The Satan Bug (1965) User Reviews

a favorite flawed film

[kuciak · 7/10 · 30 March 2008]

I have watched this film several times, and never find it boring. That this film was not a hit at the time of release, and was not able to make a movie star out of George Maharis, shows that either the studio did not know how to market it at the time, or that a movie, even with all the right ingredients, will not become a hit movie, if people don't go and see it.

I do see some problems with the screenplay however, in that things see to happen in the film, that just pop up from nowhere. A mans car getting stuck that we the audience are not entirely clued in on, two agents just coming on the screen at a particular time, what where the motivations for this to happen is not explained, and a dead body, that without the use of a DVD player or DVR that we can view the movie on Turner Classic Movies, and look back on, might make us wonder who this dead body is.

The Maharis character is the most interesting of the lot, he is a man who is at odds with his government throughout his life, and he is a character in films ahead of his time. We didn't get to see people like this in movies before. He is a man who it is emphasized at the beginning of the film to be a rebel, but knows the difference between wrong and right. When his country needs him as he shows in this film he will be there for the correct cause. His last line in this film, is a telling one, I'm paraphrasing it here, but it goes something like this "Will start over again." This film, makes one ask the question, how could any country sanction a sight that could create something so deadly, and which might, as we learn towards the end, might destroy life on earth? At the same time, while the film I think questions this, it does at least give us some comfort that our government agencies fighting terror might be able to stop it as shown by agents, beside Maharis, as being capable of stopping mad men through their hard work.

A great supporting cast helps the film as well, Richard Basehart is outstanding, and I just realized that Frank Sutton, (Sargent Carter) of GOMER PYLE fame, is one of the villains, and what a different role it is.

John Sturges in his direction, shows a man who knew how to direct an action film, and an entertaining one to boot. The film was also ahead of its time, in warning us that we had more to fear than just a hydrogen bomb, as that fear of the bomb I believe was coming to an end at the time. A flawed, but entertaining film, that still holds up some forty years latter.

A taught Doomsday thriller.

[Kirasjeri · 7/10 · 28 July 1999]

This is an enjoyable and nerve-wracking thriller of an inside robbery as a top secret Germ Warfare lab and the theft of enough deadly bacteria (The Satan Bug) to kill a city. In this case the madman is Richard Basehart (cross reference E.G. Marshall in a similar role), and look for an early Ed Asner as one of his thugs. Although a little drawn out at times, this is an effective movie worth seeing.

Satan had a Virus - don't open that flask!

[Bogmeister · 7/10 · 1 April 2006]

You want Armageddon? An Apocalyptic threat? This gives you the unscientifically-pegged Satan Bug, a virus so lethal, it can kill everyone in California in a few hours, the U.S. in a week, and the world...oh, a couple of months. Towards the end of this movie, the one who makes this pronouncement takes a step back and admits it's unclear if this virus can actually be so effective (life tends to survive, as we all know), but let's not test it, shall we? I wonder if this film influenced Stephen King's "The Stand" (the novel and the mini-series). The chilling scenario first described manages to up the ante from the generally-regarded worst threat of nuclear annihilation. An atomic bomb, destructive as it is, is still limited to a certain area; this bug - you open the flask, it's all over, baby, for the entire planet. The allusions to the 'Pandora's Box' fable are quite obvious (similar to those in "Kiss Me Deadly" from 10 years earlier).

The threat surfaces at one of those government installations for biochemical warfare, in the middle of the desert - a barren, vast, empty landscape. There's no such thing as perfect security, but here they really bumbled it by letting two unpacked crates inside; to make a long story short, with the help of an insider, certain flasks are removed from the property. The government here also seems to have lapsed badly as far as background checks. There's an air of mystery to the story, since we don't know who the master villain is, and tension is ratcheted up on a regular basis when the bug may be released at certain points. I also like the use of the desert locations where much of this takes place; the very sparse layout of an occasional building lends an almost alien-like atmosphere to the terrain.

