Beneath the idyllic surface of the town of Sleepy Rock lies bigotry, hypocrisy, and racism. Young Jake (Gregory Fortescue) is ostracized because the townspeople believe that he caused the fire that killed his parents and destroyed his home. Jake now lives in a shack on his family farm (with a matte painting of the home's burnt-out ruins looming above) and only comes into town for a bottle of Jack Daniels. One stormy night, lightning strikes the church tower and only bridge out of town is washed out. That same night, Jake is attacked by a furry black thing which scratches him. He shoots it and it dissolves into the soil. Unbeknownst to Jake, he has become the carrier of a contagion that is spread through inanimate objects, which proceed to absorb any human, animal, or insect that comes into contact with them. Dr. King (Steve Dixon, MOSQUITO) tests objects around town using birds and marks them, advises wearing protective clothing, and that the townspeople work together to effect an escape from town down the gorge. On the other hand, the town's reverend (N. Paul Silverman) suggests that Sleepy Rock is their Eden and that they are being tested by God. The townspeople decide to use cats to test infected objects, and split up along the lines of the Jones clan (lead by Paul Urbanski) - clad in clear plastic - and the local bar yokels (lead by Patrick Butler, FROSTBITER) over the hoarding of the cats. In secrecy, Jake tries to protect both sides by stealing items he knows are contaminated and plans to run away with Treva (Stevie Lee); however, when he learns that he was not responsible for his parents' deaths and that the greedy townspeople let him think he was, he turns both sides against in each other. The Michigan-shot THE CARRIER is ambitious for its budget, but rather heavy-handed in its social commentary. Although Fortescue, Dixon, and Silverman give good performances, the more awkward supporting performances (including love interest Lee) combined with some silly dialogue, flat characterization, and the costuming which sometimes looks vaguely medieval but mainly provokes titters (not to mention protective covering that make it difficult to tell which character is which). The scenes of people being "eaten" by books, mirrors, sticks, and even contaminated dust are too silly to provoke horror - it doesn't help that one featuring an outhouse just seems tossed in out of nowhere - and a couple horrific dismemberments are kept offscreen. Director of photography Peter Deming (MULHOLLAND DRIVE) had previously shot EVIL DEAD 2 (also shot in Michigan around the same time), and the film also features further contributions from that film's star Bruce Campbell (as sound recordist), composer Joseph LoDuca, matte painter Bob Kayganich, and stop motion animator Brian Joseph Ochab. The film had its US premiere on VHS courtesy of Magnum Entertainment.