The Omen Collection (Deluxe Edition): Blu-Ray Review
Arriving this week on Blu-ray is the beautifully packaged Deluxe Edition of “The Omen” Collection, courtesy of Scream Factory. Prior to the 1980’s, horror franchises weren’t a big thing. It wasn’t until “Halloween” and “Friday the 13th” spawned multiple sequels that it became a norm in Hollywood. However, in 1976, “The Omen” was a big hit and two years later, the first sequel was released. We would eventually get two more films (one being made-for-TV) and a reboot. Like many horror franchises, “The Omen” sequels would drop in quality with each subsequent film.
I haven’t watched “The Omen” films since I was a child and truthfully, I don’t recall ever watching “The Final Conflict” before viewing Scream Factory’s set. The new remaster of the original film looks fantastic and should be quite pleasing to the fans. Although the rest of the titles haven’t been remastered, they still look quite good, including the very low-budgeted fourth film, which only has a quick reference connecting it to the previous ones. Since the remake is from 2006, it fares pretty, well with the picture and sound quality but, having re-watched it within 48 hours of the original, I was kind-of shocked how much of it is an exact copy instead of a remake. I will probably get some flack for this, but I do feel Live Schreiber was better suited for the role of Robert Thorn than Gregory Peck. As for the third film, Sam Neill was its’ saving grace, I just wish the climax didn’t land with a thud.
For fans of the series, Scream Factory’s Deluxe Edition is vastly superior to the one released by 20th Century Fox in 2008, based on its’ content. Two of the biggest differences between the releases is that unlike the 2008 set, this new edition includes a new 4K remaster of the original 1976 film and it also includes “Omen IV: The Awakening” for the first time on Blu-ray. Those are two major factors when considering upgrading your collection. Another major difference is the number of bonus features on the five-disk set. Although, no new additions have been made for the remake, there are plenty of new features for the first four films, as well as some previously released ones. I may not be a big fan of this series, but for those of you who are, Scream Factory has put out a fantastic set that includes plenty of content to keep you busy for hours.
Bonus Features
DISC ONE: THE OMEN (1976)
- 4K Transfer From The Original Negative, Approved By Director Richard Donner
- NEW The Devil’s Word – An Interview With Screenwriter David Seltzer
- NEW It’s All For You – An Interview With Actress Holly Palance
- NEW The Devil’s Music – An Interview With Composer Christopher Young Talking About Jerry Goldsmith’s Legendary Score
- NEW Audio Commentary With Special Project Consultant Scott Michael Bosco
- Audio Commentary With Director Richard Donner And Editor Stuart Baird
- Audio Commentary With Director Richard Donner And Filmmaker Brian Helgeland
- Audio Commentary With Film Historians Lem Dobbs, Nick Redman, And Jeff Bond
- Isolated Score Track
- Richard Donner On The Omen
- The Omen Revelations
- Curse Of Coincidence?
- 666: The Omen Revealed
- Screenwriter’s Notebook – An Interview With Writer David Seltzer
- Introduction With Director Richard Donner (2006)
- Deleted Scene With Commentary
- An Appreciation – Wes Craven On The Omen
- Jerry Goldsmith Discusses The Omen Score
- Trailers From Hell Featuring Commentary By Filmmaker Larry Cohen
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spots
- Radio Spots
- Still Galleries – Behind The Scenes, Movie Stills, Posters, And Lobby Cards
DISC TWO: DAMIEN: OMEN II (1978)
- NEW Damien’s Guardian – An Interview With Actress Lee Grant
- NEW The Devil’s CEO – An Interview With Actor Robert Foxworth
- NEW The Harbinger – An Interview With Actress Elizabeth Shepard
- NEW Elizabeth Shepherd’s Scrapbook – A Look At Her Behind The Scenes Photos With Commentary By Elizabeth Shepherd
- NEW Audio Commentary With Special Project Consultant Scott Michael Bosco
- Audio Commentary With Producer Harvey Bernhard
- Vintage Featurette – Power And The Devil: The Making of Damien: Omen II
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spot
- Radio Spot
- Still Gallery
DISC THREE: OMEN III: THE FINAL CONFLICT (1981)
- NEW The Devil In The Detail – An Interview With Director Graham Baker
- NEW Resurrecting The Devil – An Interview With Screenwriter/Associate Producer Andrew Birkin
- NEW Interview With Production Assistant Jeanne Ferber
- NEW Audio Commentary With Special Project Consultant Scott Michael Bosco
- Audio Commentary With Director Graham Baker
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spots
- Still Gallery
DISC FOUR: OMEN IV: THE AWAKENING (1991)
- NEW The Book Of Evil – An Interview With Screenwriter Brian Taggert
- Theatrical Trailer
- Still Gallery
- The Omen Legacy – A Documentary On The Omen films
DISC FIVE: THE OMEN (2006)
- Audio Commentary With Director John Moore, Producer Glenn Williamson, And Editor Dan Zimmermann
- Unrated Extended Scenes And Extended Ending
- Omenisms – Behind The Scenes Of The Omen (2006)
- Abbey Road Recording Sessions Featurette
- Revelation 666: Behind The Scenes
- Theatrical Trailers
By: Marc Ferman