As 2020 marches on I find myself realizing something that seems cute by comparison. When I was a child, there was an anticipation for these awful days that never really came. Starting in 1999, there was a fear that the year 2000 would mark Y2K and the point where computers became dysfunctional. Go further along and you’ll notice that 2012 (thanks to Roland Emmerich and a bunch of Aztecs) was supposed to be another apocalyptic date. It was so much the case that there even another Earth-shattering date that promised to throw the country into disarray. Otherwise, we had a fun palindrome year in 2002, and 2010-2019 all had dates of similar ilk.
Basically, before it became trendy to argue that this is the “worst year ever,” they seemed to be this fun game that deep down we knew would amount to nothing, but the doubt was insatiable. But what if there’s some truth in this? What if the world is going to shut down? It’s an existential crisis at its finest, but we knew that everything would be fine. I miss those days if just because 2020 was supposed to be the year of the “Hindsight is 2020” meme and a spectacular start to another decade, promising a turning point between old and new ideas that will disappear by 2029.
But there is one date that, for the life of me, I can’t shake. It is one that is kind of cool if you’re into demonic rituals but again amounts to very little in the big picture. I’m talking about June 6, 2006 – or 06/06/06. Write that down if you have to and notice what this symbolizes. Bible thumpers will be the first to tell you that this is the mark of the beast, the number of Satan, and a whole host of other problematic symbols. It’s such a ubiquitous number that Leo Tolstoy once took up a few pages detailing conspiratorial numerology to explain how Napoleon Buonaparte was actually the devil in “War and Peace.” It’s a number whose astigmatism refuses to go away, and you best believe that marketers were going to take advantage of it.
Not since the truthers who believed that Halloween started in Mid-July had horror been allowed to express itself with such a wondrous novelty. How was the world going to mark this occasion? As much as I side with those who suggest that it was 06/06/06 (and those zeroes matter), you just had to roll with the punches, and nobody did it quite like 20th Century Fox who was going to do one of the most devious things imaginable.
For the record, I want to acknowledge that The Omen (1976) is a great horror movie and one of the quintessential demonic child movies. In an era where parents were scared of their children becoming morally astray, cinema had this fascination into these fears. The Omen came up with the ultimate demon child in Damien, brought to Earth to corrupt your soul. There’s something terrifying about him that makes you uncomfortable. Children shouldn’t be murderous brats. Why was he like that? With that said, it also benefitted from a great performance by Gregory Peck and a haunting score by Jerry Goldsmith. Everything about the original is worthy of its legacy – though its sequels are still up for debate.
If you had to be introduced to that decade in horror, The Omen would be on a shortlist of essential must-sees. Damien may not be the most charismatic villain, but the thought of him is enough to fuel nightmares. Still, there’s plenty of mileage to get out of his appearance, most notably a little mark on his hand. If you push his sleeve back, you’re likely to notice the number 666 on there which means, yes… you can see where this is going.
Before diving into how exciting that may sound, a bigger reason to celebrate The Omen in 2006 was because of its 30th anniversary. As is the case with every decade, the masterpieces of cinema deserve to be recognized whether with op-eds or rereleases that allow audiences to rediscover something that has stood the test of time. While the fear of moral decay and Satanic Panic may have faded by 2006, there is still the worry that your child will be brainwashed by some evil forces. To go even more recently, it would be like losing them to Q’Anon conspiracy theorists, doing their job so gradually that you can’t explain how you lost your way.
While the idea of remaking a classic feels crass, The Omen (2006) is par for the course in terms of profiteering on the least amount of work. This isn’t to discredit the film, but there’s already concern that remaking the film would ultimately be seen as unnecessary, forcing people to realize how empty modern American horror was. Instead of making a modern classic on par, they’d rather just follow something tried and true. It is an easy way to get money and, at the end of the day, isn’t that what movie studios are here for?
Another added benefit is that the 30th anniversary landed on the aforementioned 06/06/06, which deterred from the usual release schedules of Wednesday or Thursday. Outside of major holidays, it was uncommon for this to happen. That alone helped it to stand out in a meaningful way, making it a must-see movie. After all, how often were you going to see a movie about the devil on the day most symbolic of the curse that he’s brought upon the world? There’s almost no other reason to continue down this train of thought, but it’s a bit of a bummer that theaters weren’t given buttons to say “I saw ‘The Omen’ on 666.” That would’ve made everything that followed more of a relief.
