Bart La Rue was a character actor that was in an astounding number of television shows in the 60s and 70s (Mission Impossible, The Brady Bunch, Star Trek, Bonanza) who had a deep, resonant voice made for broadcasting or the stage. Something he always wanted to do was direct. In his short directing career, he made two films. One was a documentary about the possible location of Noah’s Ark. The other was a horror film called Satan War, a super low budget affair filmed mainly in La Rue’s own home. Confusingly, the AGFA release has three different versions of the film (64-minute, 77-minute, and 92-minute cuts). The 62-minute version starts with narration provided by La Rue that gives the film an almost documentary feel as a couple moves into a new home. A lot of information around the film points out that it is very similar to The Amityville Horror, and at a high level, it has some of the same traits. Was it derivative? It seems hard to pin down the exact time frame, but there is some speculation that production on Satan War predates The Amityville Horror.

Despite a lot of hate, the film has some positives. The synth score is one of the strongest aspects of the film. It’s tense and evokes an immediate atmosphere. Unfortunately, the filmmakers seemed to know that as well and use the same music through the entire movie. There are also some well composed images, like the wife holding a cross and the light casting the cross’ shadow across her face. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of negatives. Very little happens in the 62-minute runtime. There was still a four-minute opening credit sequence. The haunting is pretty standard: unexplained noises, items moving on their own, ghostly attacks. Things get weird when the coffee pot produces what looks like several gallons of chocolate cake batter. Then slime starts oozing from the cabinets. The slime looks like the kind that teachers show the kids how to make in elementary school. The husband has a large revolver and whips it out at the slightest sound. The 77-minute cut adds a documentary style segment on how a Black Mass is conducted. The 92-minute version has the Black Mass at the beginning and another documentary style explanation of Voodoo rituals at the end. The additional segments do not connect to the main story in anyway and only serve to pad the runtime. It is a slow-paced movie, but I can see potential for good director down the line. Unfortunately, Mr. La Rue did not get the opportunity to grow as a director.

The film was remastered from a 16mm print that was purchased off of eBay. The booklet inside the case shows a letter written by Bart La Rue’s daughter, Kristin. The letter is a sincere thank you for the care and attention AGFA poured into releasing her father’s film. She also appears on the commentary track and provides a lot of insights into her father as a person. Being such a low-budget affair, she describes how she helped during filming and behind the scenes stories about the actors. She also talks about how her father was not really a horror movie fan but wanted to make Westerns. She talks lovingly about her father, divorce, lawsuits, moviemaking, and laments him dying young. It is a great commentary and probably the best part of the release. There is also a fourteen-minute interview with “Nightmare USA” author Stephen Thrower. He provides a review of the film and gives a few factoids about the movie.

Overall, Satan War is a slow-paced movie that had potential but failed to live up to it. The positives failed to outweigh the negatives. When it comes to the release as a whole, the commentary track from the director’s daughter really humanizes a man who just wanted to be more than just an actor and felt a compulsion to create.