The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie Review

'The Omega Man' is a blast from the past.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 16, 2008

Nope, they sure don't make pictures like that anymore.

Ah, the 1970s. The decade that couldn't go out of style fast enough comes to vivid life once again in the Blu-ray release of 1971's The Omega Man. Based on Richard Matheson's (Duel) 1954 end-of-times novel I Am Legend, The Omega Man stars leading man and Hollywood legend Charlton Heston (Planet of the Apes). The middle film of a trio based on the acclaimed novel, sandwiched by the Vincent Price 1964 classic The Last Man on Earth and the 2007 crowd-pleaser Will Smith vehicle I Am Legend, The Omega Man is the lesser of the three, lacking the genuine chills of the Price film and the slick visuals and taut story of the Smith outing. The Omega Man is perhaps best described as a "goofy" film, terribly dated and laughable for the better part of the runtime. Even Heston's fine performance, particularly over the film's first half, cannot save it from a supporting cast that portrays paper-thin characters, not to mention a series of villains caked in bad-looking makeup, black robes, and sunglasses. Never all that scary and quickly falling apart during its second act, The Omega Man offers little in the way of substance but is heavy on the nostalgia and does present viewers with a rather interesting first half.

Charlton Heston always finds a way to lose his shirt in front of the ladies.

Robert Neville (Heston) seems to be the last man on Earth -- or at least the last man of his kind. Living peacefully and carefree during the day, doing as he pleases, going where he wishes, and taking what he needs, Neville lives a life both enthralling and frightening. However, the real terror begins when the sun goes down and "they" wake up. They are members of a cult-like group of pale-skinned individuals known as "The Family" who all share in common a bad case of photophobia. At night, Neville holes up in a fortress-like apartment, its perimeter ablaze in floodlights and equipped with a state-of-the-art surveillance system, an elevator, and perhaps most importantly, a fine selection of small arms. One day, while on patrol in search of The Family's daytime nesting spot and its leader, Matthias (Anthony Zerbe), Neville discovers a human female named Lisa (Rosalind Cash) who introduces him to a small band of survivors fending off the same curious sickness that plagues The Family. As Neville redoubles his efforts to find a cure to the plague, he must deal with a budding romance in the midst of chaos and fend off a final attack stemming from a most unexpected source.

From the film's opening sequence, the parallels with the latest Will Smith vision of the Matheson novel are obvious. Clearly, the newer film pays homage to this version in several areas. Like I Am Legend, The Omega Man begins with a lone man cruising vacated city streets in a red sports car, and later scenes in both films depict the characters carrying on one-sided conversations with imaginary individuals, in Heston's case a cadaverous car dealer, and in Smith's a series of mannequins at the local video store. While the newer film certainly surpasses The Omega Man in polish and crispness, there is a certain charm and vitality to the Heston performance over the course of the film's opening half that is never quite matched in the admittedly superior Smith version. Heston's trademark self-assured demeanor and swag is in full effect here, his character confidently and perhaps even nonchalantly going about his routine in the face of terror, in one scene almost too calmly ignoring a horde of "Family" assaulting his fortified apartment from street level. As a firebomb finds its way through a window, Heston rises from his seat, extinguishes the blaze, and casually fires a burst from a scoped automatic weapon into the hostile crowd below. His tough-guy attitude that is accompanied by a sensible, lovable air, similar to his character in Planet of the Apes, suits his character in The Omega Man well, making him a fine choice for a role that seemed tailor-made to his strengths.

Like other films that feature a single individual coping with, adjusting to, and settling into the reality that he or she is seemingly the last person on Earth, The Omega Man falters in its second half, and falters quite a bit. While even the better films that toy with the idea, including the recent 28 Days Later and the aforementioned I Am Legend, lack the urgency, awesome sense of despair, and maybe even paranoia of the unique situation once the character discovers he or she is not really alone, the films nevertheless manage to retain a high level of drama, characterization, and entertainment value once new characters are introduced. It is precisely in the second act where Neville becomes aware of a small band of survivors that The Omega Man loses its luster and becomes more of a tedious exercise in futility rather than retaining the taut, exciting, almost otherworldly feel of the first half. From then on, the film plays out as more of a standard action fare with a hint of Science Fiction and a dose of Romance. Gone is the novelty of the film's intriguing first half that sees Neville doing as he pleases in an abandoned city -- privately screening a film in a local theater, "buying" a new car, and wielding a submachine gun at his discretion. These scenes, and the entire "last man on Earth" plot line make for fascinating visuals and potentially limitless character study, but as always seems to be the case in movies like this one, The Omega Man cannot resist the temptation to bring more survivors into the story, which lessens the impact of the concept and turns the movie into straight formula.