There are some contrivances to the story which make you shrug afterward. For example, the hero (Maharis) and two government agents (including Star Trek's Jimmy Doohan in a small non-speaking role) are captured at a key point; it's obvious they are to be killed by the villains. Instead of simply shooting them, as would be proper in the isolated location, the villains go through this elaborate method of using a flask of a deadly bug. But it's an exciting sequence and sets it up for the most intense moment of the film, when any or all of the 3 may die in the next few seconds from exposure. The main villain's motivations are also hard to buy into. He seems to be doing this as a protest against biochemical weapons, but is willing to wipe out cities to make his point. He's dismissed as a paranoid delusional, a maniac, at one point, but never comes across that way, as if he has an alternate plan. This storyline is similar to a James Bond adventure and most viewers will strain to keep track of all the character names. Later films with similar threats were "The Andromeda Strain", "Warning Sign" and "Outbreak."

Better than I expected and as good as anything recent.

[rixrex · 27 December 2006]

From the outstandingly sterile germ warfare facility to the stunning natural beauty of what is called the desert, this is an amazing film on many levels. I had expected it to be another simplistic view in the litany of 60s anti-war statement films, but it is not that, yet it makes the case for non-development of biological weapons more clearly than any of those over-the-top and jingoistic propaganda films do. And to make it all better, it comes with a thrilling plot, excellent cast and direction, suspenseful music score. I would have rated it a 10 but for the unlikeliness of some major plot directions, still they are handled in a manner that makes them possibilities if yet improbable. A great one to view alongside Andromeda Strain.

Gripping Killer-Virus-On-The-Loose Terrorist Thriller

[ShootingShark · 6/10 · 21 August 2005]

A horrific and uncontrollable virus, capable of destroying all life on Earth, is stolen from a secret government weapons laboratory. The secret service agents investigating the case trace the theft to one of the scientists working at the lab, who takes flight. Can they catch him before he manages to hold the world to ransom ? Based on a novel by Alistair MacLean (credited under the pseudonym Ian Stuart), this is a typically fast-paced, exciting and no-nonsense action thriller. The film is very well cast with competent actors, rather than big-shot movie-stars, which lends the fantastic premise much more believability. Maharis in particular hits exactly the right note of quiet authority as the sharp-witted, humourless security adviser. The script by James Clavell and Edward Anhalt is also very good at racking up the tension; we cringe each time the flask containing mankind's doom is passed from person to person. Featuring a great score by the prolific Jerry Goldsmith and spectacular location photography (by Robert Surtees) of the Palm Springs desert in southern California. The movie may look slightly dated, but its themes - bioweapons research, eco-terrorism and secret intelligence forces - are still at the top of the political paranoia agenda. Don't miss an extremely young Hong (the star of many later cult classics) in one of the opening scenes.

Ages Well

[loreguy · 7/10 · 3 January 2004]

This is still (in the 21st Century) a pretty good thriller. Maharis and Basehart are top-notch, plus Ann and Dana are very good. The plot is still very topical (as in Weapons of Mass Destruction). Would be a good remake candidate.

A very watchable film and a fine distillation of Cold War paranoia -

[travis_iii · 7/10 · 14 August 2007]

Despite all its obvious flaws I've always really liked this film and having seen it again recently (and having still enjoyed it) I wondered why it still held its appeal.

Yes, the plot groans a bit (for instance, the Anne Francis character, though well-played, seems to serve no purpose - except as a poorly explained romantic interest), the characters are one dimensional (well it is a suspense film and you can always use your imagination), and some of the motivation is a bit suspect; but this film still generates a real tension and sense of terror. It's a well-imagined, claustrophobic world of neurotic scientists, a secret state, disillusioned spooks, and isolated top-secret labs. There are good performances (especially Jon Anderson, Ed Asner, Frank Sutton, Richard Basehart - despite dodgy Austrian accent - and George Maharis) and a superb, tense score by Jerry Goldsmith that keeps the fear and suspense palpable. The action too remains tight but down-played; it does move forward at a reasonable pace but the emphasis generally remains on the realistic and the prosaic. This lack of the spectacular may be more due to the small scale of the production but for me it fits perfectly to the claustrophobic style of the film and doesn't detract from the plausability of doomsday-virus-goes-missing plot line; this is key to why the films' appeal has remained strong - the story seems all too possible (and hence frightening), and it certainly is as possible today as it was 40 years ago.

There are two other stars of this film that deserve special mention. One is the desert - I think much of the the filming was done around Palm Springs in the Colorado Desert. It looks truly beautiful and other-worldly (well if you're from London it does) but also desolate and lonely. Its emptiness intensifies the sense of paranoia and isolation and serves as a subconscious reminder to the watcher of the apocalypse that the Satan Bug could unleash upon mankind... the other star is a small flask with a red seal that requires just 4 lbs of pressure to break it... if I had to compile a list of the scariest things in cinema I think I'd place that little flask pretty near the top.

