The Omen
So is he the son of Satan or Lassie?
If there is a child
in a horror movie, they're either going to be a victim or the spawn
of evil. I've expressed my general disdain for how most children are
portrayed in horror. They're either incredibly stupid, incredibly
annoying, or both. It's even worse when the entire movie is based
around said child doing stupid things and making situations for more
dangerous than they have to be. The other side of the coin are movie
where the child is evil. These can be hit or miss depending on the
the individual execution of each movie, but these have a far better
track record than horror involving normal kids. Sure some have kids
being possessed or infected with some disease, but you can't beat
having the child of Satan.
The Omen is a 1976
horror/suspense movie starring Gregory Peck (To Kill A Mockingbird,
The Yearling) as Robert Thorn. Robert and his wife Katherine's (Lee
Remick, Damn Yankees, Anatomy Of A Murder) newborn son dies in a
hospital in Italy. Unaware to Katherine, Robert is coerced by a
priest named Father Spiletto to take another newborn child who's
mother died in childbirth. Concerned for Katherine's well being,
Robert portrays this new child as their biological son, naming him
Damien. Soon after, Robert is named the United States ambassador to
Great Britain and the family moves to a fancy estate in Britain. A
few years later, strange events begin to occur around the house.
During his birthday party, Damien's nanny unexpectedly hanged herself
in front of all the party-goers. She is quickly replaced by the odd
Mrs. Baylock (Billie Whitelaw, Frenzy, Tangiers) who vows to protect
Damien at all cost. A priest named Father Brennan (Patrick Troughton,
Scars Of Dracula, The Moonraker) begins to follow Robert, trying to
warn him about Damien and his true origins. After initially brushing
him off, Robert listens to Brennan as he explains that Damien is the
offspring of the devil, intent on killing Katherine, her unborn
child, and eventually Robert himself. After their meeting, the priest
dies after a pole on a church impales him after being struck by
lighting. The events continue as Damien, riding his tricycle, knocks
into his mother, sending her over a railing and onto the floor below.
She survives, but has a miscarriage. Photographer Keith Jennings
(David Warner, Titanic, Planet Of The Apes) has been investigating
these incidents, discovering each picture he took of the victims
foretold their fate. An accidental self-picture reveals that Keith
himself is in danger. Keith and Robert investigate Damien's origins,
believing that he is actually the Antichrist. leading to a trip to
Italy. They discover his true mother's grave, finding a skeleton of a
jackal inside. Next to her is the grave of Robert's true son. They
open it to reveal that his child was murdered with the purpose of
replacing him with Damien. While Robert is away, Katherine is shoved
out of a window by Mrs. Baylock, killing her. Robert and Keith go to
Israel to meet an archaeologist named Bugenhagen. Bugenhagen tells
Robert that Damien should have a “666” birthmark on his body and
that Robert must kill Damien with specific knives before it is too
late. He refuses, throwing the knives away. When Keith retrieves
them, a truck accidentally rolls towards him, causing a sheet of
glass to slide off and decapitate him. All alone, Robert returns home
to Great Britain. Will he find the birthmark and be able to kill
Damien before he destroys the world?
"Eat your damn vegetables!"
The Omen has the
perfect balance of suspense and horror. We, the audience, know that
something is not right with Damien and can see things unfolding much
sooner than the characters. There is danger around every corner and
while the characters believe them to be accidents or coincidences, we
know the truth and want to leap into the screen to tell them. It's
not often that a movie can cause an entire audience to call for
killing a child, but The Omen manages to do it. The movie has a
relatively slow, but steady pace which lays out what is going to
happen without rushing scenes to get to a major event. While that's
good for increasing suspense, it does make for a long run-time of
about an hour and fifty minutes. While no scenes are unnecessary, the
length does get to be a bit much at times.
For a movie based
around an evil child, we don't actually see Damien commit true acts
of violence. Sure he knocks into his mother, but he never explicitly
hurts people. The violence comes from supernatural and natural means,
all of which are clever and competently achieved. There is some
blood, but not much by today's standards. Keith's beheading is quite
impressive and helps bring the movie to a new level of shock. Gregory
Peck is very good as Robert Thorn and David Warner is a solid foil. I
should mention that the music in The Omen is great and makes the
movie far scarier. Composer Jerry Goldsmith (Chinatown, Rudy)
received an Oscar for his work and is well-deserved. The theme “Ave
Satani” is a combination of orchestral music and strong choral
chants in Latin. It is startling and jarring while giving credence to
the religious themes in the movie. The ending of the movie is
well-done, not revealing too much, but leaving the audience shocked
and afraid.
Still not as evil as Snooki's child
The Omen proves
that not every child in a horror movie has to be annoying or stupid.
While the violence and overall theme is scary, The Omen really makes
it mark with subtle looks and implications of things to come. The line "Look at me, Damien. It's all for you!"
is a horror movie classic and can still shock audiences today. The
movie has a great amount of suspense, but does get drawn out for an
unusually long time. The acting and directing is very good and the
music is classic. The story is pretty basic and I would have liked a
little more time spent on Damien himself, since he is the central
purpose of the movie. While there is a remake and numerous sequels
out there, make sure to see the original movie first.
8/10
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