A meteor containing microscopic organisms crashes in the New Mexico desert and they begin evolving at an enormous rate. A misfit team consisting of community college prof Duchovny, government scientist Moore, wannabe fireman Scott, and kooky geologist Jones try to prevent the spores (which evolve into a number of crazy critters) from taking over the planet. It's supposed to be sci-fi comedy, but the effectively scary monsters eliminate whatever comedic elements the writers and Reitman forgot to kill.