The Omen

When I was a kid I always swore I would get those triple sixes tattooed on my head! Of course I didn't and anybody who knows me is well aware I'm allergic to the ink hence perhaps my fascination with Suicide Girls. Alas, tattoo or not many of those who do know me are of the mind I didn't need any mark of the beast to be a right royal shit disturber and I certainly had Damien growing up as a great roll model. Over thirty years later and this Richard Donner religious thriller can still get the ol' adrenaline flowing and there are many reasons why. Not a bad script, a stunning score which earned Jerry Goldsmith his only Oscar to date and a serious performance from the great Gregory Peck. It is Peck who brings the air of authenticity to what could have easily been just another low budget spooker and in taking a pay cut for ten percent of the profits it turned out to be his highest paid roll ever! We also have the great Lee Remick to add some melodrama and David Warner brings an annoying zest to the proceeds along with a nice cameo from the late Leo McKern. Doing duty in this one as Damien is Harvey Stephens who only did one other bit part in a TV movie and had an interesting cameo in the 2006 remake. This might be due to the fact he concentrated his efforts on becoming a futures trader and is now a property developer somewhere in the U.K.. Deduce from this what you like, doesn't matter, he brings the creep factor in this film big time. Throw in a crazy nanny, some nasty Rottweilers, a kick ass hanging and a killer decapitation and it all makes for one fine viewing experience.