Anyone seen Squirm (1976) - thoughts? I just caught this on MGMHD and saw it for the first time. I remember reading about this years ago in old issues of Famous Monsters. Have to admit I'm surprised by this film - it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Killer worms!
I caught this about 15 years ago on "City TV's Not-so-great movies". Naturally, the way that channel hyped it, I was expecting a crappy B-movie with no value at all. Boy was I wrong. This film creeps me right the fuck out lol. I hate bugs and worms. I just found it to have WAY more appeal and atmosphere than it probably should have. This is definitely one of my favs.
I was lucky enough to see this at the Grand Illusion Cinema in Seattle a few years ago. Definitely better than its reputation as "the killer worm" movie would lead you to believe. The Director Jeff Lieberman (Just Before Dawn) is a favorite of mine and I think his skill is what helped Squirm work so well.
Saw this on good ol' channel 5 (Los Angeles) circa 1979. Only thing they cut was the glimpse of nudity. Great movie!
Oddly enough, I pulled the DVD from my shelf last night and gave it a fresh spin. It makes a great tripple feature with Frogs and SLugs.
Squirm is a terrific diamond in the rough. Loved Don Scardino in his role. I think he went on to do soap operas after this film. It is downright creepy in parts, especially when they are roaming through the house at night without lights and it's filled with worms. NASTY!
The director also made Blue Sunshine which if you ask me, is an awesome movie. I'd definitely like to check out the MST3K version of Squirm. I think I may have seen it when the show was still in syndication but I don't remember. I need a refresher anyways.
It's a great little low budgeter,nicely made ,often funny and quite creepy.If you get ahold of the MGM DVD it has a nice comm. track by the director,Jeff Lieberman.He's a cult figure thanks to this film and pics like BLUE SUNSHINE and JUST BEFORE DAWN.
Squirm is one of my favourites too. It definitely has some creepy moments (I love how, at one point, a certain threatening character shows up in the rear view mirror, unseen by the heroine). Lots of atmosphere too, and a likable cast. Jeff Lieberman is a great director of low-budget horror - anyone who likes Squirm should definitely check out Blue Sunshine and Just Before Dawn, if they haven't done so already.
I really dug this flick, just like I dug Just Before Dawn and Blue Sunshine as well. It's too bad Lieberman didn't go on to more success as a director after putting out three of my favorite low-budget flicks from the late 70s/early 80s. Hell, Steve friggin' Miner had more success than Lieberman with nowhere near as much ability. Lieberman strikes me as being a bit of a dick, so that could have had a big effect.
Yowza! I'm so happy to see all of the SQUIRM love here!!! :banana: I love this crazy little gem is an old favorite of mine and I guess I assumed that the younger folk wouldn't recognize its charm. It's great to be wrong sometimes.
Jeff's actually a really nice and funny guy, and definitely stayed active after his more famous horror efforts. For several years he was writing scripts for different studios (including THE NEVERENDING STORY 3), producing documentaries for Showtime, and other various behind-the-scenes gigs. A few years back he made SATAN'S LITTLE HELPER and later created Court TV's 'TIL DEATH DO US PART series with John Waters. I did a pretty thorough interview with Jeff for Ultra Violent Magazine back in issue #5, if anyone's interested more in the guy.
WTAE-Channel 4 in Pittsburgh used to show Squirm all the time on Saturday afternoons and late night during the 80's. I recorded a tape of it about 1984 or 1985. I still have the tape although it is just about unwatchable now. They cut the nudity and Don Scardino taking a leak in the woods. I did the buy the DVD from a MGM display at my local Kroger store a few years ago out of all places. I bought the Squirm paperback a few years ago online.
Wow, your post stirred up so many memories! The book on which this film was based must have been the first horror I ever bought in my early teens, many years ago. I now recall seeing the film as part of a BBC2 Friday Frightmare double bill in the 1980s. Not really given it a thought since then, but it's certainly on my must buy list next week when I get paid!
After reading over all the replys on this thread I decided to finally buy it. Right now it's on sale for $2.98 at Oldies.com
