For some reason, I just can’t get enough of the Antichrist. We’ve reviewed 2006’s The Omen and Damien: Omen II, so it would follow that I need to review Omen III: The Final Conflict. AMC’s Fear Friday presented the perfect opportunity to do so, all with convenient commercial breaks. Now why I find these apocalyptic movies so dang entertaining remains on the table for debate. Some point to my childhood obsessions (I’m sure Red Hawk would since he attended a few of the fervent ‘End Times’ studies with me) and others may point out my fascination with prophetic visions of the darker variety. Really, though, it’s probably those ominous soundtracks that are pretty much a requirement for films that promise a cinematic view of the world coming to an end.
This review’s bound to be a little shorter, so you can all breathe easier and keep those rude comments about my rambling reviews to yourselves. Why shorter? Well, we’ve covered the basic story here about a billion times. You’ve got the Antichrist, Damien Thorn, and he’s trying to take over the world but these mystical daggers are still floating around out there for those who wish to cut his reign short. However, this time dear sweet Damien actually knows he’s the Antichrist, unlike in the previous films. And he embraces it and openly worships Our Dark Majesty, Satan, Emperor of Demons. Fancy titles go with this kind of thing.
Now last time we saw the adolescent Damien, he’d yet to take control of Thorn Industries. In this flick, he’s risen to full power as CEO or President or whatever and they’re running commercials spouting things like, "Thorn Industries: The World’s Leading Light for a Brighter Future." Riiight. Essentially, they’re leveraging that recession-induced mistrust of corporations that surely pervaded the 1970’s in the United States. Obviously, Satan would need the strength of an international mega corporation in order to properly subdue humanity because magic is oh so 14th Century. Besides, Thorn Industries produces all sorts of soy-based products and everyone knows soy is downright Satanic!
Another interesting bit is Damien quoting from the Book of Hebron, a non-existent text. Too bad, because I’m all into those obscure books. However, I believe he does mention the Septuagint which actually exists, satisfyingly enough. I don’t know beans about it so I won’t get into what it may or may not say, I’ll simply caution you to study it deeply and then report back to me.
According to what I’ve read, this installment of the Omen movies received the least positive feedback of any of the Omen films by both fans and critics. I say that’s too bad because we finally get to see Damien nail someone, for one and he also prays directly to Old Scratch, quoting lines from a black mass scene in the 1891 book Là-Bas (meaning ‘Down There‘). How anyone could not like a film with so many Rottweilers AND a man murdered by a pack of beagles, I’ll never know.
Pictured: With a hair-cut like this, does this man (Damien Thorn) possess the proper qualities to rise to the position of Antichrist? I think not. Don’t vote Thorn in 2008!!
Damien Thorn (who has an American accent as an adult), this time played by Sam Neill (Evil Angels, Event Horizon and the Jurassic Park movies) who’s a Beach Boys fan, thus perfectly suited for the role of Antichrist. He’s the only member of the cast who really engaged me throughout the story, the others just sort of passed through. He does a fine job looking just like Stephen Colbert which is pretty much how I figured the Antichrist would look, honestly. He runs about seeking a boy born on March 24th, a brand new Jesus. The boy will be born in Britain under the sign of Aries. I highly doubt Yahweh would choose for his kid to be an Aries and I’d certainly hope he had the good sense to make him Scandanavian or at the very least Japanese, just to give us some variety in terms of ethnic incarnations. But not British, that’s just silly.
Overall, I found the movie quite enjoyable. We got to see Rottweilers a few times and that made me happy. Too bad they’re shown as some how connected to devil worship, but whatever. Mainly I was disappointed that we didn’t get a puppeteered Satan, maybe made by Tom Savini. That could’ve saved this movie from getting 4 out of 5. Unfortunately, no monsterous puppet devil means it lacks. For that it must be rated appropriately.
Please forgive me, I must go. Until next time, this has been GlowStormLion, rampaging through 80’s films to tear out the most succulent for your viewing pleasures.
