The Omen

 “Look at me, Damien! It’s all for you!”

There are three really famous “demonic kids” movies from the 60s and 70s: Rosemary’s Baby, The Exorcist, and The Omen. Of this “trilogy” the former two are probably the more popular (Rosemary’s Baby has a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 4.2 on Letterboxd, The Exorcist an 83% and a 4.0, The Omen an 86% and a 3.6), but for my money The Omen is the strongest of the three.

The Omen was written by David Seltzer (The Other Side of the Mountain, Punchline), directed by Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies), and was released on June 6, 1976. The Omen was made with a reported budget of $2,800,000, earned $4,273,886 upon opening, and went on to earn $60,922,980 worldwide. Upon release the film received mixed reviews, with critics praising the cast and direction, but calling the story “silly”; however retrospective reviews in the intervening years have been more positive. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Original Score and Best Original Song (both by Jerry Goldsmith), winning the former.

When his son dies shortly after being born Robert Thorn (Gregory Peck, To Kill a Mockingbird), an American diplomat in Rome, adopts a child born the same night whose mother died. Five years later strange events begin happening around the child, Damien (Harvey Spencer Stephens), including several violent deaths. Robert begins investigating the origins of his adopted son and learns that his own child was in fact murdered and that Damien is the Antichrist. 

While I take the point that some contemporary critics made that the story is a little silly (especially going into this viewing with a more deliberately critical eye), it really doesn’t bother me. Almost everything about this film comes together: performances, direction, set pieces, and music (especially the music, Goldsmith didn’t win that Oscar for nothing).

While it should come to no surprise that Peck is in excellent form, my personal favorite performance is Lee Remick (Anatomy of a Murder, Days of Wine and Roses) as Robert’s wife, Katherine, who is unaware but suspicious of her son’s true nature. Remick shines in the role but is unfortunately sidelined for much of the second act before being killed off shortly before the climax. Also present is Patrick Troughton (Doctor Who) who gives a brief but memorable performance as a priest who tries to warn Robert of the truth about Damien. As Damien, Harvey Spencer Stephens is largely a prop but he’s effectively creepy enough.

The pacing of the film is excellent, zipping from set piece to set piece with efficiency and style pausing only for some tender scenes between Remick and Peck or (admittedly a little silly) exposition. Donner successfully pulls these set pieces together to construct a tight narrative. As mentioned above, Goldsmith’s score is stunning. The main theme, “Ave Satani”, is a chilling bastardization of Latin chants that pairs perfectly with the film’s subject matter.

The Omen is a horror classic that has rightly seen a bit of a renaissance in the years since its release. If you have any interest in the horror genre, this is a must see.

Rating: 4.5 triple sixes out of 5

Other Observations

• Does the Dog Die? Despite the heavy presence of an evil Rottweiler, no dogs are killed. Katherine’s goldfish are presumably killed when their bowl falls off the balcony with her. A jackal (aka Damien’s mother) died in the backstory.

• Harrison’s Favorite Scare: Four-way tie: Damien’s nanny (Holly Palance, Ripley’s Believe it or Not) hanging herself, Father Brennan’s death by impalement, the baboon attack scene, Keith’s (David Warner, A Midsummer Night’s Dream) decapitation.

• This film spawned three sequels (two of which I’ve seen), a remake, and a television series.

• I didn’t mention her in the review, but Mrs. Baylock (Billie Whitelaw, The Dark Crystal) is an excellent antagonist.

• Next Week: We’re diving into the David Lynch oeuvre with Eraserhead.