Meet the Hollowheads

Henry tells his wife that Mr. Crabneck will join them for dinner. He hopes a memorable meal will impress his boss and secure a promotion at United Umbilical. The family braces for an evening that could change their fortunes.

Billy Hollowhead and his best friend mess around in his bedroom with a splat-spray game, using the family pet's parasites as ammunition. The room is chaotic beneath a surreal backdrop of tubes and odd appliances. This mischief hints at the weird dangers lurking in their world.

Cindy boasts about an upcoming party, while Bud practices his electro-chicken-accordion for the same event. The siblings' excitement fills the bright, surreal house as preparations begin. The evening’s festivities loom on the horizon.

Henry and Mr. Crabneck arrive just as Cindy leaves for the party, and dinner begins with polite chatter that quickly turns tense. The conversation drifts from work to the dangers of rationalism and back to Henry’s promotion hopes. The Hollowheads brace themselves for the evening ahead.

Mr. Crabneck confesses that he is lonely and hints that Henry’s promotion depends on Miriam’s willingness to ease his boss’s loneliness. The mood darkens as his coercive remarks surface and threaten the family. Miriam, aided by Billy, pushes back while Henry weighs his response.

Miriam resists Crabneck's advances and the family, led by Henry and Billy, manages to subdue him. The struggle turns physical but ends with Crabneck incapacitated and collapsed. They drag him toward safety while the dinner party chaos begins to escalate.

The party-goers tap into a highly restricted tube, triggering a police raid on the Hollowhead home. The evening’s disturbances spill into the household as law enforcement arrives. Cindy is taken into custody amid the escalating chaos.

Cindy is taken into custody for intoxication stemming from two pounds of softening cream during the raid. Oldest son Bud returns home after being booed from the party for his songs. The chaotic night continues as the family confronts the fallout.

Mr. Crabneck wakes up once more during the confusion, then dies at the sight of Cindy's drunken state. His death punctuates the night’s surreal turn and the family’s precarious precarious position. The moment underscores the absurd limits of their control.

Rather than discarding him, the family throws Crabneck into a regeneration chamber and revives him. They place the revived boss in the basement with Grandpa, whom they keep alive illegally. The house becomes a grim sanctuary for their dangerous secret.

With Crabneck neutralized and the threat behind them, Henry’s promotion is secured at United Umbilical. The family celebrates their hard-won victory and their bizarre independence from the outside world. The house settles into a tense, uneasy peace.

The final moment reinforces the Hollowhead family’s unity, echoing the creed that the family that slays together stays together. They vow to protect each other, no matter how strange the world outside may be. The edge world remains, but inside the home they choose solidarity.