- Damien’s fellow cadet at Davidson Military Academy in Damien: Omen II
AMC’s Fear Friday never lets me down. It’s a great way to see some terrific movies for free while having the luxury of commercial breaks you can skip if you’re faced with more pressing concerns. This time the broadcast offering was Damien: Omen II which stunningly, is the sequel to the original film. While it’s certainly a genuine horror movie, it wasn’t quite as scary as the freakin’ commercials! Pills to make girls get their periods only 4 times per year and other pills to help "enlarge that certain part of the male anatomy." Now that’s scary! Not as scary as my friend’s mother going into Wal-Mart (of all places) to get her hair cut and winding up with a mullet – in 2008!
Yet, I digress. First a confession. Despite the channel guide promising the movie didn’t start until 11:30pm, they lied. So, as a result I missed the opening bits. If anyone wants to fill me in by leaving a comment I’d be much obliged. As to the story you’re going to see it’s fairly straight-forward. Nutshell version: Damien’s destined to be the Antichrist and other people around him are supposed to try and stop that from happening.
Although the entire cast played their parts well, in order to keep this from turning into a 20 page essay, I’m going to highlight my two favorite players. There’s the young Mr. Thorn himself, Damien, played by Jonathan Scott-Taylor. Ironically, he played Jesus in a theater production prior to this film which I suppose makes sense. He’s a British lad (with the accent) born in Brazil which is where I figure the Antichrist would come from. It’s near Columbia and that’s where Shakira first squirted out into the world, so see? It all makes sense. Today’s Mr. Taylor no longer acts, Troubles and Shadey having been his last films. He’s a lawyer in the UK which makes even more sense, no?
The other actor I must highlight turns out to be playing Damien’s mentor, Lance Henriksen as Sergeant Neff. Henriksen, as always, nails his part with sniperlike precision. For some reason, this dude never fails to entertain me. He’s got a three decade long film resume that I’m not even going to attempt to get into. All you need to know is that he plays Frank Black in Millenium, which if you haven’t seen it then you absolutely must!
Pictured: That’s an awfully large hat Damien’s got on. Makes me wonder if they’re trying to suggest he had Soviet aspirations…
The cadets of Davidson Military Academy, seen in the film, are actual military school students from Lake Geneva, Wisconsin even though much of the movie was shot in Illinois. We get to observe Damien towering over his pitiful companions at school for part of the movie and in other parts, some of his WASP-y home life. The kid’s a real snob and that Brit accent’s not helping. About the accent, it’s also weird that his brother and parents have American/Yankee accents. Maybe I missed something there? Are people actually born with accents? I don’t know, but if you can be born with birthmarks shaped like numbers then I wager that anything’s possible.
Throughout this film you’re going to see alot of really awful hairdo’s and fashion. Turns out That 70’s Show’s lethally accurate about the look of things in that era of afros and blow. But, you’ll get to see some badass cars built like boats and for me, that evens things out. Watch for the bird attack sequence, too. My mom told me birds will fly into your hair, but how they got this movie bird to attack its victim I can’t even fathom – it’s glorious!
A bit more elaboration on the backdrop. Since these movies are all based in ancient prophecies and stuff, there’s tons of cool artifacts, paintings and sculptures. The set’s very rich and enjoyable. So whenever the camera’s not busily zooming in on people’s frightened faces or paranoid gazes, you’ll have some yummy eyecandy to suck on. You’ll get to hear about Yigael, some 14th century guy who claimed he saw my dark majestic leader, Satan, in visions. Unfortunately, it appears that’s a fictional creation specifically for the movie. Ah, well. There’s always Bugenhagen (pronounced "Boo-gun-hay-gun") which sounds so hilarious you just might spit your drink every time they mention the man! Sounds like something Willie from The Simpsons would go around yelling at people: "Get buck hair, yuh Bugenhagen bahstards!"
There’s masterful music by by Jerry Goldsmith who not only worked wonders with the original Omen, but also scored The Haunting, Northern Exposure, 2008 Rambo and a personal favorite of mine, Powder. Sadly, Mr. Goldsmith passed away in 2004, but what a magnificent legacy he’s left behind for film lovers. He keeps the movie extremely coherent and very dramatic. The man was practically a sonic Hitchcock, really.
I almost forgot, young upper-crust Damien’s heading to the top of corporate America once he gets out of school. He’s to head up Thorn Industries, a sort of agricultural Enron. During the show the cadets of Davidson tour the Thorn Industries facilities where they’re shown some righteous machinery doing the devil only knows what. They’re told a classic line about, "Toxic chemicals we hope will one day feed the world’s hungry!" Sounds like something the author of Ishmael would’ve feared. They also have a board meeting where they discuss how to control food supplies to developing nations and thereby stabilize their corporate profits.
