Squirm (1976) Spoiler-Free Summary – What It's About

In the quiet, dust‑kissed town of Fly Creek, Georgia, a violent electrical storm tears through the night, snapping power lines and plunging the community into a sudden, oppressive darkness. The storm’s lingering charge seeps into the wet earth, where a local worm farm has been cultivating a massive stock of bloodworms and sandworms. As the rain‑soaked fields cool, the unseen current awakens something unnatural beneath the soil, turning the humble creatures into a silent, crawling menace that begins to stir the sleepy town.

The story follows Geri Sanders, a practical‑spun small‑town resident, and her boyfriend Mick, a city‑grown visitor who arrives for a weekend getaway. Their chemistry cracks the routine of Fly Creek, as Geri’s familiarity with the countryside clashes with Mick’s outsider curiosity. Together they navigate everyday errands—borrowed pickups, local diners, and visits to neighbors—while the atmosphere grows increasingly uneasy, hinting that the storm’s aftermath is more than just a brief inconvenience.

Among the locals, Roger Grimes stands out as the wiry owner of the worm farm, his quiet pride in the business contrasting with a simmering jealousy toward the couple’s chemistry. The town’s lone law officer, Sheriff Jim Reston, offers a steady, if skeptical, presence, reminding everyone that the power outage has left the streets vulnerable. At home, Naomi Sanders, Geri’s mother, and her sister Alma provide a familial backdrop that grounds the characters amid the gathering tension, their conversations slipping between ordinary concerns and the unsettling feeling that something has shifted in the night‑filled fields.

The film’s tone fuses classic 1970s rural horror with a palpable, low‑key dread, letting the oppressive humidity and the ever‑present hum of unseen electricity shape every scene. As darkness lingers and the town’s residents wrestle with the strange new reality, the story invites viewers to wonder what will emerge from the ground when the storm finally fades, and whether the quiet community can withstand a threat that silently crawls just beneath their feet.