The Omen (2006)

Alternate titles : The Omen 666

Tagline : "A New Generation of Terror"

Yet another classic horror remake, this 2006 update of the 1976 original essentially follows the same plot. This time we have Liev Schrieber playing a US diplomat living in the UK, echoing the role of Gregory Peck from the original, who is offered an orphaned child in place of his own, after his own child dies during childbirth.

As was the case with the original, as soon as he hits five, that's when the problems start. The Nanny hangs herself, a creepy Rottweiller dog starts hanging round the place and a very bizarre replacement Nanny, played here by Mia Farrow, comes to stay.

Noted British character actor Pete Postlethwaite turns up in the role of the local priest, who gives Damien's dad the bad news about what his son really is, before getting impaled on a church spire. Plus we have Julia Stiles in the role of the ill fated Mrs Thorn. But aside from the odd alternate method of killing, there's very little to distinguish this from the 1976 version and this is where I feel the film is let down.

Also, I felt that Damien (played by young Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick) wasn't sufficiently creepy enough. For some reason, he sports a bizarre looking 'basin' haircut throughout the film. I'm not sure why the Director thought this would make him look more menacing, as I thought it made him look like 'Mo' out of "The 3 Stooges", but anyways...

If you haven't seen the original versio,n then you'll probably enjoy this. However, if you are a fan of the original you may find this little more than a disappointing rehash. Whilst, admittedly, I did find the film to be watchable, it's not outstanding by any means.

Overall Marks : 5/10.

Terrifying Trivia

• Rachael Weisz was originally offered the role of Katherine Thorn but had to decline as she was pregnant at the time.
• Harvey Stephens, who played Damien in the original 1976 film, has a brief role in this as a newspaper reporter. He's the one outside the American Embassy asking Robert Thorn "Was she on drugs?" when he's being questioned about the death of the Nanny.
• The films budget was $25,000,000
• The film makers deliberately released this internationally on 06/06/06, to try and cause a bit of controversy and some adverse publicity.
• Italian actor Giovanni Lombardo Raddice (AKA John Morghen), played Father Spiletto. Who fans of Italian cinema will know from his prolific work in 80's Italian exploitation films. His more notable credits include "City of the Living Dead", "Cannibal Apocalypse", "House by the Edge of the Park" and the infamous "Cannibal Ferox".
• Mia Farrow also starred in Rosemary's Baby, which was another film about creepy kids and the occult. She was offered the part of Mrs Blaylock after Julia Stiles recommended her to the Director.
• With few exceptions, virtually the entire film was filmed in and around Prague. For the scene outside the US Embassy, the shots showing The Houses of Parliament and the London Eye in the background were added digitally.
• Pierce Brosnan and Jim Carrey where both considered for the role of Robert Thorn.
• The scenes inside the hospital were filmed inside a former Soviet military barracks outside of Prague.
• The day after they filmed the scene where Robert Thorn discovers the "666" mark on Damien, there was a problem at the lab and all the negatives from this scene were damaged beyond repair.
• The studio had originally wanted a US PG-13 rating for the film, but director John Moore insisted they should make it with an R rating in mind, as he thought people would "smell a cop out" if a remake of the original Omen was given a family friendly age rating.

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