Alright, that’s a wrap for me, 5 out of 5. Here’s the bottomline: do you want to see the Antichrist ride snowmobiles, eat cake and kill people Vader-style, all while wearing hideous sweaters? Then Damien: Omen II’s right up your alley! Oh and in the end you’ll see Damien schmoozin’ with a bevy of groovy gals while some truly bomb disco plays. Which reminds me, do they have military schools for girls? Thank google, yes there are.
Until next time, this has been GlowStormLion who warns you that the Antichrist probably already came and went without being noticed a few thousand years ago and we’re all most likely living in the part of the prophecies where the devil controls the planet. Sleep well!
Glittersoul and I have been looking forward to 06/06/06 for a long time (you can read about that by clicking HERE), long before we ever heard of The Omen. There’s some sort of mystique about it. It seems to demand something special. Since we didn’t have a lot of cash for sacrificial lambs or whatever, we knew there must be another way to celebrate this day. We haven’t seen a movie in an actual theater for oh… 5 years. How that happened, we’re not quite sure. Fine, we’re financially frugal. Anyways, when it came to our attention that The Omen was going to open on this date, we knew we must see it!
We signed up for Fandango.com. so we’d get an e-mail alert the moment that tickets were available in our local area. The same day that we got our notice, we purchased the tickets online. The excitement began to grow. We’d planned to drive to a town about 15 minutes away, but that theater wasn’t showing the film. Instead, we had to go further to a larger town where the movie would be played on opening day. A midnight showing was what we really wanted, but the only options were 3pm, 7pm or 10pm. Since this is a horror movie, we opted to see it after nightfall at 10pm. Since we didn’t own a printer to print out the confirmation slip, we went to a friend’s house, fixed their printer and then discovered they were out of ink. It ended up that we had to visit our local public library and pay a dime to print out the confirmation. It gets better from here, hang with us, we’ll get to the actual movie review….
Despite our best intentions of getting to sleep in time to wake up for the drive to the theater, we both overslept (we both work graveyard schedules). This meant we had to hurry and hurry we did! Of course, the car was extremely low on gas, so we stopped to get $10 worth (you know, about a tablespoon of petro) and of course, a box of Runts (which we now know you canbuy in bulk!). Finally, we were on our way. Driving the speed limit despite our desires, we arrived at the theater around 10:15pm. As could be expected, there was no parking within about 200 yards of the front doors. Rushing, we approached the glaring glass doors of the cinema. Upon the door there was Scotch-taped a printout reading:
THE OMEN
10:00pm
SOLD OUT
The "so don’t ask, jackass" was merely implied. The young man at the ticket counter quickly informed us, once we let him know we had our ticket confirmation, that the show was sold out because obviously we couldn’t read. In turn, glittersoul stated matter of factly that we’d actually already paid for our tickets. Her "jackass" was also silently implied. We were informed that should we find no seating available we could come back and "Get a refund and an extra pass uhh or something." This poor, greasy fellow didn’t want us to see the movie. It may’ve had something to do with the image of Satan on my t-shirt, our black hair or glittersoul’s spikes. I can’t know and I don’t care. This man could not have stopped our viewing of this movie if he’d been armed with an Uzi and spent a decade training with the Mossad.
After handing over our sacred tickets, he told us, "Now if you have any trouble in there, just come let me know." Sure, pal, we’ll come get your nerdy ass to throw the law down for us. Right. I suppose that explains the ‘Now Hiring‘ sign posted on the front doors. So through the door and down the popcorn strewn path we went, just in time to catch the beginning credits and none of the previews. The place was packed. With no seats left and standing room only, we sat down and let the silver screen mesmerize us.
Normally, one of us would write this review, but this time we decided to do an interview. I’m going to ask glittersoul questions and she’d better ans… I mean she’s going to offer her responses. You know how this works, except that I’m also going to throw in my opinions. If you haven’t fallen asleep yet, let’s get started!
Interview key: GlowStormLion = GSL and gs = glittersoul
GSL: Okay, after all that ungodly (laughter) hype and anticipation, was the movie worth it?
gs: Well, what was worth it was getting to see a horror movie on 06-06-06. Overall, it was a decent movie even if they could have done more with it. Would I do all this again? Yes, but I’d show up earlier so I didn’t have to sit on the concrete.
