Damien : Omen 2

Alternate titles : The Omen 2

Tagline : "The First Time was only a Warning"

The Omen had made mucho-moolah for the film company, so the inevitable sequel was quick to follow. Flashing forward several years from the events of the previous movie, Damien, played here by Jonathon Scott-Taylor, is now in his early teens and has just been enrolled in a Military school.

Damien's uncle, Richard Thorn (William Holden), had raised him following the death of his father, but it seems that he's totally unawhere of Damien's demonic origins. But then that's not really surprising as anyone who tries to warn him, or for that matter finds out about him, ends up dying in mysterious circumstances (anyone who remembers anything about this film will always recall the scene with that woman being attacked by the satanic blackbird after her car breaks down).

However, it seems that Damien is himself unawhere of who he is, but that doesn't prevent people who get in his way, or piss him off, from coming a cropper. It seems that dark forces are at work keeping him safe, some of the more memorable deaths including a doctor being cut in half in a lift accident and the workers at his Uncle's plant choking to death during a toxic gas leak.

Will his Uncle finally discover the truth and do something about the boy, or will he end up going the same way as his Brother Robert? Leo McKern, who also starred in the first film, makes a brief return as troubled archaeologist Carl Bugenhagen and 70's actress Lee Grant stars as Richard's wife Ann. Look out for young-ish Lance Henricksen, in an early screen role, as Damien's platoon Sergeant.

Whilst this isn't quite as good as the original, it is still quite entertaining. Fans of the original should seek this one out if they've not already done so.

Overall Marks : 5/10.

Terrifying Trivia

• The Military school used in the film was the Lake Geneva Military academy. The cadets used as extras in the background were actual students from the school.
• Producer Harvey Bernhard apparently wanted to make the film about Damien as a high school student in his late teens, but studio president Alan Ladd insisted Damien should be much younger. A decision that Bernhard blames for the films mediocre success at the box office as the boy was too young to be dealing drugs, corrupting the other kids or doing anything really "evil".
• The film's budget was $4,000,000.
• William Holden had been offered Gregory Peck's role in the previous film, but had declined. But after the huge success of "The Omen" he realised his error and approached them about being in the sequel.
• Mike Hodges, who wrote the screenplay, was originally hired to direct, but left partway through filming due to "creative differences" between himself and the producers. Don Taylor (Island of Dr Moreau) was subsequently hired to replace him, but several scenes directed by Hodges were left in the finished film.
• The building used as the Thorn mansion was actually a college campus in Illinois, the Lake Forest Academy. However they could only use the rear of the building for filming as the front had a modern facade built onto it.
• Composer Jerry Goldsmith was the first crew member to be asked to return, as the producers felt it was his haunting musical score that sold the first film.
• There were plans to release a third Omen film starring Jonathon Scott-Taylor in 1979, but after this film didn't perform as well at the box office as they'd liked, that idea was shelved. A third film was eventually released in 1981 starring Sam Neil as a much older Damien.
• Jonathon Scott-Taylor who played Damien in this instalment, went on to have several minor film and TV roles before leaving acting and going into the legal profession. According to the IMDB he's currently working as a lawyer. No one really seems to know anything else about his whereabouts

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