Antepisode of The Omen (1976), horror drama by Richard Donner which was the subject of three sequels (1978, 1981 and 1991) and a remake (2006), The First Omen (The curse: the beginningin French) allows director Arkasha Stevenson (the genre anthology series Channel Zero) to make a sensational debut on the big screen with this first feature film.
Based on an idea from Ben Jacoby (co-writer of Bleedby Tripp Rhame), based on the characters created by David Seltzer (screenwriter of both versions of The curse), Arkasha Stevenson, Tim Smith (Channel Zero) and Keith Thomas (Charlie) sign a solid scenario that they took the time to develop rather than relying on a series of shock effects and morbid elements. Juggling effectively with the codes of the genre, the director and her acolytes even allow themselves to fiercely criticize the instrumentalization of the female body by the Catholic Church.
In fact, in The First Omen, girls and women only serve to obey the orders of the men of the church, who foment the return of the antichrist, to bear the fruit of their diabolical machinations and to ensure that the sheep do not wander away of the right path. Unwanted pregnancies and painful births are basically what awaits them. And beware of them if they have the misfortune of not giving birth to boys! “Woe to the women who are pregnant and to those who are nursing in those days! », we read in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew…
Played with fervor by the prodigious Nell Tiger Free, Sister Margaret, a young American nun plagued by horrifying visions sent to an orphanage for girls in Rome, is less innocent than she seems. Thus, in a few shots, Arkasha Stevenson gives her the appearance of Caravaggio’s Medusa, the ultimate symbol of the rebellious woman. The authoritarian sister Silvia (imposing Sônia Braga) will not take long to realize this.
If it deviates somewhat from the original story, The First Omen brings some judicious clarifications on the origins of Damien, the boy bearing on his body the number of the beast of The Omen. In addition to a few nods to the first film, where we found spectacular deaths, we reconnect in the pre-episode with the character of Father Brennan (Ralph Ineson and his penetrating voice from beyond the grave) and the unforgettable music of Jerry Goldsmith.
With a perfectly toxic atmosphere and careful aesthetics, The First Omen also contains striking references to Rosemary’s Baby (1968) by Polanski, The Exorcist (1973), by Friedkin, and Possession (1981), by Zulawski. Enough to restore faith in the nonnesploitation film to those who had lost it in the face of the more than heartbreaking Immaculateby Michael Mohan.
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horror drama
The First Omen (V.F.: The curse: the beginning )
Arkasha Stevenson
Nell Tiger Free, Ralph Ineson, Sônia Braga
2 hours