The Omen (1976) - Newspaper Ad

Oakland Tribune - June 4, 1976

Here we have one of a handful of doom-laden teasers hyping the upcoming release of The Omen.

John McCarty, in his seminal book Splatter Movies: Breaking the Last Taboo of the Screen, awards The Omen and its two sequels the dubious honor of "introducing a new concept to the bloody arena of mainstream splatter filmmaking - the creative death." [Pg. 106]

"Every time a character in the Omen trilogy breathes an ill word about Damien, the audience knows that the breath will be his or her last." That, and only that, is "what the Omen trilogy is all about." [Pg. 109] According to McCarty, at least.

Over time I have come to a rather interesting theory regarding all the fantastical 'accidents' whittling away the supporting cast of any given Omen movie. One that was flowered via thinking through the logistics of a George Carlin routine regarding "God's Divine Plan."

"What's the use of being God if every rundown schmuck with a two-dollar prayer book can come along and fuck up your plan?" Carlin asks in his routine. If Damien truly is the Anti-Christ, then the biblical prophecies are true and the Second Coming is nigh. 

From a theological standpoint, anyone and everyone that tries to stop Damien's rise to power isn't really saving the world from destruction. They are just prolonging the inevitable and, even worse, fucking with God's Divine Plan.

So who really is doing the smiting here? Think about it...