THE OMEN (1976)

Just in time for 6/6/26.....

It's time to review this influential supernatural horror thriller on the eve of its 50th Anniversary.  Directed by Richard Donner (Superman, Lethal Weapon, The Goonies), it focuses on an American ambassador (Oscar-winning legend Gregory Peck) and his wife (the late, great Oscar-nominated Lee Remick) who have recently moved to England after recently having their first child.....or DID they?  The child is Damien (Harvey Stephens) who was born under very mysterious circumstances and as he gets to a certain young age, he starts to not only exhibit disturbing behaviors but others around him (including animals) begin to act more strangely as well.  COULD he be....the Son of Satan, the Anti-Christ?? :o Only one way to find out.....

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

Transcript

THE OMEN - 1976

Directed by Richard Donner

Starring Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, David Warner, Billie Whitelaw, Patrick Troughton, Martin Benson, and Harvey Stephens

Genre: Supernatural Horror 

First-time watch as I had always been curious about this one - this was the feature film breakout for the late, great Richard Donner who directed this to great success after two decades of being probably one of THE first top-flight journeyman directors. He had a hand in every major show you could imagine....from Perry Mason to Get Smart to Kojak. :) And from THIS point on, he would become one of our biggest mainstream directors giving us Superman, Lethal Weapon, The Goonies, and.....The Toy starring Richard Pryor....as the titular toy. (Don't ask!) 

And he delivered a thrilling big studio horror film with a definite mean streak or sense of just plain '70's-style grimness which would NOT really characterize most of his bigger popcorn films to come....even that first Lethal Weapon or Scrooged, both films which get PRETTY dark but have happy endings. ;) And it genuinely works! He pulls off a genuinely compelling and suspenseful supernatural OR religious (depends on you) thriller with a tight screenplay from David Seltzer. Seltzer would go on to have quite an interesting mixed career as a screenwriter with some very good ones (Lucas, Willy Wonka...Chocolate Factory) alongside several bad ones (Shining Through, My Giant, Someone To Watch Over Me). Here though, he has a crafted a well-structured A-B-C-D screenplay which does a nice job of exploring character alongside JUST the right amount of Omen-centered exposition which is always easy to follow and never bogs things down too much with religious lore.

It also helps to have an All-Time legend playing your main character and that would of course be the late, great Gregory Peck portraying Robert Thorn, a career diplomat who just became the US Ambassador to England now living in a large, posh estate just outside London with his wife (Katherine) and their young child Damien (six-year-old Harvey Stephens delivering a chilling performance, leaving quite an impression with minimal screentime.).

Katherine had given birth to Damien just five years prior in Rome under questionable circumstances - or DID she? - and just now, the young boy is starting to exhibit increasingly strange behavior with just a haunting aura about him. :( Violent things start to happen and lives are threatened....though not often in the ways you would expect nor from directly from Damien himself which I have to admit surprised me as I guess I was under the mistaken impression that this would be a "killer child" movie in the vein of The Good Son. The violence comes from various sources including from our star couple's new nanny Mrs. Baylock, creepily played by Billie Whitelaw who delivers one of the film's best performances. 

It's really Peck who sells so much of this very well as almost everything transpires from his POV. His character embarks on a somewhat harrowing journey across several countries to solve this central mystery of what is driving the disturbed nature of his son. This brings his character through the gamut of emotions which Peck pretty much nails...and I was CERTAINLY along for the ride even though you could make a case that he's overacting a TAD at points. 😆 You feel for this guy as he helplessly watches things spiral out of control....

The film has some scattered scares and gore though not as intensely visceral as other horror films of the time. It more resembles a cerebral thriller for much of its runtime though the final climax still packs a punch for me, it's a strong conclusion which brings everything full circle and possibly my favorite part of the movie! Though I have to admit that there was ONE particular demonstration of gore in the second half of the movie.....ok I'm sure this landed well in '76 when NOT viewed through HD but I had to laugh and even rewind a bit just to catch it again. 😄

Best Needle-drop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film):

This film’s haunting, choral score came to us from a TRUE legend who has been cited several times on this podcast before…..the late, great Jerry Goldsmith.  HOW legendary?  Throughout his stories career spanning more than four decades, Goldsmith received SEVENTEEN Oscar nominations for Best Original score INCLUDING for previous episodes LA Confidential, Basic Instinct, and Chinatown….and yet out of ALL of those iconic scores, he only won ONE Oscar…..and it was for THIS one, yeah! Don’t get me wrong, it’s an effective score. (Audio clip) 

