The Omen (1976) - Collector's Edition (Fox DVD Set)

 

Picture: B     Sound: B-     Extras: A     Film: A

 

 

The original version of The Omen (1976) still holds up as a truly frightening chiller and a definite classic of the horror genre three decades later.  That's a lot more than can be said about the completely needless 2006 remake, which is already largely forgotten not even three weeks after it opened in theaters.  The well-crafted original succeeds at sending chills down your spine.  The remake is an uninspired rehash made solely to exploit a gimmick, the 6-6-06 release date.  You can read my recent review of the remake at this link:

 

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3829

 

 

You can read about the new Blu-ray edition at this link

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/7692/The+Omen+Collection+(Fox+Blu-ray

 

 

Fox's decision to remake The Omen using the same screenplay is arguably the stupidest idea since Universal allowed Gus Van Sant to do a shot-for-shot, in-color remake of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho.  In both cases there's little or no room for improvement, so why even bother?  If it ain't broke, why try and fix it?

 

The huge success of The Exorcist in 1973-74 clearly inspired The Omen, and since The Omen was the second devil movie smash hit of the '70s, it has always existed in the shadow of The Exorcist.  But in its own right, The Omen is a great horror film that rivals The Exorcist in overall effectiveness.  And one thing's for sure, the two legitimate Omen sequels (1978's Damien: Omen II and 1981's The Final Conflict) are infinitely superior to all Exorcist sequels and prequels.

 

Originally called The Antichrist, and then The Birthmark, The Omen was reportedly turned down by Charlton Heston, Roy Scheider and William Holden (who would go on to accept the male lead in Damien: Omen II) before Gregory Peck signed on to play the powerful man who slowly comes to the realization that his adopted 5-year-old son is evil incarnate.  Then a 59-year-old Hollywood legend whose career had stalled, The Omen was Peck's first horror film, and proved to be a comeback vehicle for the veteran star.  His real-life persona of an exceedingly reasonable, rationale man by itself added a certain gravitas to the story.

 

The original Omen remains the one masterpiece directed by erratic journeyman Richard Donner (Superman (1978), Lethal Weapon 1-4, Timeline, 16 Blocks) who seems almost embarrassed of the film's ties to the Bible's Book of Revelation when discussing it.  While Donner's decision to direct the material with the skepticism of a non-believer keeps it grounded in the everyday world, the continuous doubts he expresses during his audio commentary with Brian Helgeland (an Omen fan who wrote the Donner-directed films, Conspiracy Theory and Assassins) inadvertently might offend many of the film's biggest fans.  When Donner calls the Bible "a novel," it will surely alienate those who already feel Hollywood is run by a bunch of Christian haters.  The newly-recorded commentary makes it sound as if Donner, in a way, is disowning the best thing he ever directed. 

 

Finally, enough can't be said for Jerry Goldsmith's ominous musical score, which won the great composer his one and only Academy Award.  Like John Williams’ instantly recognizable score on Jaws or John Carpenter's signature score on Halloween, one can't imagine The Omen being nearly as effective with any other music -- something which was proven with Marco Beltrami's score on the remake.  The Dolby Digital 5.1 remix of the soundtrack features the music prominently, made more prominent by the fact that the music was recorded with higher fidelity than the dialogue and sound effects.

 

Fox's new Collector's Edition is an improvement over the Special Edition released in 2000 even though they contain some of the same extras.  The Collector's Edition adds the aforementioned audio commentary with Donner and Helgeland, while keeping the older one from the Special Edition by Donner and editor Stuart Baird.  A 102-minute documentary about the series formerly sold separately called The Omen Legacy is another especially worthwhile feature added to the Collector's Edition.  This new 2-disc set contains as many extras as you'd hope to find on a favorite older film -- the only thing missing that they should have included is a "Where Are They Now?" piece about the original Damien, Harvey Stephens.  Inside Edition recently did a segment about Stephens, who's now a 35-year-old family man living in London.

 

But the biggest selling point of this Collector's Edition is the high-quality transfer Fox has done, which is a considerable improvement over the five-year-old Special Edition.  The scope image was shot in real anamorphic 2.35 X 1 Panavision by the legendary British cinematographer Gilbert Taylor, B.S.C., whose many classic works includes Dr. Strangelove, Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy, the original 1977 Star Wars and Damien: Omen II.  The DeLuxe color and the majority of scenes in this new edition are an improvement over the original and blow away the generic look of the remake.  Both editions are anamorphic transfers, but the picture is sharper with better color on this new Collector's Edition, and the 5.1 Dolby Surround sound makes the most of a soundtrack originally recorded in Mono.  And please make sure you see this, Damien: Omen II and Omen III: The Final Conflict (still available separately) before sitting through the lousy Omen remake.

 

 

-   Chuck O'Leary