A good thriller and attractive to look at.

[youroldpaljim · 7/10 · 13 October 2001]

Most of what I wanted to say about this excellent thriller has already been said by other contributors, so I won't belabour the point.The cast is excellent, although I found Dana Andrews a bit stiff.The film is consistently thrilling through out. I would like to add that I found this film very attractive to look at with its excellent use of beautiful desert locations. These location scenes seemed to have been filmed when the desert was in full bloom, and add an attractive back drop to this gloom and doom thriller. I would love to know where and what time of year these location scenes were filmed.

terribly boring

[randy_kay · 3/10 · 22 December 2012]

Well, I guess I'm the only one but I found this movie incredibly boring. I loved the sets, the old cars and how it was filmed -- very Spartan, and I really wanted to like it but I just couldn't. There's also some odd holes which others have mentioned too, like they find the virus in a box under a rock in a river and when the guy takes it out to check it, suddenly these two bad guys step out of nowhere. Why were they there? That part was pretty cheesy and unforgivable. Also, near the end there is a ridiculous struggle that takes place in a helicopter which is pretty laughable and the end of the movie literally comes out of nowhere.

However, if you have nothing else to do and it happens to come on TV it might be worth watching if you have time to kill.

The Ultimate Germ

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 10 January 2012]

Despite some major changes in location from the UK to the USA the spine tingling spirit of Alistair MacLean comes through in this adaption of The Satan Bug. MacLean novels seem almost to roll out of the printed page and right on the screen. It's been done, but's pretty hard to make a dull film out of a MacLean work.

George Maharis plays our protagonist investigating a leak in security at a very top secret germ warfare laboratory. What leaked out seems to be the ultimate in germ warfare, a virus in a vial called The Satan Bug and it will guarantee destruction of life on a planetary scale. The viewer's knowledge that these are the stakes being played for is what makes this film harrowing watching.

Maharis is aided in his quest by Anne Francis who is the daughter of General Dana Andrews for whom he works. But the performance that dominates the film is that of Richard Basehart as the maddest scientist of all. He has stolen The Satan Bug and he's got big plans for it. I will say that the fact he got in and did the job speaks volumes about the lack of competence of American security. See the film and you'll see what I mean.

John Sturges brought in a first rate thriller in The Satan Bug, do not miss it if broadcast.

Doomsday Scenario.

[rmax304823 · 4/10 · 2 January 2009]

This is a kind of doomsday thriller about a "bug" that will kill all life on earth, developed by a group of scientists at a secret government station in the midst of the Mojave Desert. One of the scientists turns out to be a maniac who escapes with a supply of the stuff and threatens to destroy the world. Can he be stopped? It seems to have a lot going for it. Written by Alistair MacLean and James Clavell; directed by John Sturgis; a plot of considerable topical interest; performances by a lot of respectable folks like Richard Basehart, Dana Andrews, Ann Francis, Simon Oakland; score by the perceptive Jerry Goldsmith; beautiful locations.

So why doesn't it work? Probably a combination of bad luck and budget. The bad luck was that practically everyone involved seemed to be taking the day off. This is known as sampling error in statistics. The low budget casts this effort indelibly in the configuration of a made-for-TV movie. There's a lot of talk and little action or suspense. I don't mind talk per se. "The Andromeda Strain" was filled with it, but it was necessary. Here, it's unfocused and sometimes confusing. Actually, I lost track of some of the vials at times. There are stray vials of the Satan bug, of botulis, and of botulis anti-toxin. (Or are there?) I didn't mind the absence of lots of action either. Nothing was more dreary than the frenetic pace and elaborate effects of "Doomsday." But, Jeez, it would be nice to be able to follow the plot. And to have more to the story than just a lot of guys standing around pointing guns at one another.

It's also the writers' responsibility to see to it that characters are differentiated, and they stumbled here. James Hong is distinctive because he's Chinese. But how about the rest? Look at their names: Hoffman, Barrett, Williams, Michaelson, Cavanaugh, Donald, Tasserly, Reagan, Raskin, Johnson, Baxter, Mason. What is this, a fraternity reunion at some diploma factory for the WASP elite? Not a Greek or Ginzo among them.