The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Omega Man survives on Blu-ray with a generally pleasing 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. The transfer features nice color reproduction, a decent sense of depth, and fairly good detail. The image goes a bit soft underneath the title sequence, but it mostly looks glossy and clean through the course of the movie. This is a very watchable transfer. Select shots do exhibit some rather heavy grain, and the grainer scenes feature some print wear-and-tear. Grain intensity can vary at times from shot to shot, at one moment the film may look clean as a whistle while the next features copious amounts. A fine example comes in chapter 15 after Neville is rescued from The Family. Detail is very nice throughout. Close-up shots of Heston's face reveal every contour and line, every bead of sweat, looking almost as good as if viewers were there on the set with him. The detail and all the interesting trinkets seen about his apartment reveal solid levels of detail and depth. Black levels hold up well, though sometimes appearing slightly too bright. Overall, The Omega Man is a fine transfer from Warner Brothers.

The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Presented with only a Dolby Digital 1.0 monaural mix, The Omega Man offers a decent, certainly not robust, but definitely passable sound presentation. Gunfire rings out nicely and packs a solid punch, particularly that of the submachine gun heard rattling several times throughout the movie, the gun Neville's best friend and staunchest ally. The film's dated score is presented adequately, the presentation enough to have listeners movin' and groovin', but certainly not enough to completely lose oneself in the memories of the era, age permitting. Several explosions in the film, particularly a chopper crash in chapter eight, is about as robust as one can expect from a mix of this sort. Obviously, nothing emanates from the subwoofer, but the effect is enjoyable enough. Perhaps one benefit of these mono tracks is that with a limited dynamic range, one often forgets the lack of a fancy 5.1 or even 7.1 mix when the movie is good enough to captivate audiences with a strong story and interesting visuals, as is the case with much of The Omega Man. At the end of the day, great sound is only part of the experience, and while it can add another dimension to films -- as it so often does -- many older movies with mono or front-heavy lossless 5.1 mixes like Young Frankenstein make listeners forget that those fancy back or even front left and right speakers remain silent. The Omega Man won't impress many listeners, but the mix is what it is, and is certainly better than a false, artificial presentation that would hinder rather than help the film.

The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Omega Man on Blu-ray boasts only a select few bonus materials. First up is Introduction By Screenwriter Joyce Corrington and Co-Stars Eric Laneuville and Paul Koslo (480p, 4:02). The brief feature introduces viewers to the film, looking at the changes between novel and script, the cast member's memories of working with Heston, the racial overtones presented in the film, and the film's status as a cult favorite. The Last Man Alive -- 'The Omega Man' (480p, 9:48) is a vintage featurette that briefly looks at the making of several parts of the film and showcases Heston discussing the film and philosophizes with famed anthropologist Ashley Montagu. Concluding this brief supplemental package is the film's theatrical trailer (480p, 3:00).

The Omega Man Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Omega Man is one film that is clearly a reflection of the era in which it was made, offering a nostalgic throwback to 1970s style, music, and filmmaking. While the film, on the whole, is an entertaining romp through a nightmare scenario, the first half plays much better than the second, each half almost two distinct entities that form a narrative whole but couldn't be much further apart when it comes to substance, novelty, and entertainment value. Other than Neville, the characters are generally uninteresting, and the film's "Family" of villains come off more as angry Halloween pageant rejects than genuinely creepy and dangerous adversaries. Nevertheless, The Omega Man enjoys a status as a cult classic and does feature a standout performance from Charlton Heston. Warner Brothers' Blu-ray release of the film is nothing to brag about, but it gets the job done. Featuring a solid enough video transfer, a mono soundtrack that never hinders the film, but a disappointing absence of substantive bonus materials, The Omega Man on Blu-ray is best enjoyed as a rainy day rental.