Film Review: THE FIRST OMEN (2024): Nell Tiger Free is First-Rate in a Heart-Pounding Prequel That Will Send Chills Up Your Spine

The First Omen Review

The First Omen (2024) Film Review, a movie directed by Arkasha Stevenson, written by Tim Smith, Keith Thomas and Arkasha Stevenson and starring Nell Tiger Free, Ralph Ineson, Sonia Braga, Tawfeek Barhom, Maria Caballero, Charles Dance, Bill Nighy, Nicole Sorace, Ishtar Currie-Wilson, Andrea Arcangeli, Dora Romano, Anton Alexander, Mia McGovern Zaini and Eugenia Delbue.

The First Omen is one of the most successful horror film prequels in recent history. Director Arkasha Stevenson has crafted a horrific and well-layered story about a demonic baby which has yet to be born and how this evil child came to be. This new horror picture is anchored by the stand-out lead performance by Nell Tiger Free. This is one of the great horror movie performances of all-time and ranks up there as a chilling role which will put Free on the map as an actress to contend with. It wouldn’t be hard to picture her getting an Oscar nomination in the future for another role (let’s face it– Oscar doesn’t really do horror much) because she adds so much depth to her character, Margaret, who is sent to Rome to begin serving God and discovers something much more horrific than she expected at the center of her efforts.

As the movie’s main story begins, we meet Margaret, a woman of faith with a troubled past who has devoted her life to the Lord. A fellow sister dresses up and has Margaret wear a sexy dress. This woman takes Margaret to a nightclub where Margaret encounters a man named Paolo (Andrea Arcangeli) who engages in a steamy encounter with her. Apparently, nothing happened on the night they were together but Margaret becomes more interested in a child named Carlita Scianna (the excellent Nicole Sorace) who is being given rotten treatment by those in the orphanage where Margaret takes up residence. Carlita does some unusual artwork at the orphanage which concerns those in the facility.

This movie builds suspense like a well-oiled machine. It starts out with a horrifyingly graphic scene of violence where a religious man has the back of his head cut into deep with some falling glass. As the movie shifts to Margaret, the audience will wonder where she will fit into the whole story line. This is especially true when it is mentioned that Carlita is the one who is supposed to give birth to a demon child which will serve an evil purpose that the religious leaders don’t want people to know.

Nell Tiger Free is absolutely astonishing in the lead role, virtually carrying the entire production from beginning to end. There is a scene late in the movie where she makes some outrageous movements as something very distinct is occurring within her body and Free is especially good in this part of the movie. Free’s Margaret is the one who ends up being tortured by her visions of the future and the realities of what is occurring right around her. Margaret asks Father Gabriel (Tawfeek Barhom) for help locating a file which another priest deems important to discovering who, exactly, is destined to give birth to the evil child which was featured in The Omen movie from the mid 1970’s.

I loved how the movie ties into the original at the end with details that serve as a segue into the original film. Also impressive is the supporting cast which includes Bill Nighy as Cardinal Lawrence who plays a key part in the action later in the picture. Old pros such as Sonia Braga and Charles Dance add their signature sophistication to their parts as religious figures within the action as well. Another fine performance is by the young Nicole Sorace as the tortured young girl who befriends Margaret who defends Sorace’s character throughout.

Though The First Omen is not for everyone (it’s graphically explicit and disturbing), it is a definite must for horror fans. The 666 code of the devil is placed into body parts of a couple of potential candidates, one of which may give birth to the demon child. This movie puts these numbers in clever places and is very well-detailed in terms of the way it develops its scary plot. When a riot occurs and Margaret is in the middle of it, the details are extremely disturbing. Another great part of the movie has a large, scary hand coming out of a woman who is giving birth. When Paolo gets hit by a car, there’s a very distinct reason and audiences will be terrified by the scenes that follow.

As previously suggested, Nell Tiger Free makes the movie her own and commands the audience’s attention in every way. This is a performance for the record books in a picture which is devastatingly frightening to behold with all its disturbing images. The First Omen is destined to become a horror classic and fans of the original picture from the mid-1970’s will be very satisfied by the scares and themes which are found in the new picture. It’s a must-see.

Rating: 8.5/10

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