In 1971, a young American nun in training, Margaret (Nell Tiger Free), arrives in Rome to take up a post at an orphanage.
Plagued by memories of her own abusive upbringing in a similar orphanage, Margaret takes an interest in troubled orphan Carlita (Nicole Sorace).
The pair’s growing rapport draws the disapproval of the other nuns, and Margaret finds herself ostracised.
As a series of strange events plague the orphanage, the trainee nun begins to feel herself going mad…
A few weeks ago, I binged the original Omen movies (1976-1981). I had never seen them before, although I was aware of the concept and the iconography.
I was not even aware this movie existed until the week before it came out, and it was not until I had finished those earlier movies that my curiosity was piqued.
I was also aware that Immaculate was out, and boasted a vaguely similar concept, so I decided to make a double bill of them.
While it’s ending acts as a segue into the ‘76 original, The First Omen feels like it’s own beast.
There are a few echoes and callbacks, incl a nasty addition to the franchise’s list of diabolically inspired deaths.
The film embraces its early 70s setting, setting up the era’s sense of rebellion against the status quo, and using that as the catalyst for the film’s villains.
This is a paranoid conspiracy thriller that ties itself to both the 70s, and the more contemporary conflicts over a woman’s right to choose.
If the film has an influence it is Rosemary’s Baby - Margaret’s flashback to her impregnating recalls the earlier film’s nightmarish copulation.
One could even draw connections between both films’ depictions of Catholicism, and the way that has shaped the central characters’ approach to sex and their own bodies.
A theme that seems to come to the fore in the Omen sequels is the idea of people being attracted to facilitating Damien’s rise for their benefit.
This may be the result of narrative ellipsis, but I got the sense that while a certain people are genuine acolytes (Miss Braylock), others like Robert Foxworth’s unscrupulous executive in Omen II would be looking for other tools for their own power if the Antichrist was not an option.
That attraction to power is remoulded in this film. Instead the film becomes a metaphor for the ways in which ageing power structures will often side with violent forces which share their animosity for change.
There is no satanic conspiracy. Instead, Damien is directly tied to the upheavals of the time in which he was born.
Rather than satanists, it is a faction of the Catholic Church that sees the future Damien as a way to scare people back to God. The Antichrist becomes a literal boogeyman for restoring the power of the Catholic Church.
The film is well cast.
He is only onscreen for a few scenes, but Bill Nighy is cast against type as Margaret’s mentor, lending his charm as a misdirect.
When his monstrousness is finally revealed, Nighy’s warmth is rendered in a new light.
Sonia Braga is almost part of the art direction, her iconic face rendered a sinister mask in a nun’s habit.
More fundamentally to the whole experience, The First Omen never feels like a prequel. There is a glimpse of Gregory Peck, but it is so minor it never feels like the movie is bending itself into a pretzel to fit the beginning of The Omen.
While it teases a follow-up I did not care for, on its own, The First Omen is a terrific picture.
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