The Omen Dvd Collection
Lacy Tortelli
The gloriously wide and meticulously framed 2.35:1 image from DOP Gilbert Taylor keeps its grain intact, which will be a distinct blessing to many people in this era of excessive digital cleaning-up, and, at first, this gives the impression that the picture is a little grubbier than previously. This, of course, is not actually the case. The grain is now a little accentuated in 1080p, that's all, but the resulting picture is hugely filmic. More of the damage has been restored and/or cleaned-up. For instance, the vertical blue line that cropped up on the extreme left hand side of the screen as Father Brennan makes his last-ditch run towards a holy sanctuary that will refuse him, has now gone. Just earlier than when this line was due to appear, a vague and very faint line does show itself, and it is true that the sides of the picture can occasionally still soften-up or lose distinction - but then, they always did. Certain other portions of speckling or age-related wear and tear are now much more bearable, though the early scenes in the film set in the hospital during the baby swap still seem a little choppy with small, but noticeable judders and wobbles.
The colours are more natural this time around, though one or two primaries can still leap out from the screen. Skin tones have altered from last time around, but are, again, a little more realistic - pinky for some, paler for others. Blacks are a little bit stronger, too. Thorne creeping about his house and dealing with the devil-dog, then discovering the 666 mark on Damien's head benefit from this greater depth of shadow and the subterranean discussion with Buganhagen is also moodier. However, there could be a couple of instances when the blacks are a tad too overwhelming, such as when Thorne takes a tumble down the stairs after a brief electric shock - that exhibits a great blue/white flash, by the way - and when he and Jennings observe the dogs on the hillocks around them in the graveyard. Contrast is great for the most part, though there are some minor fluctuations dotted about.
Edge enhancement may be spotted on some objects seen against lighter backgrounds, but this is definitely minor and nothing to be concerned about. Fast motion, such as the dog attack, the fall from a hospital window, a spinning head etc, is untouched by drag, blurring or smearing. I did spot some hazing and shimmering on some patterns and something that may just be a reflection on the lens captured just above someone's hat as the rugby match ends. But none of this really proves much of a distraction from what is, certainly, a superior transfer.
Dialogue isn't the best that I've heard. It is always clear and easily discernable, but it can sometimes sound a little flat and sunken within the mix. Mind you, some of the verbals in The Omen have always sounded like that - even in the mono - so for them to suddenly be hurled out into the soundscape with vitality would probably come across as quite fake. So, c'est la vie. But Damien's hollering and crying in the backseat of the car as he draws near the church during that classic scene of toddler-trauma - it's still not as bad as when one of your own throws a screaming fit on the floor of the local supermarket, though - will still rattle your nerves!
The pivotal gunshot is dealt a delicious slo-mo echo that is certainly felt through the rear right speaker, but The Omen, in honesty, does not present much in the way of surround activity that is really worth talking about. What this DTS-MA mix does do, however, is deliver some serious bass, a wide spread across the front and some terrific depth and power that the mono, despite its clarity and purity, cannot compare with. Now, the most obvious recipient of this boosted bombast is Jerry Goldsmith's score - and you won't find any argument from me about that. The low chanting, the percussion, the shrieking choral overkill, the piercing strings and the simple, heartbreaking piano lament are so much more impactful and clearer than in any other mix - the mono, or the previous DD 5.1 - that it would be daft to complain. Straightaway, the score seems to swell from further away than the speakers sit, and there is a subtle, but true, sense of it bleeding in from all around you during many of the more strenuous cues. The film needs this level of aural violence and plaintiff eloquence for its quieter, more intimate moments. Those final four notes of music after the dogs attack Thorne and Jennings in the graveyard, the momentous main theme, the amazing assault of the Killer Storm - combined with some enhanced effects such as the lightning strikes and the cracking thunder (love the metallic sound as both the fence and then the spire get hit!) - are all rendered with an emphasis that is crisp, tight and rewarding.
So, as you have gathered - and purists beware - I found the lossless surround track to be the most enjoyable. Full of vigour, full of satanic presence and totally in love of Goldsmith's score. Say no more. But, as with the picture, this also has to be assessed in relation to the moving times and technology. Yet, despite hardly wowing us with zip-around steerage and wild surround activity, I am still going to award The Omen a 7 out 10 for its lossless track.
