I always enjoy performances by Jessica Cameron and Heather Dorff, both in short and full length feature films, especially when they appear together on screen as in 'Truth or Dare'. Apart from their acting ability, I admire their abundant energy and enthusiasm that they pour into the film making process and I could not resist the opportunity to view the DVD of 'Intrusive Behaviour' in which they have starring roles. It is clear that they have an excellent working relationship which pays dividends as they display in this film.
'Intrusive Behavior' is a film of two parts. Part 1 is devoted to acquainting the viewer to the background of the disorderly personality of a young girl named Heidi which can be described as a complex combination of being devious, manipulative, controlling, perceptive and violent. The time allocated to illustrating these traits of her character is well spent as is the focus on the dilemmas facing the parents and staff in a behavioural care centre whilst contending with the situation arising from the problems encountered. This section features an admirable performance by Taylor Frase in the challenging role of young Heidi. Another actress who caught my eye during this portion of the film was Robin Sydney in a brief supporting role. But she made the most of her screen time to make me note her name for the future.
The second part of the film focuses on the situation which has developed 15 years later and it is from the point that the film becomes a thriller with an unexpected climax. The explanation of what has transpired over the 15 years is very efficiently dealt with in a neat sequence of scenes. This part of the film provides the opportunity for the versatile acting talent of Heather and Jessica to come to the forefront. Jessica skilfully develops the portrayal of her character which passes through contrasting phases of personality presentation ranging from pleasant and caring to the demonic.
Heather makes an immediate impact as soon as she appears on screen and then continues to display her ability in handling different moods in scenes. I particularly admired how she managed to keep a straight face whilst describing an incident involving super glue that she experienced - one of the few light hearted moments in the film.
An aspect of the film which will be of interest to UK viewers is contained within the scenes which relate to misconduct by staff of the behavioural care home in view of the current controversy about alleged wrongdoings in such institutions within the UK.
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