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Almost half a century after the release of ‘The Omen’ (1976), its prequel arrives on our screens; an Italian-American co-production with a similar length, although with a significantly lower quality level.
This is a horror thriller directed by a filmmaker unknown to the public and with hardly any works worth noting or seeing.
The story tells us the origins of the demonic being that would star in the well-known film in which Gregory Peck would also have a starring role.
Arkasha Stevenson deserves a word for her impeccable direction. She understood perfectly the cinematographic language that the film demanded. She narrates with images, uses silence, cuts, mise-en-scène... everything helps to make us doubt what we are seeing.
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It's true that at some point he seems to enjoy himself too much by recreating scenes that didn't demand so much space, but it's a price I'm willing to pay if I receive this treatment as a spectator.
The conflict between reality and madness is not only present in the characters, but also in the spectator himself, who questions every image that shakes the screen.
This duality is supported by a playful script that understands the limitations of the prequels and expertly resolves them with its own tricks to maintain intrigue.
This film is not born with the purpose of justifying the four gimmicky scares that bring young people to the cinema; it is one of many in our memory. It is much more than that.
The portrayal of the Church, while it will not please the Vatican, does not hesitate to prostitute its brotherhood. There is goodness and hope among its habits, but they are obscured by the fear of losing what they once were: their power, their status, their dominance among the people.
Far from wanting to evolve, their attempt to prevail as the shadowy influence is to hide behind the phrase that exempts them from any sin: ‘I do it in the name of God’.
The real evil of ‘The First Prophecy’ is the human being, capable of any atrocity because he believes he is doing the right thing. His anvition will be the trigger for his own self-destruction.
In the cast of this no less than two-hour feature film, we see the young British actress Nell Tiger Free,
In the role of the Sister Superior of this Roman religious school, we see an unrecognisable Sonia Braga, who at 73 years of age looks very different from how we saw her decades ago. Another veteran actor in the cast is the Englishman Bill Nighy.
It's been a long time since I watched horror the movie. But I will definitely watch this one.
Went to see it on the big screen in April last year. The best horror movie of 2024. A little slow a first, but then it gains momentum and develops into a really great one. That part when the woman starts to convulse after the car crash is just superb. I’m not a fan of horror movies, but for The Omen I make an exception. I wrote a post about The Omen original trilogy in 2023, you can check it on my blog.