The tranquil coastal town of Potters Bluff promotes itself with the enticing slogan, "A New Way of Life." However, beneath this façade lies a sinister reality that unveils itself as George Le Moyne (Christopher Allport), a visiting photographer, enjoys the picturesque beach setting. While capturing the beauty of the shore, he encounters a captivating young woman, Lisa (Lisa Blount). In a playful exchange, she questions his identity and proposes the name "Freddie" for him, as he half-heartedly calls her "Lisa." This seemingly innocent moment takes a dark turn when George is abruptly surrounded by a mob of townsfolk. They seize his camera and, in a horrific display of brutality, bind him to a post and ignite a fiery demise.
Later that evening, the town's Sheriff Dan Gillis (James Farentino) investigates a tragic car accident, only to discover George’s charred remains inside the vehicle. The eccentric coroner, William G. Dobbs (Jack Albertson), arrives at the scene in an unsettling manner, blaring jazz music from his hearse radio. As he examines the body, George, apparently alive, springs back to consciousness and is hastily transported to the hospital, leaving a turbulent mystery in his wake.
The following day, Sheriff Gillis finds himself amidst speculation at a local diner, where fishermen and townsfolk discuss the identity of the burnt victim. The atmosphere is thick with suspicion as Midge, the waitress, serves coffee— Midge (Lisa Blount) is one of the original instigators of George's fiery fate. That same night, another unfortunate fisherman meets his end at the hands of the very townspeople who once condemned George, their savagery captured once more through their eager cameras.
As days unfold, a puzzle of disappearances and strange events emerges. Sheriff Gillis seeks clarity on the murky circumstances surrounding George's ordeal and confronts his wife, Janet Gillis (Melody Anderson), who is entangled in this eerie web—she is caught purchasing photographic equipment for her school, initially thought to be harmless but later suspected as linked to the sinister happenings. The plot thickens when Dan discovers that Janet had interaction with George before the tragedy, stirring deep-seated suspicions within him.
At the hospital, George is somewhat resurrected, his charred features masked in pain, yet the woman from the beach, now disguised as a nurse, delivers a shocking blow with a needle—to his eye. The sheriff, still questioning, grapples with the implications of these strange events while at George's funeral, where Dobbs expresses his frustration at being denied the opportunity to ‘restore’ George's body for viewing.
Curiosity leads a family to the diner seeking help, only to fall prey to the town's dark secret, as their encounter with the residents turns deadly when they are attacked, revealing the gruesome reality of Potters Bluff. As George’s circumstances unravel, it becomes increasingly apparent that a malevolent force manipulates life and death within the town.
As Sheriff Gillis investigates further, he faces the terrifying truth behind the strange occurrences: Dobbs, the coroner, has an unsettling history involving unauthorized autopsies, raising questions about his practices. As Dan pieces together the fragmented narrative and uncovers the town’s obsession with reanimation, he learns of the unimaginable ties between those he thought he could trust, including his own wife.
In a climactic confrontation at the funeral home, Dan finds the disturbing evidence of Dobbs's eerie creations—reanimated corpses bearing remnants of their former lives. It culminates with a shocking realization that he himself is ensnared in the town's gruesome machinations. Facing the grotesque truth of his existence amidst a community of the undead, Sheriff Gillis understands that his hands have played a role in burying his beloved Janet, when her final words echo hauntingly, revealing that she is indeed dead.
As the horror unfolds, the eerie nature of Potters Bluff comes full circle—Dan Gillis realizes his place among both the living and the dead, culminating in a chilling scene with Dobbs, who offers to fix him as the eerie music plays, and everything fades into the darkness of oblivion, cementing the haunting legacy of Dead and Buried.