Two suspenseful and thrilling incidents. A flask of one of the toxins is discovered in the soft drink ice box at a baseball stadium and the detective who discovers it must hold still while another disarms the explosive device attached to it. Well, this is already a cliché. The reason we run into this situation so often in films is that it's a sure fire tension generator. It works every time. And yet here, Sturgis gives it no more than perfunctory treatment. The formula calls for a close up of the fulminate of mercury, the dreadful question of which wire to cut -- the red or the white -- and a close up of the sweating face of the poor slob who must stand motionless and hold the thing. But no. It's all done in medium shot with only a few cuts. The endangered actor looks concerned but not terrified, as if worried about a loose tooth. And no one releases the tension at the end with a wisecrack. The writers either didn't have time to deal with this situation properly or weren't being paid enough, and the director's mind must have been elsewhere.

Second suspenseful incident. George Maharis, a wooden actor from television, is holding a gun on Richard Basehart, who is holding one of the demonic flasks in his hand. "Put the flask on the ground and step away from it," Maharis orders him, and Basehart simply smiles and flips the flask in the air, catching it again. It's all over in a second and it's the best scene in the movie.

The movie holds the interest, but just barely.

a wonderful little picture

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 6 June 2005]

This movie was a little film when it was released. No big stars but many familiar character actors in this simple movie about a maniac who has stolen a dangerous germ from a US government lab. The maniac is now threatening to release this pathogen and he must be found and stopped before all life on the planet is obliterated.

It's a simple enough plot but it is carried off so well. It's an intelligent movie that will appeal to someone who wants something different as well as a movie that doesn't insult your intelligence.

A somewhat similar and equally engaging film is The Andromeda Strain. Both are well worth your time.

Simple but effective suspense thriller

[threeds1952 · 7/10 · 22 November 2006]

Seeing this film is just one of a slu that always brings back good mem- ories of my youth/teen days in 60's America. One of the delights of this film is the actors used, like George(Route- 66)Maharis, Dana Andrews (Laura),Richard Basehart(T.V.+ Films), Frank Sutton(Gomer Pyle), Ed Asner,....I could go on. Anne Francis-Forebidden Planet, what more can I say? If you wonder where the outside locations were shot, see the films: Its a Mad Mad World, and or Lillies of the Field. We lived in Ontario, Calif. and going not far out you ran into Mt. Baldy and roads like in these films. The spoiler(?)Why waste a Bio-Weapon on three guys, but then again the henchmen are supposed to be nuts anyway. Music by Jerry Goldsmith,directed by John Sturges who also had with him Robert Surtees, who did The Hallelujah Trail the same year. then you have the story from Mclean.

Semi-effective sci-fi story from Alistair MacLean novel...ahead of its time...

[Doylenf · 5/10 · 12 October 2007]

The biggest drawback of THE Satan BUG is the slow pace at which director John Sturges has chosen to tell this tale of laboratory espionage and a mad scientist. Fortunately for viewers, the pace quickens in the latter portion of the story and overall the results are pretty satisfying.

RICHARD BASEHART is the mad scientist and GEORGE MAHARIS is the man chosen by the government to track him down. The story gets off to a slow start with an extended laboratory sequence with a remote desert setting as security is violated. It takes forty-five minutes before we learn that a vial containing "the satin bug" has been stolen and will be unleashed upon mankind unless an insane plea is granted. Additionally, we learn that Maharis suspects it's an inside job that permitted the virus to be in the hands of a mad millionaire out to destroy Los Angeles.

With this sort of plot line, this ought to be a taut exercise in suspense. It's not. Most of the blame goes to a script heavy with exposition for the first hour before the threats become clear. Once the plan to capture the scientist and his cohorts on the run is set into motion, the picture picks up pace and acquires some tension.

A tired looking RICHARD BASEHART is less than impressive as a man impersonating Dr. Hoffman who engineers the plan. DANA ANDREWS, although distinguished looking with gray hair as the father of ANNE FRANCIS, is wasted in a minor role.

Summing up: The payoff at the finale isn't big enough to atone for a dull first hour. Result is a mixed bag of an espionage thriller.

This was made in the 60's!!!

