The Omen (2006)

An American official realizes that his young son may literally be the Devil incarnate.

Director:

John Moore

Writer:

David Seltzer

Stars:

Liev Schreiber, Julia Stiles, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick

1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Predrag Bjelac	...	Vatican Observatory Priest (as Pedja Bjelac)
Carlo Sabatini	...	Cardinal Fabretti
Bohumil Svarc	...	Pope
Liev Schreiber	...	Robert Thorn
Giovanni Lombardo Radice	...	Father Spiletto
Baby Zikova	...	Damien - Newborn
Baby Morvas	...	Damien - Newborn
Baby Muller	...	Damien - Newborn
Baby Litera	...	Damien - Newborn
Julia Stiles	...	Katherine Thorn
Tomas Wooler	...	Damien - 2 Years Old (as Tomas Wooller)
Rafael Sallas	...	Rome Embassy Marine
Marshall Cupp	...	Ambassador Steven Haines
Martin Hindy	...	Haines' Limo Driver (as Martin 'Mako' Hindy)
Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick	...	Damien

Storyline

When the Vatican observatory Priest sees the appearance of a comet, the Church is sure that it confirms the eve of the Armageddon. Meanwhile, the U.S. President's godson Robert Thorn (Liev Schreiber) is informed in the maternity ward in Rome by Father Spiletto (Giovanni Lombardo Radice) that his wife Katherine (Julia Stiles) has just lost her baby and she had troubles with her uterus and would not have another pregnancy. Spiletto suggests to Robert that another just-born child that lost his mother could be the substituted for his son, and Robert accepts the child and gives him the name of "Damien". Robert is promoted to ambassador in London after a tragic accident. When Damien's nanny (Amy Huck) commits suicide during his birthday party, a substitute, Mrs. Baylock (Mia Farrow), comes to work and live with the family. Through the years, Katherine realizes that Damien is evil, while Robert is contacted by Father Brennan (Pete Postlethwaite), who tells him that Damien is the son of devil...

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Plot Keywords:

antichrist | evil | boy | child murderer | woman murders a woman | 

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Taglines:

His Day Will Come

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for disturbing violent content, graphic images and some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the newspaper account shown in this movie, Robert Thorn's middle name is Wade and he is a native of Connecticut.

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Goofs

At the end of the film when Robert is driving to the church, both Robert and the Police are driving on the right-hand side of the road rather than the left as would be proper in the UK.

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Quotes

Katherine Thorn: What's the matter, those other kids didn't want to play with you?
Damien: They're afraid.
[they look at the frighten reshus maquces]

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Crazy Credits

During the first credits the "t" turns around creating an inverted crucifix

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Connections

Referenced in Pride & Prejudice & Zombies (2013)

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Soundtracks

Ave Satani
from The Omen (1976)
Written by Jerry Goldsmith
Arranged by Marco Beltrami (uncredited) and William Boston (uncredited)
Conducted by Marco Beltrami (uncredited)

User Reviews

Just saw a press screening Fri June 2

In a nutshell, if you've never heard of the original or are unaware of the storyline, the average horror film lover will enjoy this flick. If however you saw/liked the original, you'll likely still enjoy it..but you'll know exactly what's coming next because it is very faithful to the original. In fact, in most scenes, it's a line-by-line remake, and many camera shots are virtually identical to the 1976 version. What has changed is that Damien's parents are younger, and it's been updated to reflect a contemporary world of today. Also, the screenwriter decided to throw in 9/11 and recent disasters as indicators that the Armageddon is on it's way via Damien Thorne. (SPOILERS FOLLOW) There are elements of "Final Destination", but the original Omen was in fact the first to play with this type of death scene(s), where things mysteriously happen to people through strange accidents,etc. Having said that, these scenes are a little different from the original (most of them anyway) and again, as a horror fan, you'll enjoy the fact that they don't pull any punches graphically.

Acting wise, the film was somewhat weak - particularly Mia Farrow's performance. In an fitting homage to Rosemary's Baby, Farrow is cast as Mrs.Baylock, the satanic disciple, summoned to protect the Devil's son (in a sense, like her character in Rosemary's Baby)Damien Thorne, in the form of a nanny. I found that she was not nearly as creepy and menacing as the original actress. Julia Stiles was not strong either, and Schrieber was OK. The kid who plays Damien isn't bad, but it's just another brooding kid role with few lines so it's tough to screw that up.

Visually i loved this film, and a few sequences in particular were very very well done. As for the scares, there aren't many at all, and a few could be seen coming a mile away (dream sequence/mirror open then shuts to see apparition in rear,etc..) I did jump physically in one sequence where i wasn't expecting it (which i won't mention specifically so it may surprise you too).

So, it was an entertaining 2 hours. Nothing terribly new, and not as creepy or Gothic as the first one. In a way, i was hoping it might go in a different direction, but perhaps, it's the producers' ultimate compliment to the original - keep it very similar,just updating it for a new generation of horror fans. Recommended.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

6 June 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Omen 666

Filming Locations:

Barrandov Studios, Prague, Czech Republic

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,026,496, 11 June 2006

Gross USA:

$54,607,383

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$119,974,972

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, 11:11 Mediaworks

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min 105 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby DTS SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1