31 Days of Horror! Day 15 | The Omen

Our Community Director Carrie Cates is watching a horror film each day this October, in what she has dubbed 31 Days of Horror! We’ll be posting her spooky cinema journey here every day this month, so check back in to see what she’s watching next!

The Omen

"First, a little soapbox moment. If you are participating in the 31 days of horror project or even just looking for a movie to watch, I encourage you to visit your local video rental store. The next 4 films I picked up at Vulcan Video this weekend because I was having trouble finding them online and I was reminded of so many other horror films that I need to add to my list. So many movies are just not talked about online because they aren't on Netflix or other streaming services. Don't let these services narrow your viewing experience and don't let these old classics fall off the map. On top of this, go local! Support your local shop if you are lucky enough to still have one.

Rant over.

I expected the film that makes literally every "must watch" or "scariest" lists to be scarier. The Omen does have its moments, and you can easily trace its influence on everything in the genre from The Final Destination series to Braindead/Dead Alive. I will say I had been putting off watching this one though because of the hype, which like The Exorcist didn't live up to it. It starts off fairly strong with the babysitter and the bits of the story with the photographer I thought were most interesting although that character was too weird, but otherwise it kind of fell flat for me.

I guess the moral of the story is don't adopt some kid if you don't know where or who its parents are? Better yet, don't lie to your wife? I wonder if this film hurt adoption rates at the time?

3 out of 5 for pretty violent deaths that will stick with you and a creepy kid. Might be higher if you have kids of your own."

-  Carrie