Mind you, this was in a wasteland period where the idea of a great horror movie felt like a joke. It was a time of American J-Horror remakes like The Ring (2002) and The Grudge (2004) which, based on popular consensus, were not as good as their Japanese counterparts. They felt more studio-mandated, less works of auteurs, and more excuses to shove gore and jump-scares in. This was a brief period when directors like Eli Roth would come to prominence with their form of “torture porn.” The Omen in 2006 had a low bar to cross if it wanted to be considered worth anything.
That is why the advertising may be the most underwhelming, pandering thing imaginable for a film designed for such a momentous date. Then again, it felt like it would be obsolete once you got to June 7 and the buzz spread that this movie was another underwhelming rehash. But for now, you had trailers doing the work, presenting a conventional remake that hits all of the familiar notes. Remember when the maid jumped while saying “This is for you, Damien”? That’s here. Frankly, it did everything to convince you that this was a remake of The Omen, almost too faithfully. The only thing that really changed was the names: Live Schreiber, Julia Stiles, Mia Farrow, and our boy Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick. Behind the camera was director John Moore of Max Payne (2008) and A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) fame. Not a great line-up, but clearly someone who could be trusted for a studio release.
When doing research, I was underwhelmed at the lack of information about this film. At the time, it felt like one of those novelties that my friends couldn’t pass up. Given that it was towards the end of the high school year, classes were winding down and we had more time to waste away in a theater. I personally have never seen The Omen, but those on Myspace with nothing better to do openly admitted that they spent the afternoon waiting in line, ready to see something that was sold as an event. Then again, it was “The Emperor’s New Clothes” of releases, proving that once inside you weren’t getting something on part with the 1976 original. Unless you were Roger Ebert, you were going to think it was lacking.
This was of course if you weren’t a real-life Satanist. Much like how The Omen was celebrating its 30th anniversary, The Church of Satan was promoting its 40th anniversary. At The Steve Allen Theater, they gathered to watch the Boris Karloff classic The Black Cat (1934), which is one of the few mainstream movies of early Hollywood to feature a pivotal Satanist character. While I personally think I would’ve been uncomfortable by the atmosphere, it frankly sounds like a much better use of your evening. Putting up with a “Hail Satan!” here or there may have lead to more interesting surprises. There was also a concert on 6/06/06 where Metallica played all of “Master of Puppets” in Berlin, Germany – itself celebrating its 20th anniversary (though not specifically on that date) that would be up on YouTube the following day.
Here’s the thing. If you were a cinephile and had nothing better to do on a Tuesday, they had you figured out. You would see The Omen because of morbid curiosity, or that you were too cheap to go to Blockbuster and rent the better one. Add in that the film premiered at 6:06:06 A.M., and you can understand how committed they were to this gimmick. It was enough to earn them $12 million on Tuesday alone. This would be the highest gross for a Tuesday for a near year when Transformers (2007) came into the world and gave Michael Bay a permanent blight on pop culture.
Oh sure, The Omen was a box office hit, earning $120 million on a $25 million budget, but it’s one of the hundreds of hits with absolutely no staying power. If it was released on any other day in any given year, there’s a good chance that it would be even less of a noteworthy title. Earning a Razzie nomination, it was not much of a critical success and it shows the difficulty of committing to an idea and having it stick. Much like 2012 (2009) a few years later, it’s all dependent on how much you’re willing to fall for it.
I’m thankful that in 2020 there are more qualitative horror movies to pull from theatrically. While there will always be those junky titles, things have come full circle, to a time like when The Omen dominated the box office in 1976. There was a quest to make a new kind of narrative, to inspire the next generation. It’s likely that any of the big hits from the past few years will resonate with young filmmakers. I’m looking at Jordan Peele or Ari Aster. Figures who clearly have a love for their craft, giving us plenty to talk about for hours on end. I wish The Omen wasn’t just some bad joke but actually deserved its date. Much like the people sitting in that theater back in 2006, we will never get that moment back and I hope you feel somewhat cheated for it.
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