Damien: Omen II (1978) Directed by Don Taylor, Mike Hodges
Horror / Drama / Thriller / Fantasy
Film Review
After The Omen (1976) had effectively
set up its premise of impending doom and disaster brought about by a
Satanic messiah, its sequel failed to develop the concept any further
and was quite to content to rehash the entire story, but with its
central character now a few years older. Worse than that, it is
all too obvious that Damien: Omen II
was made only to offer audiences cheap thrills, mainly by introducing
characters and killing them off five minutes later in the most horrific
way possible. This wouldn't have been so bad providing these
shock moments had some edge of reality about them. They seldom
do, and one of the better death scenes looks like a juvenile spoof of
Hitchcock's The Birds.
There isn't much to write home about this tedious sequel - the
performances are bland, the dialogue borderline atrocious, and the
direction distinctly lacking in inspiration. The only saving
grace is Jonathan Scott-Taylor, who manages to be distinctly chilling
as the 13-year-old Damien. But then again, most 13-year-old boys
are pretty damn scary...
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Film Synopsis
After the brutal death of his parents, six-year-old Damien Thorn is adopted
by his uncle, Richard Thorn, who sits at the head of a vast business empire.
Seven years later, Damien is admitted to a prestigious military academy with
his cousin, Mark, and slowly he becomes aware of his sinister destiny.
Anyone who threatens this destiny dies in horrific and mysterious circumstances.
A friend of Richard, Dr Charles Warren, is alarmed when he discovers an ancient
mural depicting the four faces of the Antichrist. One of the faces
is the exact image of young Damien. Along with the mural, Warren is
presented with a box that contains seven daggers, the only weapons
that are capable of destroying Damien. Naturally, Richard Thorn refuses
to accept Warren's certainties that his nephew is the Antichrist - although
it isn't long before he changes his opinion. The deaths of Mark and
Dr Warren finally convince Thorn that Damien is the spawn of the Devil and
must die...
Script: Harvey Bernhard (story),
David Seltzer (characters), Stanley Mann, Mike Hodges
Cinematographer: Bill Butler
Music: Jerry Goldsmith
Cast: William Holden (Richard Thorn),
Lee Grant (Ann Thorn),
Jonathan Scott-Taylor (Damien Thorn),
Robert Foxworth (Paul Buher),
Nicholas Pryor (Charles Warren),
Lew Ayres (Bill Atherton),
Sylvia Sidney (Aunt Marion),
Lance Henriksen (Sergeant Neff),
Elizabeth Shepherd (Joan Hart),
Lucas Donat (Mark Thorn),
Allan Arbus (Pasarian),
Fritz Ford (Murray),
Meshach Taylor (Dr. Kane),
John J. Newcombe (Teddy),
John Charles Burns (Butler),
Paul Cook (Colonel),
Diane Daniels (Jane),
Robert E. Ingham (Teacher),
William B. Fosser (Minister),
Corney Morgan (Greenhouse Technician)
Country: USA
Language: English
Support: Color
Runtime: 107 min
The very best of French film comedy
Thanks to comedy giants such as Louis de Funès, Fernandel, Bourvil and Pierre Richard, French cinema abounds with comedy classics of the first rank.
It was American film noir and pulp fiction that kick-started the craze for thrillers in 1950s France and made it one of the most popular and enduring genres.