Recently Film4 in the UK ran all three Omen films on three consecutive nights. Having re-watched and enjoyed Omen 1 and 2, from which the combination of Jerry Goldsmiths score and creepy camera work left me pretty disturbed, I was looking forward to the third and final instalment which I hadn't seen before.
What a massive disappointment.
This film is a complete and total waste of so many good talents.
Sam Neill is pretty good as Damian Thorne. Sly, authoritative when necessary and pretty twisted in certain scenes. Check out the first scene in his satanic chapel as a perfect example of how the character should be played. Excellently done.
The problem here is that the basic premise of the Omen films has been thrown out of the window. I'll admit the writers here did have a challenge. They had to fulfil the prophecy elements stated in the earlier versions and somehow tie all that together with some sort of satisfying conclusion.
So many story points are present but have no bearing on the rest of the plot. Damian becomes the US ambassador to the UK like his (adopted) father before him. This seems to have been required in the story because it's stated in the earlier films that he will rise through the world of politics. Damian also becomes the head of the UN's children's program and this point is given a fair amount of attention at the beginning of the film but once again this comes to nothing in the story.
The prior two films set this story up and it's quite clear to me how the story was intended to progress. Why on earth didn't they follow this? The story as intended by Damian Omen 2 should run as follows...
Damian as head of Thorn Industries has bought up huge amounts of the worlds agricultural land and holds power over food distribution creating famine wherever he pleases. It's through this that he is able to bring the world into conflict and bring about the end of days.
Once again this plot point is mentioned at the beginning of the 3rd film but nothing ever comes of it. Such a frustrating waste.
The staple of The Omen films is the bizarre, random (sometimes overly complex) death scenes to those characters who threaten the antichrists ascension but once again this core element of the films is abandoned. This was the coolest signature of the films inspiring a feeling of dread in the viewer. You know they're screwed but you don't know when it's coming. The idea was taken forward by the Final Destination films with good effect. That's the fun part... and unfortunately it's missing.
Instead we have Rotweilers with hypo abilities (seen in the first film when the nanny hangs herself) and this is massively overused. The whole thing feels like a particularly bad episode of tales of the unexpected.
There is also a bizarre scene where Damian addresses his followers. The location is never disclosed and the followers appear to be a collection of Monty Python caricatures. Perhaps the most silly of these are the two boy scouts...
I found myself laughing out loud at some of the supposedly terrifying death scenes (especially the one at the BBC which is so silly you can't help but laugh).
In my opinion this film needs to be re-made to service the overall story with the ending it deserves. I want to watch each of the various strands of Damian Thorn's devilish plans slot into place perfectly as age of Satan draws closer by his design. Whether he fails or succeeds is irrelevant... We deserved a better ending than this!
What a massive disappointment.
This film is a complete and total waste of so many good talents.
Sam Neill is pretty good as Damian Thorne. Sly, authoritative when necessary and pretty twisted in certain scenes. Check out the first scene in his satanic chapel as a perfect example of how the character should be played. Excellently done.
The problem here is that the basic premise of the Omen films has been thrown out of the window. I'll admit the writers here did have a challenge. They had to fulfil the prophecy elements stated in the earlier versions and somehow tie all that together with some sort of satisfying conclusion.
So many story points are present but have no bearing on the rest of the plot. Damian becomes the US ambassador to the UK like his (adopted) father before him. This seems to have been required in the story because it's stated in the earlier films that he will rise through the world of politics. Damian also becomes the head of the UN's children's program and this point is given a fair amount of attention at the beginning of the film but once again this comes to nothing in the story.
The prior two films set this story up and it's quite clear to me how the story was intended to progress. Why on earth didn't they follow this? The story as intended by Damian Omen 2 should run as follows...
Damian as head of Thorn Industries has bought up huge amounts of the worlds agricultural land and holds power over food distribution creating famine wherever he pleases. It's through this that he is able to bring the world into conflict and bring about the end of days.
Once again this plot point is mentioned at the beginning of the 3rd film but nothing ever comes of it. Such a frustrating waste.
The staple of The Omen films is the bizarre, random (sometimes overly complex) death scenes to those characters who threaten the antichrists ascension but once again this core element of the films is abandoned. This was the coolest signature of the films inspiring a feeling of dread in the viewer. You know they're screwed but you don't know when it's coming. The idea was taken forward by the Final Destination films with good effect. That's the fun part... and unfortunately it's missing.
Instead we have Rotweilers with hypo abilities (seen in the first film when the nanny hangs herself) and this is massively overused. The whole thing feels like a particularly bad episode of tales of the unexpected.
There is also a bizarre scene where Damian addresses his followers. The location is never disclosed and the followers appear to be a collection of Monty Python caricatures. Perhaps the most silly of these are the two boy scouts...
I found myself laughing out loud at some of the supposedly terrifying death scenes (especially the one at the BBC which is so silly you can't help but laugh).
In my opinion this film needs to be re-made to service the overall story with the ending it deserves. I want to watch each of the various strands of Damian Thorn's devilish plans slot into place perfectly as age of Satan draws closer by his design. Whether he fails or succeeds is irrelevant... We deserved a better ending than this!