pill, Dr. Parkinson has Pete repeat the word ''floccinaucinihilipilification''.
51	* ShoutOut: The 1960s TV themed party includes costumes from ''Series/{{Batman\|1966}}'', ''Series/{{Bonanza}}'', ''Series/TheFlyingNun'', ''Series/IDreamOfJeannie'', ''Series/PippiLongstocking'', and ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones''.
52	* SoundProofBooth: Ominously enough, the injection room at the university lab is in one of these.
53	* SneakingOutAtNight: Lucy sneaks out of her bedroom to go to the party.
54	* TheReveal:
55	** [[spoiler:Waldo's killer is Oliver.]]
56	** [[spoiler:Dr. Le Sange is still alive.]]
57	** [[spoiler:Dr. Le Sange is Pete's real father.]]
58	* ToiletHorror: Mrs. Haskell finds Timothy dismembered in the bathroom.
59	* TownWithADarkSecret: Galesburg is a seemingly typical middle American town where the youth are secretly being brainwashed into committing bloody murders.
60	* [[UglyGuyHotWife Ugly Guy, Hot Girlfriend]]: Waldo and Lucy.
61	* VideoCredits: When the movie ends, all of the main actors get billed with accompanying clips of their characters.
62	* WeddingFinale: [[spoiler:Chief Brady and Barbara]]
63	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse?: Despite a few more scenes with teen extras none of the characters from the party (and scene of one of the murders) ever appear again although it is mentioned that Lucy is recovering.

Context Film / StrangeBehavior