He wasn’t even NOMINATED for previous episodes Alien or Gremlins either.  Honestly I wouldn’t even place this among his Top Five….but I gotta say that it MORE than does the job of cementing the forboding vibe for this film….especially the main theme which we hear repeated throughout….but never more effectively than over the opening credits against a the silhouetted image of a small child casting a shadow resembling a cross.  Oscar-deserving or not, it certainly packs a punch – the official title for this theme “Ave Satani,” yeah that sounds about right. (Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

I would just like to give a shout-out to the late, great Lee Remick who plays Katherine Thorn…..and whom DEFINITELY receives the brunt of the wrath unleashed on Damian’s behalf for easily the first half of the film….including her own character’s violent death.  Remick is excellent here delivering an tricky performance of a mother who is not only increasingly frightened of her own child, but develops a genuine hatred and resentment of him….for GOOD reason of course.  (Audio clip) 

Throughout the ‘60’s and ‘70’s Remick developed a pretty sterling filmography with major roles and impressive performances in several notable films including Anatomy of a Murder, A Face in the Crowd, Sometimes a Great Notion, and her Oscar-nominated turn in Days of Wine and Roses.  Eventually, she focused more on TV into the ‘80’s and received a LOT of acclaim including SEVEN Emmy nominations for a variety of shows and/or mini-series.  And then…..in 1989, she developed pancreatic cancer which she had a protracted battle with until she passed away in July of 1991.  She died at the age of 55, a brilliant career tragically cut short….and by all accounts, she was not only a true class act but also had a consistent focus towards bringing a certain level of maturity and intelligence to every project which she would work out.  RIP Miss Remick. (Audio clip) 

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

Tough call here as even though this film doesn’t contain an abundance of genuine jump scares of gruesome deaths, it’s contains JUST enough spread out throughout to really keep you on your toes…..there are definitely at least THREE genuine “Shit just got real moments” sprinkled at just the right points in the story to ratchet things up  Probably among the most iconic ones which occurs only about 15 minutes into the film occurs when the Thorns are having a birthday party on their estate for young Damian…..until their first nanny steps out of a second story window for EVERYONE to see with a nasty surprise. (Audio clip)   

Or how about 45 minutes in when Father Brennan (Patrick Troughton) meets HIS demise in a rather novel way when a storm seemingly strikes his church and he’s NOT able to enter as suddenly every door is locked…..and knocked over by said storm, a sharp spear is released from the roof and lands…..well just GUESS where it lands? (Audio clip) 

Both are VERY effective moments resulting in the unexpected early death of what initially SEEMED to be a major character.  But for me personally…..what’s potentially scarier than the wrath of Satan unleashed on some unexpected innocent person just doing what they’re supposed to do?  Well how about baboons?  Not just ANY baboons mind you but a WHOLE PACK of them going nuts on Damien and his mother as they drive through a zoo preserve?  Hey look nobody dies during this sequence which occurs around a half hour into the film – literally smack BETWEEN the two aforementioned sequences – but wow, just something primal about how these animals REACT to the presence of Damien just seemingly smiling innocently at them from inside his mother’s car.  Now if this film was released TODAY, you would likely see one of these primates go medieval on an unsuspecting tourist nearby who WASN’T lucky enough to be inside his or her car…..probably ripping that person’s FACE off….like the recent horror film Primate.  But no need for that here…..these things are scary enough just acting out, the director just had a good understanding here of how less CAN sometimes be MORE. (Audio clip) 

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

And SPEAKING of the director…..yeah at the end of the day even as pretty much every member of the cast does an exemplary job INCLUDING Atticus Finch himself, this is still a director’s movie.  Now it makes sense as his next film would be Superman….that Donner would spend pretty much the remainder of his career doing a variety of action and comedy, two genres which he clearly had a mastery of.  But it’s KIND of nutty in retrospect that he would never return to the horror genre after this because WOW, just about every choice he makes here lands the way it should – he just has SUCH command of the tension and dread which this movie is aiming for.  I’m not sure I would say that this was his BEST film overall….but it’s up there. For directing one of the best horror films of the 1970’s, Richard Donner is the MVP. (Audio clip) 

Final Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Overall this just remains a strong entertainment which achieves EXACTLY what it sets out to do.....including apparently popularizing the designation "666" to signify The Devil. :o Happy 50th Anniversary to one of the most influential spiritual horror films ever made! 

Available to Buy or Rent on All Major Online Platforms

And that ends another DEMONIC review!