Mike and Lenny are two buddies who dream of getting out of the trailer park. Out of desperation they resort to burglary as a means of financing Mike's college education. Their dream is jeopardized one summer day when their ploy to shoplift Near Beer begins a crime spree and a series of mishaps during which they are threatened with jail.

Newlyweds Helen and Paul are honeymooning in a Texas cabin when Paul is murdered by an unseen assailant. Fleeing into the woods, Helen is taken in by Odie Pickett and his impoverished hillbilly family, becoming trapped in their isolated shack while the killer is still on the loose and wreaking havoc.

A community of Cajun fishermen living around a remote bayou includes one authentic beauty, Marie, who wants to better herself but must deal with the unwelcome attentions of storekeeper Ulysses. When she meets Martin Davis, visiting New York architect, they hit it off at once; but the sinister Ulysses is not inclined to suffer a Yankee rival.