THE OMEN

The Omen is a horror franchise that follows the coming of the Antichrist to Earth, and the journeys of those who try to stop him. There are four films, one remake, and five novels in the franchise – of these, the original trilogy (both film and book) are generally considered the core of the series.

The Omen

The Omen (1976) follows the Thorn family as they realise their son, Damien, is the Antichrist. At his fifth birthday, the first signs of something wrong with Damien begin to appear; strange accidents kill all those around him who try to warn of Damien’s heritage or take steps to kill him; finally, the boy is left standing alone, with his parents both dead, but Satan’s power watching over him.

I actually first discovered The Omen through Damien’s parody appearance in South Park – from there, I watched the 2006 remake film (which I admit, I do have a soft spot for), then finally found my way to the original film, and its novelisation. The Omen was my first real foray into the horror genre, and I found that I loved its pacing, atmosphere, and characters. I wouldn’t be surprised if it is part of the reason that I enjoy 60s and 70s horror in particular. It is one of my favourite horror films to this day, and there are multiple scenes which still stick with me.

• Damien watching in quiet curiosity as his nanny jumps from the rooftop, seeming unaffected by the horror of everyone around him.
• Damien staring in fear at the approaching church, screaming as his father tries to pull him from the car and lashing out at his mother in a desperate attempt to keep from being taken outside.
• 2006 remake – Robert dragging his son into a church and pinning him down, raising the ceremonial dagger in preparation to stab him, when Damien whispers “Please Daddy, don’t”. Robert hesitates just long enough for police to arrive and shoot him.

• Kathy Thorn is noted to cut her fingertips during a bout of depression when she suffers miscarriages when her and Robert attempt to conceive. The description of her actions evoke a strong image of her mental state.
• When Kathy takes Damien to the zoo, an enclosure full of spider monkeys become terrified when he steps near – they are noted to scream and cower, and one hangs itself from the mesh of their cage in an attempt to escape him.

Damien: Omen II

Damien: Omen II (1978) follows Damien as he comes of age, learns of his Satanic heritage and comes to terms with his destiny, as his family also begin to suspect him. Damien starts to notice strange things about himself, at the same time that his uncle is warned about him; as both start to realise the truth, Damien’s disciples put in motion plans to help Damien take his place.

For me, the thing I really love about this film is Damien’s struggle to come to terms with his role as the Antichrist – when he is first told, he denies it, and when he finds proof for himself, he runs away in anguish. Damien is shown as a boy who, despite being destined for evil, is not inherently so, and who struggles to reconcile himself to that fate. Just as Christ is said to have been tempted by the Devil, it seems that Damien is briefly tempted by God. This is particularly exemplified through Damien’s cousin, Mark, who he loves as a brother and is close to; Mark is good, and Damien worried about his reaction to his identity – he initially tries to persuade Mark to his side, to join him, and seems distraught when Mark refuses him.

This film is what brought me love for Damien as a character himself. I have all kinds of thoughts and feelings and headcanons about him, and to me this film really shows that he is more than just a being of pure evil. The idea of having to come to terms with the terrible circumstances of your birth, of knowing what a terrible destiny is ahead of you, and trying to reconcile yourself with that and the loss of your family in the process just Gets Me.

• Damien accidentally compelling a boy to hurt himself after he bullies Mark and mocks Damien, and then wondering what happened – and how.
• Damien remembering the place his father looked in his hair when he was younger and looking himself, only to find the Mark Of The Beast and run in horror from his dorms and out to the lake, where he cries out in anguish “Why? Why me?!”
• Damien confronting Mark, who has realised his identity and is now afraid of his cousin; he tells Mark how he cares for him, asks him to join him, tears in his eyes – when Mark rejects him, Damian kills him, causing an aneurysm. He watches as Mark falls to the ground, and then screams.

Omen III: The Final Conflict

Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981) follows Damien Thorn, now an adult, as he attempts to thwart the Second Coming of Christ. As a group of priests attempts to kill him, and his girlfriend is told the truth of who he is, Damien pulls together his forces and tries to win the conflict – only to finally fall as Christ comes again.

In Omen III, Damien is played by Sam Neill, one of my favourite actors ever – he brings a suave, cunning and charming air to the adult Antichrist as he manipulates the world around him. In this film, Damien has a true sense of malice, sadism and seductive evil to him, having fully embraced his destiny as the Antichrist. Again, this film has so many subtly disturbing moments which really stuck with me, and in a way I found myself rooting for Damien to win as he attempts to outrun his own destiny.

My one gripe with the film is that it seems to have forgotten some of its own lore – in the first film, it is stipulated that the Daggers of Meggido must be used on hallowed ground to work, and there is a ritualistic order of placement in order to kill both the Body and Spirit of the Antichrist, however the priests in this film really just try to stab Damien willy-nilly wherever they happen to find him.

As a bonus, though: Omen III inspired the song Damien by Iced Earth, part of their Horror Show album, with songs that tell the story of various horror movies. This song absolutely rules, and I love its use of the poem from the first film, and Damien’s monologue in this one.

• Damien is ambushed by priests who attempt to kill him during a fox hunt – he tricks them, cornering them on a bridge, and then sets his hunting hounds on them, watching them be torn to pieces. He then uses the blood of the priests to ‘blood’ Peter, a young boy he is grooming to be a disciple.
• One of Damien’s disciples attempts to hide that his son was born on the day of Christ’s coming to avoid having to kill him; Damien’s influence causes his wife to murder first their baby, and then him.