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New Zealand-shot horror film "Strange Behavior" (1981), also known as "Dead Kids"

Writer Christopher Lucas

Starring Michael Murphy, the recently-departed Louise Fletcher, Dan Shor, and Fiona Lewis. Has anyone seen this? I watched it for the first time the other night and found it to be a real hidden gem. It's basically a slasher flick, but with some weird 1950s-inspired science fiction thrown in. It's set in Illinois, but was filmed in New Zealand. It features a great score by Tangerine Dream.

Overall extremely weird, but quite well-made. Fletcher is a welcome presence but her part is essentially a throwaway—I'm surprised she agreed to do it to be honest. Dan Shor is very cute in it, and shows his bare ass in a weird bathroom scene where he's with his dad. Fiona Lewis is creepy as hell, and there's an unforgettably horrific sequence involving a needle going into someone's eyeball. It was co-written by Bill Condon, who (oddly) went on to write "Chicago" (2002) and write/direct "Kinsey" (2004) and "Dreamgirls" (2006).

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by Anonymousreply 8November 25, 2022 8:00 AM

Where did you watch it? I'm intrigued.

by Anonymousreply 1November 24, 2022 7:21 AM

R1 I blind-bought it on Blu-ray from Amazon a few days ago. I follow Severin Films, the company that put it out on Blu-ray, and they were advertising it on their social media as their release is going out of print soon (among a handful of other Australian/New Zealand horror titles, such as "Thirst" from 1979—also a good one). I had not seen it but had read about it before, so I decided to buy a copy. Worth watching I think—I've never seen anything quite like it, and it doesn't seem to be very well-known. Someone uploaded it on YouTube if you're interested:

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by Anonymousreply 2November 24, 2022 7:26 AM

Dan Shor baring his backside

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by Anonymousreply 3November 24, 2022 7:41 AM

The best scene in the movie

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by Anonymousreply 4November 24, 2022 11:34 AM

I thi k I remember two "Strange" movies around that time - Strange Behavior and Strange Invaders

by Anonymousreply 5November 24, 2022 11:37 AM

Thank you r4, I’ve always loved that scene.

by Anonymousreply 6November 24, 2022 11:59 AM

It's on the Internet Archive.

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by Anonymousreply 7November 24, 2022 2:17 PM

R5 Strange Invaders was a loosely-related installment in a trilogy of "Strange" films that never came to full fruition. Bill Condon also co-wrote Strange Invaders.

by Anonymousreply 8November 25, 2022 8:00 AM