[Nicolai P. Zwar]

Well, the first OMEN movie was made under the premise that it could just all be coincidence and made up, that people were driven to believe it. Gregory Peck and Richard Donner explicitly never showed any actual supernatural things happen, it was always the premise: yes, these people believe that… and make other people believe it… until even Gregory Peck’s character believes it. So it was an interesting premise for a horror movie that never confirmed or denied that Damien is the literal Anti-Christ that will bring doom to the world. It’s a stylish, well made thriller and by now a classic in the horror genre. Jerry Goldsmith’s score of course helps a lot, but so does Gregory Peck, whose mere presence brings an element of class to the movie it wouldn’t otherwise have.
The way sequels then go, they became of course more sensationalist and exploited (and confirmed) the premise. I still enjoy DAMIEN – OMEN II as a typical 70s horror thriller, but agree it’s a pretty silly movie and not really a masterpiece. But at least it’s fun to watch, whereas THE FINAL CONFLICT makes no sense, not even within its own Universe.

The FINAL DESTINATION follow the same “death by accident” pattern, and while I somewhat enjoyed the first movie, it’s just an even sillier premise than THE OMEN movies.