The Omen: 2 Disc Collector's Edition
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This is not the only DVD of The Omen to come out, but it is (so far) the unholy grail. The two-disk set is so jam-packed with additional material and goodies, it's sinful.
The 1976 hit movie has aged gracefully, effortlessly weaving a web of horror and suspense around The Thorns — Robert (Gregory Peck) and Katherine (Lee Remick), and their adopted 5-year-old son, Damien (Harvey Stephens). A chain of events is set into motion on the boy's birthday, when his nanny (Holly Palance), commits suicide in front of all the party guests proclaiming, "It's all for you, Damien!"
A few days later a new governess, Mrs. Blaylock (Billie Whitelaw), comes into the picture and things go from bad to worse. The victims of horrid deaths, er, I mean the supporting cast, is excellent. David Warner plays a photographer who's seeing developments he doesn't like; Patrick Troughton plays a Catholic priest who claims Damien is the antichrist; and Leo McKern is the man with the means to put an end to Damien forever.
The Omen is an unpretentious, cleanly and beautifully filmed movie, well-acted and dead-serious in its approach to the primal-level frightening material.
Fans will be glad to know that the flick's been completely remastered and purists will be mollified with the choice of the original mono track. You can also choose the new Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound mix, and there are closed captions in English (dubbed tracks include French and Spanish).
Disc One:
The movie.
Commentary 1 — Director Richard Donner; film editor, Stuart Baird. This track was previously released on another version of The Omen, but I hadn't heard it before. The commentary is mostly screen-specific but the pair also goes into great detail about the behind-the-scenes making of the film.
Commentary 2 — Director Richard Donner; Donner; film. Why fellow director but otherwise totally unconnected Helgeland is included here is never explained… but, Helgeland has written and/or directed movies under the Fox banner, and it seems he and Donner are friendly, so I guess that's it. The two disagree on some points about the deeper meanings and messages of the movie (and Donner even disagrees with himself, if you listened to the previous, older commentary), but that's OK. It's all in fun. Both men agree that it was Peck's gravitas that grounded the movie in reality. The actor had recently lost his own son, so the storyline of a man having to kill his child was pretty heavy.
Donner talks about the history of David Seltzer's script (originally called The Antichrist), and how the first draft that was presented to him had a lot of devil imagery, including horns, cloven hooves, and the whole bit. He said he brought it way down from that, choosing to view it as a suspense/thriller. He also talks about "The Omen Curse" and all the bad things that happened on the set (not mention seeing Ed Begley's ghost!) — one of the most compelling stories involves some ferocious animals at the safari where one of the scenes was shot.
Curse, or Coincidence? — A short featurette (previously released) that intermixes film clips with the musing of the director, producers, and religious advisor on the movie. Donner pragmatically states that horror movies always beget scary tales, while those having worked on a comedy remember all the funny stuff, and film crews and actors who've done romantics dramas recall all the hookups and breakups that went on. That makes sense, but some of the things that happened on The Omen are mighty creepy! (And, according to Donner, 100% verifiable.) There are scary little things that happened along the way, but there are also some stories about deaths… the freakiest one is about the special effects guy, John Richardson, who rigged the beheading on The Omen. The following year, he was driving with his girlfriend, and at the mile marker 6.66 kilometers, the car crashed, decapitating her.
Jerry Goldsmith On The Omen Score — is also a carry-over (since I never saw of the previous Omen DVDs, it's all new to me) showing the late composer in his studio, reminiscing about four specific pieces of music: Love Theme; Damien to Church; Dog Attack; and 666 & Mrs. Baylock. It's interesting to learn about the influence of Jaws on the score, and how the vocals for the soundtrack album came together.
Original Theatrical Trailer — The clip starts off showing the idyllic marriage, the happy childhood, then, the narrator intones gravely, "When the child was five years old, something happened…" da-da-da! Goes the music. "And then… it happened again." Scary scenes follow, giving away almost all the deaths. "20th Century Fox presents a film of psychological suspense…" And so on. Good 70s stuff.
Disc Two:
Introduction From Richard Donner — Seems odd to have the director's intro on the disc that the movie is not on, but I've always thought these intros were a little odd anyway. Donner seems somewhat uncomfortable having to do it, but as he speaks, scenes from the film are shown. It runs about a minute and change.
666: The Omen Revealed — This featurette was on a previous disc, but for those who haven't seen it, it's a truly interesting, in-depth (45 minutes long) look inside the movie. Donner once again say he didn't want to make a horror movie, preferring the words "suspense" or "thriller." "I didn't want to make a horror movie, it wouldn't have worked," he says. It's interesting to learn how he got Peck to come out of retirement to star in The Omen. The producers and religious advisor are back to add their .02 and share their recollections, and they all (separately) muse on the demonic aspects, numerology, themes of duality, insanity, the curse, and so on.
Donner reveals how Stephens won the role of Damien (by kicking him in the balls!), and how he decided to dye the naturally blonde boy's hair and to have him wear contact lenses for certain scenes to eerily enhance his eye color.
The Omen Legacy — Over 90 minutes of pure demonic fun, produced in part by the AMC Channel and narrated by Jack Palance (whose daughter, Holly, played the hanged nanny in the movie). This doc was broadcast on cable, but it's great to have it here, commercial-free. The show starts off with a brief overview of
Also Included:
- A Deleted Scene (in the graveyard, with the dogs)
- An Appreciation – Wes Craven On The Omen
- The Screenwriter's Notebook
- Photo Gallery — Hundreds of stills, the familiar and the rare
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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson