A US government germ warfare lab has had an accident. The first theory is that one of the germs has been released and killed several scientists. The big fear is that a more virulent strain, named The Satan Bug because all life can be killed off by it should it escape, may have been stolen.
Direction
John Sturges builds suffocating dread without showing the monster.
Production
Sterile '60s lab aesthetic that feels eerily prescient.
Writing
Alastair MacLean's tight plotting keeps you guessing who's the traitor.
Director
John Sturges
George Maharis
Lee Barrett
Richard Basehart
Dr. Gregor Hoffman
Anne Francis
Ann Williams
Dana Andrews
Gen. Williams
John Larkin
Dr. Leonard Michaelson
Richard Bull
Eric Cavanaugh
Frank Sutton
Henchman Donald
Ed Asner
Henchman Veretti
Simon Oakland
Tasserly
John Anderson
Agent Reagan
John Clarke
Guard Lt. Raskin
Hari Rhodes
Guard Lt. Johnson
Henry Beckman
Dr. Baxter
Harry Lauter
Fake SDI Agent
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Anne Francis was fresh off 'Forbidden Planet' and basically cornered the market on 'smart woman in sci-fi peril.'
Released at peak Cold War germ-warfare panic, this helped mainstream 'bioweapon thriller' decades before 'Outbreak' or 'Contagion.'
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