GSL: Yeah, I agree. I don’t think it’d be fair to judge this movie on its ability to live up to the hype around its opening day. As a re-make it’s only got so much freedom to veer from the original storyline.
gs: I haven’t seen the original film so I wouldn’t know how different this one was. I did read that the director, John Moore, found that viewers who had seen the original felt he stayed loyal to that first script with minor differences like modernizing it.
GSL: I saw some parts of the original, but it was at a party and you know how that goes for actually absorbing what’s happening on the screen. Now, I know that I felt there were actually two stories being told here. I’d say that one story was in what was being said and the other was told by the character’s actions.
gs: There’s the story of the Antichrist and then there’s the story of people not taking control of the situations they find themselves in, you know? As the story unfolds, it’s like no one steps up to the plate to do anything about it. They don’t seem to think, they’re just reacting to what they’re told by people who claim to understand. It’s like Nostradamus – if you word a prophecy vague enough, it’ll come true twice a week. It turns into some sort of weird algebraic equation.
GSL: That’s totally true, I mean I didn’t see alot of logic in the movie, even though certain characters made attempts at keeping their heads (laughter). Of course, this is entertainment and not philosophy or science, so maybe we’re being harsh. As far as actual entertainment value, I do feel The Omen delivered. How about you?
gs: Well, I know there are sequels to the original, but I’d like to see more of this story, re-make or not. I feel like we didn’t really get enough, as the movie’s climaxing we’re just getting into it and then BAM! it’s over. It’s like two hours of foreplay and nothing else (laughter). No, it was a good movie and I enjoyed it, but I just want to see MORE.
Pictured: The glorious flags of the Antichrist from The Omen (2006)
GSL: Without giving away what all took place in the movie, it’s hard to say what I feel it could’ve used more of. I still believe fans will love this film on its own merits. For instance, a lot of care in the artistry of the visuals went into its making and that really shines on the screen. The settings were natural but gorgeous and the fashion sense was right on the money while still maintaining integrity for a modern viewer. This is a great movie to look at while still not over-doing the eye candy.
gs: I can say that if you’re looking for hardcore gore and fast-paced action, this probably isn’t the movie for you. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a suspenseful, dramatic picture that’s almost operatic, then this movie’s a good choice. Also, pay attention to the reference to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, I really appreciated that.
GSL: You so stole that from me! I mentioned it before this interview (laughter). Yeah, though, I loved that part and I know you noticed it, too. Little Damien was pretty cool though, wasn’t he?
Pictured: Lil Damien Thorn from The Omen (2006). Ain’t he just the cutest little thing?
gs: I loved the little kid in the film, I thought he did a great job. He was one of the most entertaining people in the movie, even though he didn’t have a lot of speaking parts.
GSL: Those facial expressions really worked for him, though. I mean that’s something of a talent, right there. He didn’t HAVE to say anything to get his point across. And to think he used to be in commercials for Flintstone’s vitamins. Obviously, they paid off!
gs: You need to make sure you get proper nutrients when your aspirations are to dominate the world. (laughter)
GSL: Music can really ruin a movie, but in The Omen, I thought it was tasteful and not overbearing. It pretty much flowed seamlessly throughout the film and I only noticed the soundtrack in certain parts.
gs: The music wasn’t bad at all. I only noticed it at key points which is a sign of a good movie. I did notice the speakers buzzed right before a scary jump scene, as well as right after. They orchestrated it quite well. What’d you think about the news footage used in the film? The shots that the guy at the Q&A with John Moore was so upset about?
GSL: Well, I have to say that they were so brief and not at all ‘in your face.’ That dude obviously was looking to start some sort of controversy and I suppose it worked well for him to try hitting Moore and the audience’s emotional buttons. I really didn’t find any part of the movie in bad taste. There was a touch of humor, but not much at all. I did notice the audience would laugh at the jump scenes. Kind of weird, really.
gs: Yeah, you’re right they did laugh at the jump scenes. During the rest of the movie they were extremely quiet, though. Except for the one dude that had a small outburst and screamed, "REVOLUTION!" (laughter)
GSL: That was a bit… odd. It must’ve been nervous laughter. It wasn’t uproarious or anything. gs: So what’d you think of the acting?