ExtrasWell, there's more here than you can shake a satanic stick at. The Anniversary Edition of The Omen came with some good stuff, and all of that has not only been retained but, amazingly enough, even added to for this BD edition, meaning that Omen fans will be in seventh heaven - which is a little ironic, isn't it?
A brief Introduction from Richard Donner (from the 2006 edition) sets the scene in a quite matter-of-fact sort of way, although we are now given the added bonus of a much newer interview with the man in the fifteen-minute Richard Donner On The Omen, which Fox have also seen fit to present to us in full HD. A nostalgic and warm-hearted (which is odd considering our main topic is the Devil) reflection that combines a lot that fans already knew and some slightly fresher thoughts and recollections. Some familiar anecdotes are trotted out - the taxi driver's finger, the effectiveness of shooting 2.35:1, the tragedy that had befallen Gregory Peck just before he signed on for the picture - but what still gets me is that Donner, even now, clings to the belief that the film is just a psychological thriller and that the events in it are all just coincidences that conspire to screw up Thorne's troubled mind. Sorry, Richard, but with all due respect - you're just plain wrong, mate. Even forgetting that the story goes on with the sequels and totally reinforces the Devil's part in all of this, The Omen is pretty damn clear who and what is pulling the strings. I just cannot see it any other way - and I'm quite happy about that, too. Nevertheless, I like Donner and his movies, and I enjoy hearing him reminisce.
Then we find that the excellent commentaries that graced the previous edition have been lifted over also. The chat from Richard Donner and editor Stuart Baird is a good one, even though it is sometimes a little raspy, dry and technical, but this is supremely built upon with the next commentary, that teams up the director with screenwriter Brian Helgeland (Man On Fire, A Knight's Tale, LA Confidential). In this track, the film is actually quite well examined from a lot of varied angles - from the casting and the shooting to the structure and the themes of the story. Whilst Stuart Baird reinforces the methods and mechanics of the troubled shoot, Helgeland probes a little deeper into the meanings of the story's heady and theological themes even if, for a lot of the time, he and Donner just bounce jokes and good-humoured deprecations off each other.
The BD release in this collection now boasts a third commentary track. This one, featuring critic Lem Dobbs and score specialists Jeff Bond and Nick Redman, may feel like over-indulgence to many because it tends to focus upon Jerry Goldsmith's score. Now, as you should know by now, this is exactly the sort of thing that floats my boat. Both Redman and Bond have been very active with movie scores over the years and both really know their stuff. The film, itself, its themes and its cast are discussed as well - such as why Charlton Heston turned the role of Robert Thorne down, the state of the movie industry at that time and, naturally, all of the big moments like impalements, dog attacks and beheadings. But the driving force behind all of this is Goldsmith.
Tying-in quite nicely with this is the Isolated Score track that showcases Goldsmith's Oscar-winning compositions in Dolby Digital (448 Kbps) 5.1. Now, I intend to cover the soundtracks for the original trilogy and the remake of The Omen separately, and in great detail, so, let me just say that the superb score is given a fabulous presentation here, though, as is the nature of such tracks, the experience can be slightly weird - being neither one thing nor the other. It is not the film, and due to the pauses in-between cues, nor does it feel like you are listening properly to the score. However, I certainly applaud Fox for doing such a thing and allowing those who are, perhaps, more casually intrigued by the power of a movie's soundtrack - especially one so prominent as The Omen's - the opportunity to have it available with the release.
Curse Or Coincidence featurette (6.20 mins) that also appeared on the earlier release. Chronicling the mind-boggling series of weird incidents that plagued the shoot - IRA bombs, lightning hitting the plane twice, accidents on-set, baboon antics and the wholly frightening tragedy that befell special effects man John Richard and his girlfriend as he was filming A Bridge Too Far - this is extremely thought-provoking stuff, going far beyond publicity hype and sensationalising. Donner doesn't believe in the curse at all. Check out producer Mace Neufield - he's a deadringer for Mickey Rourke!
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