Omen (2023)

Movies like Omen are always an exciting experience for me, to go into something way outside of my comfort zone and absorb a story unlike anything I’ve seen before. Omen, the feature film debut by Belgian-Congolese director Baloji, is on its surface a very simple story: A man who is on the outs with his family comes home in an attempt to bury the hatchet, to make things right, and nothing goes according to plan. But Omen is so much more than that. In big ways, with a plot full of interconnected characters; and in little ways, with a setting that feels grounded in reality, but allows magical forces to exist in a way that’s just as real.

At its simplest, the plot is about Koffi (Marc Zinga) who returns home to Congo, after years and years away from his family in Europe, with a pregnant wife to pay a dowry to his family, as is the custom. When he arrives, we learn that he had effectively been disowned by his family as a whole, because they always suspected him of dark magic sorcery. They believe him to be “zabolo”, containing the mark of the devil, for a birthmark he was born with on his face.

In an attempt to ingratiate himself at a family gathering, he gets a nosebleed (he suffers from high blood pressure and his nosebleeds are a persistent problem), and accidentally bleeds onto a baby that he’s cradling. The family does not see this as any accident, and any attempt to rectify the situation between Koffi and his family is stopped dead in its tracks. The film then takes a detour and introduces us to another character: Paco (Marcel Otete Kabeya). Paco is a young man affiliated with a gang of boys that wear pink dresses, to honor his dead sister who, we see in a flashback, possibly murdered by a witch. We don’t know if this actually happened, or if it’s how he’s remembering an incident, and assigning a literal villain to it is his way of coping.

We then meet Tshala (Eliane Umuhire), Koffi’s sister, the only family member he’s on speaking terms with. She’s set to leave the family, too, but not by way of Europe like Koffi did. She’s planning on going to South Africa, with her boyfriend. Tshala is a modern woman and her story represents worlds colliding. The modern world and her village are at odds with each other, and it doesn’t seem like they can be reconciled. There’s too much stubbornness on either side.

And finally, there’s Mujila (Yves-Marina Gnahoua), Koffi and Tshala’s mother. Up until being introduced formally to her chapter in the film, we see her as an unpleasant brick wall of a woman who’s unwilling to hear Koffi out or understand him as anything other than an outcast. We then come to learn that she, too, was accused of similar associations when she was very young. And when tragedy strikes, the family that was quick to cast Koffi out is just as quick to abandon Mujila.

All four of these characters are associated, in some way, with witchcraft, with the village and with each other. Any sort of basic plot synopsis is going to explain that Koffi is the main character, and he is the closest thing that Omen has to one, but all four characters have an essential part in the overall story. They all represent something meaningful.

Omen is, at once, an irresistible story I always have a soft spot for: The story of someone who returns home and rediscovers themselves and their past from where they’re from. We’ve seen this kind of story a million times, to varying degrees of success. Omen is also a subversion of that kind of story. It’s not about reconciling your past. Sometimes, you just have to let go. Watching this film, the story throws a lot out at you. This happens. And then that happens. And this and that. And it all feels a bit overwhelming. At one point, near the final act of the film, I felt myself hoping that all of this ties together in some satisfying way.

Thankfully, it does, and it makes all the difference. Nothing in Omen exists merely to exist. Everything has meaning. Everything we see represents something, even down to the most mundane detail, like the bed Koffi and his wife sleep on being just a mattress with a wood pallet for a frame and headboard. It all comes full circle, and through a series of conversations we understand how short life is, how quickly it all goes by.

Omen is a terrific film, filled with heart, mystery, and magic. I adored it and I was surprised by how moving it was. It spoke so much to the human experience and one that I could relate to a lot. It felt lived in and real. I’m not sure how much of this film is autobiographical to the director, but whether it was a lot, or a little, or even none, the story still spoke truthfully to those experiences and nailed it beautifully.

Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray
Omen is presented in 1080p high-definition video with a DTS HD-MA 5.1 surround sound audio mix (plus an optional DTS HD-MA 2.0 track for folks without a home theater setup). The film and special features are all found on a single disc in a standard case that has a reversible slipcover featuring different artwork on either side, plus a booklet containing an in-depth essay by Andrew Crump.

Omen looks amazing. It is wildly vibrant, filled with rich colors and a number of striking sequences that really stand out—like a single tree wrapped in lights, the only source of power during an electrical outage. The cinematography by Joachim Philippe is gorgeously realized. Near the beginning of the film, it almost feels like it’s adopting the visual language of a Sergio Leone spaghetti western, the way it idolizes these wide-open landscapes, interspersing wide shots with close-ups, and then evolves ever throughout into its own, unique entity. The disc itself is free of any sort of aliasing, color banding, etc. I watched Omen on a Samsung S90C, which really allowed the nighttime scenes to look their most exquisite.

Omen comes with two DTS HD-MA audio mixes: A 5.1 surround mix for home theater setups, and a 2.0 mix is you’re using your TV speakers or a two-channel soundbar. For anyone with a surround sound setup, you will not be disappointed with the sound mix on Omen. It is very thoughtfully prepared. The rear speaker activity is at a nearly constant level with ambient noise, but never obnoxiously so. We hear the dull vibration of a car’s engine. The A/C blowing in a small office. Cars. Traffic. Instruments blasting from a makeshift parade and wrestling tournament made up to look like a funeral procession in one incredible sequence.

For my money, the best use of audio was when the film comes closest to being a full-fledged horror movie. A creature growls and the sound begins in the front speakers, makes its way to the rear speakers and then, lastly, the subwoofer begins to comes alive, so all of these speakers are firing at once, after activating in turn, to create this horrible, god awful sense of dread. It was incredible.

Outside of the booklet essay contained within the Blu-ray case by Andrew Crump, there aren’t any other features that are going to deepen your understanding of Omen. There are no on-set interviews with director/co-writer Baloji where he breaks down this or that. Whatever you take away from the film will have to be based on your own interpretation of its story and visuals. There are, however, a number of short films from the director and a photo gallery related to the main feature:

• Baloji Short Film Infinite Trolling (HD, 18:30)
• Baloji Short Film Zombies (HD, 15:36)
• Baloji Short Film Peau De Chagrin (HD, 10:21)
• Behind the Scenes Still Gallery

Omen is a unique movie-watching experience that is likely to defy any quick blurb you’re going to read, which describes it as a horror film about Koffi returning to his village in Congo. It has those elements, but it’s about much more than that. It’s an interconnected web, held together by faith, shared trauma, and healing… healing in a way that looks different to everyone else affected. Utopia and OCN Distribution deliver a terrific Blu-ray disc for fans to consume offering an excellent A/V presentation. Bonus features might not be 100% relevant to the film, you'll have to read the booklet for that, but the included short films are certainly worth a viewing. Highly Recommended.