Pictured: The Antichrist as his canine companion of choice, from The Omen (2006). Stephen King would be so proud!
GSL: Not terrible, but not Oscar-winning unless we’re talking about Damien. Parts were rather over-dramatized but not too cheesy. I thought the dogs did a damned fine job, though.
gs: I loved the scene several of the dogs participated in, it was pretty intense, but I’m a big dog fan so that might have something to do with it. I’m all for them participating in our nation’s labor force (laughter). As for the human actors, Mr. Thorn, the father, he did an excellent job portraying the role he was given. The nanny (Mia Farrow’s character) was a lot of fun, but the mother (Julia Stiles) I just never related to or liked.
Pictured: Even little Damien needs loving care if he’s to make the world BLEED later. Here we see Mia Farrow (his nanny) watching over him.
GSL: Well, I think we’ve covered everything we could discuss here without spoiling the film for those who are going to see it. I’m pretty confident that if you don’t hold the hype against it, it deserves a 5 out of 5. What do you think?
gs: I think they have a lot of balls to release the film on this date which is the reason I went to go see it even though I’d have watched it on any other date. I wish there were more horror movies released in the theater on this day, actually. All in all, they did a good job wrapping things up in a nice package for the audience so I’ll give it a 5 out 5.
GSL: It’s not a terrifying film, but it is good. We’ll go ahead and leave you guys for now, thanks for taking the time to hear us out. Let us know if you liked the movie by leaving a comment!
Pictured: While visions of mankind’s enslavement danced in his head….
(The Omen 2006)
Ever since Prometheus brought us fire we’ve been sitting around its glowing warmth, telling tales. From campfire to written word to the big screen, whichever medium you prefer, some of those stories never die. During the reign of the Roman Empire, such a story about an apocalypse, was written by a man named Paul. Apocalypse is the Greek word for revelation, which is the title for his story found within one of the most published books, worldwide – the Bible.
For two thousand years we’ve been hearing and telling the same story. In 1976 we saw it in the theaters. (Read our review by clicking HERE) Today we see it again, one man rising to world domination and the eventual ruin of civilization. What could possibly be so different that we would need to see it again? Let’s find out…
Pictured:The Omen (1976) on DVD
John Moore, director of The Omen (2006), found out that the Twentieth Century Fox Corporation was going to produce a re-make of the 1976 movie. Fox knew he was interested. John had always liked The Omen since he saw it in the 70’s. Once his position was entrenched, he had a goal: to reach a younger audience with the same story he too enjoyed thirty years ago.
In this film you’ll see Mia Farrow (Rosemary’s Baby), Liev Schreiber (Scream 1, 2 & 3), Julia Stiles (Wicked) who was recommended by Mia Farrow, David Thewlis (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) and Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick (the little guy who was in Flinstones’ vitamin commercials), and finally, the original Damien – Harvey Stephens (who you’ll see in the role of a reporter in the re-make).
The Omen started filming on October 12, 2005 with an estimated budget of $60,000,000. In 30 years it had leapt nearly 20 times the amount of the original film ($2.8 million)…. Maybe that’s an omen. With this new version of the film they journeyed to Croatia; Dublin, Ireland; Prague, Czech Republic; Matera and Rome, Italy.
Pictured: Banner flown over certain areas to advertise The Omen (2006) A marketing campaign was planned and executed. Banners were flown over spring break cities reading "You have been warned 6-6-06" (which reminds me of the seemingly legit website used to promote Godsend), Myspace.com was utilized, billboards in major metropolitan areas and you can find ads on just about every site on the interweb, almost all capitalizing on todays date, as well.
"My intention was to get people’s attention, and to posit the notion that the time is ripe for a great evil to get the world in its grasp," John Moore has been quoted as saying.
The Omen has gone through its share of struggles to be made. The filmmakers were forced out of Croatia by the church and John Moore was yelled at by an angry New Yorker during a Question and Answer session with theologian Michael White (for controversial footage which you’ll see during the movie). Who knows how many more post-release hurdles the filmmakers, cast and copyright holders of The Omen will have to jump over in the coming days.
What’s different? The cast, music, time, audience and experience. If you haven’t seen it yet, I hope you will. I know I’m going to and you can read about my viewing as soon as I’m back!
