A swim meet that goes all Stephen King on us.

“The Plague” is a psychological thriller that draws the line between contracting something contagious or a mind game that threatens to destroy your sanity. I was thinking back to “She Dies Tomorrow,” when people were getting the impression that they were going to die the next day, as it went from Kate Lyn Sheil to Jane Adams to Josh Lucas to Michelle Rodriguez (I don’t want to go over the chain of reactions to you). But I was also thinking about what bullying does to somebody. If it is bullying, it might feature some “Full Metal Jacket” overtones. And if this is supposed to be reality, the victim should talk to their parents or teachers about it.

The time is 2003 and takes place at a summer water polo camp, whose well-meaning coach is played by Joel Edgerton. Before I got the very nature of this movie, I almost thought he would transcend into a pressuring psycho like JK Simmons in “Whiplash” or Marlon Wayans in “Him.” But that’s not the case. This isn’t about him, it’s about a boy affected by other boys.

At the cafeteria, when Eli (Kenny Rasmussen) comes to a table with the other boys, they immediately leave because he has “the plague.” He might be a a leper, but there’s no examination of what it is, so these boys call it the plague. From our standpoint, he’s just listening to his headset minding his own business, wearing a blue shirt, and seems like a normal boy. From theirs, he may have “plague pimples,” and deteriorates your balance and communication skills. And it’s contagious by touch. At least, that’s what the bully Jake (Kayo Martin) tells the socially awkward boy Ben (Everett Blunck). Consider this like a darker version of the “Cheese Touch” from “Diary of a Wimpy Kid.”

Ben is the kind of kid who wants to fit in by fooling around with them in a back alley and when he tells them an erotic fantasy of his in their beds. But he isn’t a bully. In fact, he’s trying to see if this “plague” is real or some kind of a rumor conjured up by them.

Ben comes across Eli, who is also the kind of boy who likes to cut himself because it feels “soothing.” It’s funny, because Ben cuts himself with his fingernails. And the more he communicates with Eli, the more he talks and the more infectious Ben gets. That is if they really are infectious.

There’s a scene that goes “Full Metal Jacket,” when the other boys pour a jar of cockroaches on Ben and trap him in his blanket, instead of hitting him with soap bars. And there’s another scene that almost likes to mimic the face feel scene in “Poltergeist.” That’s how we also know “The Plague” feels like a psychological thriller. And we know that IFC Films is the right independent studio to distribute it. I’m surprised it wasn’t IFC Midnight if it was going to be this dark.

I knew Blunck looked familiar, because I remembered how he took the lead role of “Griffin in Summer.” It’s a different kind of role for him in “The Plague,” because while in that film he was talkative, this one has him with less words and more emotions. I think this is an even better role for him, because of how well he adapts to the genre and how he plays Ben with some Stephen King vibes.

Joel Edgerton received the script from writer/director Charlie Polinger, and produced it. He wanted to help him make this movie, and they both succeed well. I mean, I don’t understand all the twisted things that the young minds are engaged in, but I can acknowledge the very nature of them. And I have mentioned where it all comes from.

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