On June 6th Katherine and Robert Thorn’s son dies in childbirth. At the same time in the same hospital Robert learns of another newborn child whose mother died while giving birth. Knowing his wife will be devastated with the death of their child, Robert makes a decision to adopt the newborn boy and keep the secret from his wife.
So begins one of the best horror suspense movies surrounding the antichrist. Directed by Richard Donner and written by David Seltzer the film stars Gregory Peck and Lee Remick as Mr. & Mrs. Thorn; David Warner co-stars as Keith Jennings. Traditionally, when a movie has a child star in it that is written to be evil or otherwise creepy, I’m not convinced. The child star often comes across as too cute and the effect is lost (case in point: Gage in Pet Semetary). This is not so with child actor Harvey Stephens as Damien. This kid is genuinely creepy.
The movie picks up five years after Damien’s birth. Robert is given the position of Ambassador to Great Britain and the family moves to England. Damien’s fifth birthday marks the beginning of a series of strange events that occur around the child leaving Katherine to suspect Damien and her own sanity. Robert receives several strange visits from a priest and it isn’t until several predictions come true that Robert begins to suspect Damien isn’t what he seems.
Three theatrical movies were released: The Omen (1976), Damien: Omen II (1978), and Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981). These movies follow Damien’s life from birth to adulthood. In 1991 a made-for-TV film Omen IV: The Awakening was released and was to be the final installment in the franchise though the story has nothing to do with Damien. The Omen was remade in 2006 and released on June 6th.
I haven’t seen the remake and to be honest I do not see the point. The original The Omen is still a great movie today with wonderful performances from all members of the cast.
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