Hospital chaplain Father Spiletto is consoling American diplomat Robert Thorn, who just learned his newborn son didn’t make it. In this moment of grief, the chaplain convinces Thorn to adopt different baby whose mother died in childbirth. Thorn does so and tells no one—not even his wife. They name the boy Damien.
Five years later, Thorn is the ambassador to the UK and seemingly on a fast track to the U.S. presidency. The Thorns live a privileged, perfect life until strange things start happening: a vicious Rottweiler keeps appearing, Damien’s nanny hangs herself, and Damien has a violent panic attack when the Thorns try to take him to church. As a tragic swirl of deaths begin to happen around the Thorns, photographer Keith Jennings and Robert cooperate on an investigation that leads them to a troubling conclusion: Damien is the antichrist—the son of the devil. And thus, Robert is faced with an unimaginable struggle: Destroy his own child or be destroyed.
For all the religious iconography and lore surrounding this film, I’m convinced it’s just a story about how messy parenthood can be. LOL. “The Omen” is another in a class of ‘60s-‘70s religious horror films that couch their jumps and terror in the supposed authenticity of scripture. And even for someone like me, there’s something weirdly convincing about it. Throw in the supernatural photography element, the superb use of a “creepy kid”, and a perfectly good performance by Gregory Peck and you have a solid film.