The Omen

Release Date: June 25, 1976

Watch Date: October 2, 2024

“Satan’s son has arrived on Earth and He’s not about to let human parents get in the way. When his wife Katherine’s (Lee Remick) pregnancy ends in a stillbirth in a Rome hospital, U.S. diplomat Robert Thorn (Gregory Peck) substitutes another baby, whose mother died. Little Damien (Harvey Stephens) thrives, but, at his fifth birthday party, his nanny mysteriously dies; Father Brennan (Patrick G. Troughton) also expires after warning Thorn that he has adopted Lucifer’s son. While sinister new nanny Mrs. Baylock (Billie Whitelaw) assiduously protects Damien, Thorn’s fears escalate when photographer Jennings (David Warner) shows him pictures from Damien’s party with marks suggesting how the nanny and Brennan would die. Thorn seeks out Bugenhagen (Leo McKern), an exorcist who confirms Damien’s identity and tells Thorn that the only solution is to kill his adopted son. As the bodies pile up, Thorn tries to do his duty, but trust the law to get in the way of saving the world from future Armageddon.”

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   I’m sick.

   So if this comes out as complete gibberish I apologize. But that’s just going to happen sometimes. Both the gibberish reviews, and the sickness. Kids have gone back to school after summer. I’m the only one home to get sick. It happens.

   Usually I’m sick on either Halloween or Christmas, so let’s hope I got the October cold out of my system early this year, at least, though something dreadful just keeps going around and around.

   But enough about me, let’s talk about ‘The Omen’.

   An omen is an event that can be a portent of good, or evil. Usually evil. I don’t know a lot of people that hear the word omen and think good. There wasn’t really an omen in this entire film. I guess a comet? But no one marked it at the time. A dog? Rottweilers, the devil’s playthings.

   I’m just, honestly, confused about the naming convention.

   The Anti-Christ, maybe that would have been a better name? That’s the main topic of the film anyways.

   Well, really it’s more about people trying to make sure the Anti-Christ becomes the sole heir to a political leader in America, because as we all know, historically, leadership is passed down in America through birthright. Though I could be mixing up colonial era England, or the Renaissance Period anywhere in Europe with modern day America. But, as is tradition, if your father is the US Ambassador to Great Britain, you shall be too. And if he dies and the President of the United States takes you in, well then, you will also be the future President of the United States.

   Fun historical fact, that’s only happened twice. With John Adams (1797-1801) and John Quincy Adams (1825-1829) and the Bushes, 1989-1993 and 2001-2009 respectively. I know weird facts, don’t judge me.

   So I’m just saying, there’s better ‘political’ powerhouse families to birth the Anti-Christ in to, and having them descend from power there makes a lot more sense. Like, I dunno, the British throne, in the land he was moved to anyways.

   Really, I would describe this film as less horror and more…Indiana Jones and the Anti-Christ. We’re going to Jerusalem, we’re going to Rome, we’re going to ancient cemeteries, we’re going to monasteries. We’re doing detective work. And our main enemies? The weather. A faulty emergency break. Some dogs. A crazy nanny that just shows up at our front door and who we give access to our child without doing any background checks until she’s already had access to the child. Makes a lot of sense.

   I hope the US has tightened security up since anyone could walk in and claim to just be a nanny sent from the agency without being contacted because they saw in the paper that their previous nanny offed herself in front a large group of children at a 5-year-olds birthday party.

   I will say, there was stuff that is kind of referenced in Good Omen, the dog, the US Ambassador to Great Britain, and I like Good Omens and I think they do the Anti-Christ thing much better, because mostly Damien just sort of seems undisturbed by death and will occasionally flash the camera a cheeky smile.

   I think I over hyped myself to be scared, but I think that Bob cracking jokes the entire time helped a lot as well. Maybe this month won’t be so bad. Famous last words, and I know I shouldn’t even type them, but there they are.