Le triangle du diable

The seventies was probably the best time for made for TV horror and many of the horror films made for TV during the decade are excellent films; Scream Pretty Peggy, Summer of Fear and Dying Room Only being among the best that I've seen. Satan's Triangle is a spooky little thriller that focuses on one of the world's greatest wonders; that being the Bermuda Triangle. The plot focuses on the only female survivor of a shipwreck and two helicopter pilots who go out to rescue her and find themselves stranded inside the dreaded triangle. The film creates a good atmosphere and this is complimented by the mysterious plot that never really reveals itself until the ending. Director Sutton Roley succeeds in creating suspense throughout and the movie always has enough to keep the viewer interested. Kim Novak is the lead actress and stands out among a small but talented cast. The film is only short, running at just over sixty minutes, and as such; there isn't really time for it to build into anything too spectacular, but Satan's Triangle provides the mystery and suspense for the duration and it's worth seeing if you can get hold of it.

Positively terrifying supernatural mystery is set in the foreboding waters of the Bermuda Triangle, where a small pleasure craft is found adrift with its crew dead, save for one female. She educes the details of the seemingly impossible situation which gave rise to this tragedy, but there may be a ring of deceit to her story. Is Satan himself a Bermuda Triangle resident, possessing the bodies of the dead in an evil quest to lure more and more fresh souls to their watery graves?

Good performances by Novak and McClure, a highly effective score, and a terrifying story propel this one above the average for its type. Too, the at-sea setting effects an eerie atmosphere of helplessness and impending doom.

A spine-tingling gem that is recalled fondly by those that saw it in the day(many still have nightmares of the closing moment's ghastly freeze-frame image), but it now seems sadly lost to oblivion along with a great many other "Movie of the Week" entries. Perhaps a smart-thinking' distributor will start turning out these forgotten little jewels on DVD. Anyone listening?

7/10

The latter-day, 40-something beauty of Kim Novak--striking and yet sinister--is milked for all its worth in this effective TV-made occult suspenser about a Coast Guard pilot investigating a doomed private yacht adrift on the waters, finding a sole survivor who seems to know the ship's many mysteries. The film builds suspense through tension and an atmosphere full of unseen dread. Although I was initially chilled by the well-handled twist ending, I was somewhat disappointed to see the film throw out all its mystery to instead become a battle between good and evil. I don't mean to suggest that's a bad thing, it's just that "Satan's Triangle" was doing such a fabulous job of being scary without being too specific that it's a bit of a letdown to see the story slip into formula. Nevertheless, a creepy, cunning item to jangle the nerves.

In SATAN'S TRIANGLE, Two Coast Guard members (Doug McClure and Michael Conrad) happen upon a yacht adrift in the mysterious area of the title. After noticing several dead bodies on the craft, McClure's character goes aboard, and discovers one survivor (Kim Novak). The bulk of the movie unfolds via flashback as the woman tells her tale of what happened.

This is another fantastic made-for-TV horror film from the golden age of such fare. Ms. Novak is her typically smoldering self. McClure is very good as the man who believes he's got things all figured out. Alejandro Rey plays the mysterious priest who just might be more than he seems to be. Jim Davis is the selfish fisherman who simply must catch the biggest marlin. Ed Lauter is his greedy partner.

The story is a suspenseful mystery that leads up to an utterly diabolical conclusion. One of the best of its sub-genre...

I remember when this was second run (it was part of some weekly TV-movie series, similar to the NBC Mystery Movie but without the recurring characters). I missed the original running, but a lot of kids at school were talking about it the next morning, so when reruns came around (maybe 6 months later), I made sure to watch it.

I remember that it was eerie (not really frightening, but more suspenseful), especially the twist at the end (won't give it away). Probably not the best movie for a nine-year-or-so-old kid to see on his own (thanks to my parents having friends over to play bridge or something, I got to see it on colour TV instead of my dad's old b/w) but at least I had something to talk about the next day at school, with all the other kids who missed it the first time! Had no idea who the actors were at the time, but Doug McClure's acting was the best. Everyone else's wasn't terrific, but good enough for TV, and the writing was stellar - too bad they churn out such junk and charge you $8 or whatever it is now, when you used to see good stuff for "free" (you just had to put up with commercials).

Would like to see it again, because the rerun (1976?) was the last time I saw it.