Reviews of The Omen

This Movie Is Rated 666

Posted : 8 months, 2 weeks ago on 16 April 2009 12:21 (A review of The Omen)

This movie continues the great tradition begun with Rosemary's Baby, & the masterfully followed up with The Exorcist as the Devil himself is seriously depicted, though never shown, in a manner that is genuinely intended to keep even the most heartily-minded awake at night.
As in those earlier works, in The Omen, Satan is the unseen antagonist who uses a human in the form of a child to dote out his diabolical deeds of death, despair & destruction.
Y'know, for me, there's something about the 70's era that seems to really lend itself to the atmosphere of hellish dread that are these types of films. Maybe it's because since this was the decade in which "movie realism" had finally come to touch the ground (evidenced thru the films of actors like Dustin Hoffman & Al Pacino), the monster genre had really started to become a caricature of itself, many times to the point of being cartoonishliy silly. Therefore, one of the few avenues of true horror left was to those that focused the evil that resulted from the more sins of man, which of course can be personified best by he who most represents it, ol' Lucifer hisself.
Or maybe it's just because such evil could only come from the decade that was also responsible for polyster suits, platform shoes & dancing Travolta movies.
Whatever the reason,
The Omen carries with it a new-found injection of horror that rattled our nerves more on a biblical sense of hopelessness than thru the fear of a Hollywood-spawned rubber-suited creature of which many movie-veiwers had becomed largely desensitized to at this point.

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Solid horror experience

Posted : 1 year, 6 months ago on 22 June 2008 06:22 (A review of The Omen)

"When the Jews return to Zion
And a comet rips the sky
And the Holy Roman Empire rises,
Then You and I must die.
From the eternal sea he rises,
Creating armies on either shore,
Turning man against his brother
'Til man exists no more...

Richard Donner's The Omen is a treatment of the prophecy foretold in the Book of Revelations, and has been the subject of much discussion and fascination since its initial release in the 1970s. In a sense, this is probably the most talked-about horror film in cinematic history due to its demonic themes and references to satanic legends. Previously in the film industry, films in relation to the devil have created some outstanding classic horror productions. Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby commenced Hollywood's obsession with demonic horror movies in 1968. The charm of Polanski's horror movie was that he didn't rely solely on what you see...it's what you don't see. In 1973, William Friedkin made his mark on the genre with The Exorcist. Inferior to the classic Polanski horror movie, but a terrifying atmosphere and plenty of petrifying horror scenes ensured it a position among the world's best horror movies. Richard Donner then continued the tradition with The Omen. Despite this film being inferior to its genre forerunners, Donner achieved a solid, suspenseful, supernatural mystery horror/thriller.

The Omen opens on the morning of June 6th, 1966 at 6am in the morning: Robert Thorn (Peck) is racing to the hospital in Rome to be by his wife's side after the birth of their child. Unfortunately, Robert's wife Katherine Thorn (Remick) passed out during labour and the child becomes a stillborn. Robert learns that at the same time his child was killed, a mother died during childbirth but produced a healthy baby boy. The staff at the hospital offer Robert this orphan as a substitute for him to raise as his own, with Katherine none the wiser and not being forced to suffer the anguish of losing a child. Subsequently, Robert decides that this would be the best thing to do. Soon thereafter, Robert accepts the position of ambassador to England, requiring him to move to London. All seems well and good with the child at first: young Damien (Stephens) seems to be slotting in nicely with the family until things suddenly take a turn for the ugly. A series of disturbing incidents begin unfolding: animals act peculiarly in his presence, churches cause him to freak out, and people begin suffering injury. A seemingly maddened priest named Father Brennan (Troughton) tries to warn Robert that his adopted son is the Antichrist. Robert feels compelled to uncover the mystery surrounding his son, and is forced to accept the truth he original dismissed as lunacy in order to discover more about Damien's natural parents.

All horror buffs simply owe it to themselves to watch The Omen. It's a fascinating take on the source material, executed splendidly by an able group of filmmakers. While the film has been regarded as a classic and a definitive high point in the horror genre, it's impossible to find anyone these days who can regard the film as anything but 'corny'. What was once a milestone upon initial release has now dated tremendously. Although I generally try to respect a film due to its age, it's daunting to overlook the fatal flaws and much of the filmmaking aspects that have severely dated. The visual effects that were once regarded as high class are now seen as amateurish and cheesy. Some of the cinematography will be scoffed at as well. Jerry Goldsmith's music was awarded with an Oscar. Although it sets the eerie atmosphere and terrifying mood, this is the calibre we expect to find in modern B-movies. I also think that the film had the potential to be something a lot more interesting and elaborate. Instead, they opt for something simpler. Evidently, all the rants about this film made my anticipations probably implausibly and unreasonably high. Despite these flaws, the film is still solid and flaunts a number of aspects that the contemporary horror genre severely lacks: character development, and some intense terror that doesn't rely solely on the showcase of gore.

Gregory Peck is an Oscar-winning performer who seems marginally out of place. Clearly, he was chosen due to his veteran acting skills. At times the actor seems disjointed and wooden. At other times, convincing and real. It's disappointing that Peck couldn't deliver yet another Oscar-worthy performance. Lee Remick is a decent addition to the cast, although some of her acting moments now seem like pure cheese. David Warner steals the show: he plays his role sincerely and straight. He is one of the film's redeeming features. Harvey Stephens seemingly left the industry after this movie (he starred briefly in the 2006 remake, though). He is wholly credible as the Antichrist.

Overall, The Omen has dated rigorously since its initial release. It's still a solid horror outing, but perhaps not as definitive as the hype suggested. To be brutally honest, this could have benefitted if supplied with a tighter script and some better talent in the cast. The film flaunts a pretty sadistic, realistic decapitation scene that is probably one of the only moments that still stands unyielding. The film is silly and sometimes pretentious, but The Omen is essential for fans of the horror genre.

7.1/10

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