[kstevens-12 · 21 April 2007]

A great Sci-Fi movie with twists and plot changes from the beginning.I find it hard to believe that this movie was made in the 60's with it's timely topic.If you like the old-school(Fantastic Voyage,The Andromeda Strain)Sci-Fi thriller this movie won't let you down. The cast of this film are the top of their game from the start. I think the director did a excellent job in casting and presenting the plot, Never read the book but after watching the movie and reading other comments I just might. After watching the movie you may find yourself wondering if this was a topic in the 60's what other things could have gone wrong during this time period.

Not bad!

[RodrigAndrisan · 7/10 · 26 June 2021]

George Maharis, Richard Basehart, Anne Francis, Dana Andrews, Edward Asner, are all OK, as are the other actors in the cast. The film is interesting, well done. It could have been more spectacular, if it had had more action and suspense, instead of so many dialogue scenes. There are some embarrassing scenes too, see it and judge which and where. Anyway, after all, it's worth seeing.

In waiting for the Covid plague or threat

[searchanddestroy-1 · 7/10 · 3 March 2022]

Such a topic would work today, because of what you know. Efficient, tense, typical from this period of cold war and large scale possible threat from the Eastern Block. Sharp thriller from a Alistair Mc Lean's novel that I have not read.... The ending is predictable but this remains spectacular, not too much talkative, and with an exciting climax too. Not the most iconic John Sturges' stuff but I repeat, good pro job for this director.

Few Alistair Maclean books made good movies

[paulccarroll3 · 6/10 · 9 January 2012]

Alistair MacLean wrote many exciting books that were made into films but few of them were really great. This film "The Satan Bug" was not one of his best books,though it was OK, and the film made from it was only partially effective as a thriller, despite having the great storyteller James Clavell as a screenwriter. Alistair MacLean wrote interesting historical WWII novels like "The Guns of Navarone" and "Where Eagles Dare". These films were popular and successful but,though good, were far from great even though they had star power like Gregory Peck and Richard Burton starring in them. The Satan Bug suffered from not having the same caliber of actors in it and seems like a B-movie."Ice Station Zebra" was a better film made from one of His books. MacLean also wrote cold war thrillers featuring rebellious,smart-alecky,outsiders trying to catch the bad guy/killer/spy before it's too late. The main characters funny,sarcastic sense of humor seldom came through in the films made from his books, and it's too bad. One of His better books that never made it to film was "Night Without End". Try it. By the way reviewers,Readers of these reviews have almost always seen the film being discussed and don't need a blow by blow description, but instead your opinions and critique only. Just saying.

The bug that doesn't bite but kills instantly.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 7 July 2020]

Biological warfare is as scary in 2020 as it was in the mid 1960's with new threats found every year, and I certainly picked the wrong time to watch a film on this very subject. It focuses on scientists George Maharis and Dana Andrews who have discovered that a top research scientist (Richard Basehart) has discovered a toxin that can wipe out a whole city in a matter of minutes. Maharis and Andrews find this out quite by accident while with Andrews' pretty daughter Anne Francis and some other scientists, and a tube of this toxin goes flying through their window, causing two of the men within minutes to clutch their throats and drop dead instantly. A rock at the window of the speeding Basehart gives Maharis the opportunity to find out what has lead the genius Basehart to turn to such a despicable act, and it is a race to the finish as Maharis, Andrews and Francis become determined to stop Basehart from carrying out his vicious plan.

I must admit that in addition to being intrigued but scared in regards to the timing of viewing this movie I was also entranced by the beautiful scenery of the California desert with its pastel colors flying off of the screen as the three leads hang out at a gorgeous desert home with beautiful streams and pools and backgrounds of cactus and other colorful plants. This is an opportunity to see a few other famous actors before they became well known such as Richard Bull ("Little House on the Prairie") and Ed Asner ("Lou Grant"). Andrews, still very handsome with his silvery hair, is dashing as always, and Maharis is an interesting anti-hero. But the performance by Richard Basehart is very theatrical, almost Shakespearean in its intensity, and that is who you will be mesmerized by in his big scenes. The direction of John Sturges helps this become an intriguing sleeper that has been forgotten over time but is certainly worthy of re-discovery and discussion.

