The Omen

Great musical scores have the power to give even a mediocre film a life of its own. The Oscar-winning score for The Omen, composed by Jerry Goldsmith, is not just terrifying with its ferocious and angry Latin chanting, it’s also elegantly classical and, surprisingly, melodically beautiful. Beyond working as standalone music, Goldsmith tells a complete story through his score. He creates a wholesome, almost idyllic theme to represent the family of an American diplomat who unknowingly adopts the Antichrist. As the child’s power slowly tears the family apart, the theme is warped and twisted until, by the end, its beauty has become an agonizing expression of what once was. It’s remarkable work, an artful exercise in storytelling through music that Hollywood seems to have largely forgotten. Even when the movie itself isn’t at its most effective (which I’ll get into shortly), Goldsmith’s score remains gripping, doing much of the film’s heavy lifting.

Director Richard Donner, who at the time was best known for his television work, was hired to bring Robert Munger’s concept to life. Munger, a former advertising executive with no screenwriting experience, had the idea of the Antichrist being born into modern times. Screenwriter David Seltzer developed the story, weaving in real biblical prophecies to add an extra layer of credibility. Given the recent success of The Exorcist and Rosemary’s Baby, it’s no surprise that 20th Century Fox greenlit the project, it was a perfect way to capitalize on the religious horror trend while adapting some of the Bible’s most mysterious and frightening passages for audiences. With the Bible already doing much of the narrative heavy lifting, the film itself only needed to be decent, and aside from Goldsmith’s score, that’s pretty much what it is.

Behind the biblical inspirations and terrifying music, The Omen is essentially a “string of deaths while the protagonist searches for answers” movie. The audience already knows more than the protagonist, right from the opening moments, as the Latin choir literally screams “Satani,” we understand that this child is bad news. The film mostly leaves us waiting for Robert Thorn (played with gravitas by Gregory Peck) to catch up. The deaths themselves are creative, functioning like a 1970s precursor to Final Destination, with decapitations and eerie premonitions that hint at upcoming deaths. Watching characters attempt to escape their fate, only to meet a gruesome end, is consistently entertaining. The film’s atmosphere in these moments is highly effective, particularly in standout sequences like the nanny’s shocking suicide or the unsettling clues found in photographs.

Where the film stumbles is in its handling of Damien himself. It certainly did a lot for the name “Damien,” forever cementing it as an omen (no pun intended) of evil in American culture. But for a film centered on a child bringing about the end times, The Omen barely lets us experience Damien’s evil firsthand. Most of the action happens around him rather than through him. He rarely speaks, barely takes direct action, and the few moments of implied malevolence, like causing his mother to fall, remain ambiguous. The film misses an opportunity to explore parental love in the face of inherent evil. How do you love a child destined to destroy everything? Instead of delving into that question, the film relies on a rushed early montage to establish the family bond and then spends large stretches of time without involving Damien at all.

Ultimately, The Omen is best experienced as a visual accompaniment to its masterpiece of a score, rather than the other way around. While the film itself is engaging in moments and effectively eerie, it’s Goldsmith’s music that makes it unforgettable.

At a glance

3.5/5

Worth your time

Where to watch

Disney+Cravehollywood suiteNot available for streaming

Trailer

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