Success! Finally I've managed to get a review up before Matt, if only by writing it on the day and posting it while he's still driving home..... Still, I'm counting it as a victory.

Another in a long line of recent remakes, this one timed for release on the 6th of the 6th 2006, 30 years on from the original.

The film's plot deals with the birth and early years of the son of Satan, Damian. A diplomat's (Robert Thorn, played by Liev Schreiber) child is switched at birth (with the knowledge of the diplomat but not the wife) and is raised as his own. The Thorn is posted to the UK, where his wife (Julia Stiles) and nanny raise the child. When Damien (Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick) reaches five various violent and unusual events begin to occur, which sends Thorn on a mission of discovery that leads him to the awful truth, with help from a priest (Pete Postlethwaite) and a photographer (David Thewlis).

Even if you haven't seen the original you will no doubt recognise some elements of the film as a tattoo of 666 and Damien are some of the most heavily referenced film elements in existence, from Delboy and Raquel's son in Only Fools and Horses to Spaced

Much of the film remains true to the original. Several of the deaths are very similarly done, and the use of photographs to fortell the methods of death remains. Notably this element has been lifted by the "Final Destination" series of films with a minimal plot producing a forumulaic film franchise (mmm.. alliteration) the main entertaining aspect being trying to guess what unlikely turn of events will cause a death in the manner crytically suggested. Anyway, I digress.

The pace of the film seems good, the action never dragging even during the periods of building suspense. Then again, there seems to be less suspense than the original (which, I have to admit, I haven't seen in years), with a greater reliance on sudden shocks for frights, although most of these are helpfully signposted by the soundtrack turning to omnious bass tones.

Unfortunately, I think they missed badly on the casting or direction of Damien himself. Rather than feeling like an evil entity hiding behind a veneer of "good little boy", he barely registers at all. This is something I wasn't convonced by in the trailer (which is a problem really, as it was supposed to be the point of the trailer) and I remained pretty unconvinced in the film. This may not have been helped by the very small number of lines given to him. At some point, omniously quiet, brooding evil becomes disinterested stand-in with occasional changes of expression.

While the original used careful cutting to imply much of the horrific violence, this showed it in full. Although none of the scenes are massively high on the gorometer, actually seeing the death happen doesn't add anything that the implication didn't. In fact, I think if anything it is less effective, as with the implication and cutaway there is always an element of "that's not going to happen" and a shock on cutting back, wheras with this its just there...

Overall, its a bit of a strange mix. The plot is, as far as I can remember of the original, pretty much unchanged, but while the original was omiously sinister this is a combination of short range suspense, situational horror (one death in particular) and jump shocks. Overall, from what I remember the original was better, but this is still entertaining.

By using trickery, deception, and quick blast of Cowboys from Hell on Guitar Hero Byrnie has beaten me to the first post. Very well then. But mark my words, when you least expect it, your uppance shall come.

Anyway on to the anti-christ, I get the feeling this movie was put together solely so they could make use of 6/6/06 tie in. I can't see any other reason for the remake, not that its a bad remake from what I can remember it matches the original, as Byrnie says, but its a fairly derivative work adding nothing to the original.

Liev Schreiber is someone I've seen in quite a few things and never really been sure how he fits. He's a good actor but I've just never been convinced he was the right person for the parts he was playing bar maybe the recent remake of the mancurian candidate. In this he is good enough playing Robert Thorn and gives a fairly convincing performance he seems fairly detached form the events around him which could be deliberate. I would guess diplomatic staff might have that sort of personality.

Julia Stiles is reasonably good as the wife of Robert and "mother" of Damien, I felt they could have done more with the part though she has a few scenes which are reasonable but most of the time she is just the "crazy" wife who is convinced her child is evil.

Mia Farrow is very good as the Nanny radiating malevolence and creepy evil as well as a certain amount of old fashioned eccentric nanny a sort of Mary Poppins crossed with Hannibal Lecter.

Pete Postlethwaite and David Thewlis are both good as the guilt racked accomplice priest and the newspaper photographer. The kid Damien, as Byrn mentions, is not that impressive he doesn't come across to me as evil incarnate more grumpy child who is in a mood about something or other. Michael Gambon also has a minor role in the film towards the end.

I think in terms of presence on screen they Mia Farrow, Pete Postlethwaite, and David Thewlis are the ones who dominate the film. A lot of the other cast though fairly good in their parts lack the impact that these three have.

The film relies quite heavily on shock tactics but most of the time points out to you way in advance what is about to happen, which wastes most of the impact of such mechanisms. Some reasonable action sequences, with some fairly gratuitous death scenes often of people dying due to an improbable series of events.

All in all not a bad remake but it doesn't really add much to the original seemingly just a cash in on the date. Only good performances by Farrow, Postlethwaite, and Thewlis save it from being a complete waste of time.