‘A tale of mounting terror’
Satan’s Triangle is a 1975 American made-for-TV horror film directed by Sutton Roley (The Curse of Dracula TV series; Chosen Survivors; Sweet, Sweet Rachel) from a screenplay by William Read Woodfield (Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea). It stars Kim Novak, Doug McClure and Alejandro Rey.
The soundtrack score was composed by Johnny Pate (Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde; So Evil, My Sister).
A USCG pilot and his winchman Haig (Doug McClure) answer an SOS call at sea and arrive at a derelict schooner, the Requite. Haig lowers himself to the ship, where he finds three dead bodies along with one survivor, Eva (Kim Novak), cowering in the cabin.
As the pilot attempts to retrieve Haig and Eva with a rescue basket, the line breaks, plunging the two into the ocean. After they swim back to the boat, the pilot informs Haig that he must return to base because his fuel is borderline.
Eva and Haig spend the night on the boat, during which time she recounts the story of the storm that killed everyone else aboard. One man was hurled through a hatch; one is hanging from the ship’s mast; another vanished before her eyes; and a fourth man is in an aft compartment, floating in the air.
Eva attributes the deaths to supernatural causes, but Haig has a practical explanation for everything, including the man who appears to be floating in the air…
Buy DVD (English audio): Amazon.com
Reviews:
” …an exceptional made-for-TV movie with some surprising twists and turns. The cast is uniformly terrific but I’m especially fond of Kim Novak’s performance as the troubled and tormented lone survivor aboard the ill-fated fishing boat. Novak has always been an understated actress and in Satan’s Triangle she makes great use of her big eyes and natural sex appeal to woo the audience as well as Doug McClure.”Kimberly Lindbergs, Streamline
“While the plot is pretty barebones, there is much time allotted to itemizing the role spiritualism plays in the lives of humans. By suggesting a Biblical explanation for the very real and very strange events surrounding the multiple disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle, nicknamed Satan’s Triangle, the film embraces the paranormal…” Jamie Lisk, Cranked on Cinema
“It’s rather short on surprises when all is said and done; when one of the pilots puts forth a series of logical explanations for all of the freak accidents that occur aboard the boat, you won’t be fooled for a second, especially since his explanations come across as less plausible than the real explanation.” Dave Sindelar, Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings
“A salty & dank atmosphere highlights this intriguing telehorror, buoyed by some interesting visuals (dead Fey hanging upside down from the mast is a chiller). Both McClure and Novak deliver good performances, the surprise ending is both clever and admirably downbeat.” The Terror Trap
“Is the devil testing them? Or is there a logical explanation? The movie does have a great ending. This is one of those great 70’s TV movies, up there with Gargoyles and Are You Afraid of the Dark?” Buried.com
“Just about any review the curious can find of this made-for-TV movie makes particular mention of its twist ending — namely, that it terrifies and induces shivers, if not pants-wetting. The big problem is that director Sutton Roley (Chosen Survivors) forces the viewer to sit through an awfully tedious hour to get there, where a bigger problem awaits: that the ending is vastly overrated and ridiculously predictable.” Rod Lott, Flick Attack
Choice dialogue:
Haig: “I believe in God. God, Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny. The Devil? That I can’t swallow…”
Eva: “We’re going to die on this boat now. Just like the others.”
Cast and characters:
- Kim Novak as Eva, the sole survivor of a storm at sea + Tales That Witness Madness; Bell, Book and Candle
- Doug McClure as Lt. J. Haig, winchman of a USCG helicopter + The House Where Evil Dwells; Humanoids from the Deep; The People That Time Forgot
- Alejandro Rey as Father Martin + TerrorVision; The Ninth Configuration; The Swarm
- Ed Lauter as Strickland, the ship’s captain + Python; Magic
Jim Davis as Hal, a hunter + The Day Time Ended; Dracula vs. Frankenstein; Jesse James Meets Frankenstein’s Daughter - Michael Conrad as Lt Cmdr. Pagnolini, pilot of the USCG helicopter + Scream Blacula Scream
- Titos Vandis as Salao
- Zitto Kazann as Juano
- Peter Bourne as Swedish captain
- Hank Stohl as Coast Guard Capt. Dunnock
- Tom Dever as Miami Rescue Radio Officer
- Trent Dolan as Miami Rescue Lieutenant