Bug gets bogged down

[madmonkmcghee · 5/10 · 27 September 2015]

So many ingredients for an exciting movie, but most of them get wasted in this one. An extremist pacifist ( apparently that is possible) gets hold of a virus that could kill all mankind. OK, that's one way to attain world peace, i guess. But why would the US government develop a virus that will kill all life on earth, including life in the US of A? In exchange for the virus the rabid peacenik wants the government to close down the research lab that made the virus, or people will get killed in great quantities. (I thought he was a pacifist?) Instead of giving in to this demand, which can so easily be subverted ( just build it somewhere else) government agents start to track down the culprit. The hero of this movie is supposed to be special agent Lee Barrett, but instead of building up his character we get a lot of crosstalk between other officials, none of which helps the plot along. Worse than that, the actor playing Barrett has the stiff-jawed charisma of a showroom dummy, and gets paired up with a female sidekick that has literally nothing of any importance to say or do. Add to that the flat camera-work, the lazy acting of most of the crew and numerous plot twists that make no sense and you're left with a frustrating and confusing would- be thriller. To give an example: two villains start to shoot at Out Hero holding the deadly virus in a flask, just to show they mean business. Yeah, wise move. In another scene two guys pretend to arrest the villain, only they turn out to be his accomplices. Huh? And why does the helicopter pilot get so enraged with the hero that he starts fighting with him in mid-flight, leaving the helicopter to the forces of gravity? I could go on naming such absurdities, but i won't. If you want to see them for yourself, check this movie out. Otherwise, any episode of, say Mission Impossible will make more sense and provide more thrills than this lazy effort.

A Sixties Techno-Thriller

[timdalton007 · 7/10 · 26 July 2020]

For a time between the 1950s and 1970s, the golden age of British thrillers, according to writer Mike Ripley, there were few names bigger than Alistair MacLean. In 1962, originally under the name Ian Stuart and then under his own, MacLean had another success with the novel The Satan Bug. So it was perhaps unsurprising that, on the back of the success of the cinematic adaptation of The Guns of Navarone, that Satan Bug received the Hollywood treatment. Not only that, but with one of the premier action directors of the era at the helm: John Sturges.

Sturges, along with scriptwriters James Clavell and Edward Anhalt, crafted an intriguing thriller out of MacLean's novel. Satan Bug tells the story of government agents, including George Maharis's Lee Barrett, racing to stop the use of a bio-weapon (the titular Satan Bug) after its theft from a secret government lab. In going through the mechanics of the lab, and the efforts of Barrett and agents of a government agency known as SDI to keep its product from being used by a madman, Satan Bug is an early techno-thriller, coming nearly two decades before the term came into use. That said, in keeping with much of MacLean's work, such as the aforementioned Navarone and Where Eagles Dare (released three years later), the plot is convoluted with a tale of crosses, double-crosses, and hidden identities. To the point that there are places where it becomes just a tad ludicrous, especially when the eventual villain has their reveal. For the most part, the film remains engaging and, especially in its closing minutes, suspenseful.

It's also quite well made for the mid-1960s. Fans of mid-century design, architecture, and fashion will have a field day with the film from its depictions of everything from secret labs to homes and locations across California. Some of the background plate work hasn't dated well, which is sadly true of many films made before and after this time, though the film can boast some impressive aerial photography in its climax. The proverbial icing on the cake is the score, a still early one from the late, great Jerry Goldsmith, who shows even at this stage of his career how to build action in suspense to elevate what's happening on screen.

Where the film is perhaps most mixed is in its casting. George Maharis is just a little too bland for the role of agent Barrett, being not so much a character as someone going through the motions as scripted. More successful is Richard Basehart, then best known for his role on TV's Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, as a scientist involved with the secret project and Dana Andrews as General Williams who is leading the effort to get the stolen bio-weapons back. Anne Francis does well as the film's sole female character, there more as a love interest that isn't necessary than a proper heroine though her presence is certainly a welcome addition to the film. There's an early film role for Ed Asner as one of the villain's henchmen and even a non-speaking supporting appearance by James Doohan who would fame shortly after the film's release as Scotty on Star Trek. Except for Maharis, the cast is dependable and works well, though it's not easy to point to any standout performances in the film. Indeed, the best way to describe the cast is serviceable if unremarkable.

All told, The Satan Bug is an intriguing, overlooked, but by no means classic thriller. It does have its definite pluses, including Sturges' direction and benefits from a solid score from Jerry Goldsmith. It also stands, alongside films such as the 1950 British thriller Seven Days to Noon, as among the first examples of the cinematic techno-thriller. And with conspiracy theories about killer viruses cooked up in labs being in our current culture, even our political discourse, it's also as timely as ever.

