MovieChat Forums > Squirm (1976) Discussion > Does this film deserve an 18 certificate...

Does this film deserve an 18 certificate?

posted 17 years ago by sharkattack1978
7 replies | jump to latest

When this was first released it was an 18 and still is to this day. No i don't count the badly cut version, i mean the UNCUT version. Do you think that it should still be an 18 cert horror. I mean apart from Roger and his Dad, you don't see the worms attack anybody else. It's all left to your imagination, yet there are films outthere that are worse for horror than this.

I don't think it's nasty enough for an 18 rating, maybe a 15 but not an 18.

SharkattackUK

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] tenfour 17 years ago

The rating wasn't changed on an 'appeal,' the film was specifically cut to get the softer rating, then resubmitted to the ratings board so it could play in more theaters at the time.

[–] nsavage3-1 17 years ago

Yes, I was a first-hand observer.

I saw this as a "second feature" movie, with "Incredible Melting Man".

When "SQuirm" had played first-run at my local theater in 1976 , it was "R" rated, so I couldn't see it. About a year and a half later, it returned as a second feature, and it was "PG". I liked "Squirm" MUCH better than IMM, but, I remember that the censored editing was incredibly ammiturish. I believe there were only two scenes edited. Of course, the scene where Roger is attacked on the boat. Right when Gerri screams, the film jumps to both of them falling out of the boat. The other cut scene was when Mick opens Willie Grime's shirt, to reveal hundreds of worms inside of him.

These scenes were actually "spliced" right out of the print. I wonder if each print was actually spliced individually, like this print was? Even with the edits, "Squirm" got a MUCH better audience response than IMM. Everyone loved it, and all my friends & me went back to see it a few times.

Squirm was, and still is, a very effective, low budget sci-fi / horror movie, with some great moments.

[–] sharkattack1978 17 years ago

Oh yeah i agree there but did it really deserve an 18 rated certificate?

SharkattackUK

[–] MammaJamma99 17 years ago

So what the hell happened to all the worms at the end of the movie? Nobody in the movie even tried to destroy them. Usually in a monster movie someone at least tries to kill the monster or creature. The ending was infuriating.

[–] sharkattack1978 17 years ago

the sun scared them back into the ground also i dont think that they could get rid of all the worms. There were too many of them.

SharkattackUK

[–] Nightman85 15 years ago

The worm situation was resolved when the power lines where fixed because there wasn't any electricity left to agitate (or infuriate) the slimy fiends.