Good Cast Looking For Purpose

[DKosty123 · 5/10 · 12 November 2021]

With Covid-19 going on today, the plot here almost resembles it, but it does not. Granted there is a deadly flu like bug, and it is stolen from a lab, and it kills some people when it gets loose. There are really some problems though.

First there seems to be an effort at extortion by the thief stealing the bug. Trouble is there never seems to be a reason for the extortion that appears to make any sense. It's like they steal the bug and decide to kill people, contact and warn everyone they are going to do it, but don't really seem to have any reason to contact and warn everybody.

While there is a lot of good character actors, few of them are given much script to even try to act with. George Maharis has lots of lines but few memorable ones. This is one of the few films where the leads get to act but have nothing to act with. The support get nothing to act with and folks like Frank Sutton, Ed Asner, and. Richard Basehart. Really suffer from this.

Then by coincidence is poor LA. Ironically LA County has had more Covid-19 deaths and cases than any county and 16 states. Here they get saved but sadly get little comfort from being saved. The film is too busy doing James Bond type helicopter stunts to make anyone care about LA.

This film wastes a lot of talent. Even Sturges direction seems to be lacking here as the sequencing is poorly laid out. Fun it is not, sad it is.

Another Fine Movie that should be on DVD

[zdforme-1 · 8/10 · 21 October 2005]

About Five years before the ANDROMEDA STRAIN, came THE Satan BUG, a Biological thriller with a stellar cast and background music that set the mood for a tense, exciting almost end of the world movie that I also HOPE gets its reward to remastered to DVD so others may enjoy this Classic from 1965. The cast is excellent with George Maharis, Richard Basehart, Anne Francis and Dana Andrews -this thriller is non stop action and suspense and MGM just Has to release it on DVD! Its a Movie I have watched many many times and shared it with friends whom also found it to be one of those " unheard of gems" and I hope more people will catch it and maybe, just maybe MGM will finally put this beaity to DVD with lots of Extras and maybe even a 5.1 Surround sound mode! If anyone knows if this is out anywhere in DVD or plans to put it to DVD I would love to know!

Best,

Nicholas

".....but if I am psychotic, I'm not stupid."

[brogmiller · 7/10 · 9 August 2022]

Heavyweights James Clavell and Edward Anhalt have here adapted the novel by Ian Stuart aka Alistair MacLean and the setting has been transposed from rainy old England to sun-baked California, with Key West standing in for East Anglia and Los Angeles for the City of London.

The result is a mixture of Doomsday sci-fi and suspense thriller with the deadly flask as a MacGuffin. For this viewer at any rate this film doesn't really excel as either but is still of interest nonetheless.

Director John Sturges has the services of ace cinematographer Robert Surtees and the effective overhead shots are courtesy of a stabilised camera mount fitted in a helicopter. The overall air of menace is maintained by Jerry Goldsmith's excellent score whilst the Palm Springs 'mid-century Modern' style of architecture is suitably characterless. The film is scuppered alas by a lack of pace and momentum and hampered by a limited budget. It also fails to fulfil its early promise.

As for the cast it is stalwarts Richard Basehart and Dana Andrews who supply the substance. The roll-call of directors with whom both these actors had worked is impressive indeed but Mr. Basehart's talents at this time were confined to television whilst Mr. Andrews' film appearances were increasingly rare for a variety of reasons. Anne Francis is required to be little more than window-dressing and although George Maharis acquits himself well in an interesting role he is one of those actors from the small screen who failed to make an impact on the large. No more than a year after her blink-or-you-miss appearance as a waitress Lee Remick would star opposite Montgomery Clift in 'Wild River' and the rest, as they say, is history.

Whether John Sturges is the right director for this material is of course down to the individual viewer and although there are certainly worse ways to spend an hour and fifty minutes, one cannot help but feel that an opportunity to make a classic has been missed.

Pass me the flask so I can get through this clunker

[mls4182 · 3/10 · 31 July 2022]

Sheesh! Most of the film is nothing but dull dialogue, just yammering on. That, and shots of cars driving through the desert. There is no suspense.

The three stars are for the cheesiest scenes. The one depicting all those who died on highways and golf courses. Yes. If overcome by toxins, I would get up out of the comfort of my car seat and lie out on the roadway.

Ugly sets, TV production values. Obviously, the actors just showed up for a paycheck. All except MAHARIS, who caught hepatitis to get out of his series Route 66 to start a film career. This stink bomb basically ended it.