Comfortable and Furious

OMEGA CODE 2

OMEGA CODE 2

omegacode2

Erich Sez…

The Omega Code 2 is, in some ways, a better film than The Omega Code. The filmmaking is slicker. The shots and editing, which were terrible in the first film, wouldn’t look out of place in a made for TV movie. In the first film, the acting, apart from the leads, was not of professional quality. This acting in this film is about soap opera quality. The special effects are improved, but still spotty. One funny part is when the Anti-Christ shoots CGI lightening into a huge crowd in a wide shot and nobody moves. But overall, they did a pretty good job of maximizing what must have been a very small budget, as far as effects and action scenes.
south-park-2s
Make no mistake though, Omega Code 2 sucks so much ass that it’s funny, maybe even more so than the original. The characters have the depth of Candy Land game pieces and the dialog is horrible. For example, one character is dancing with the wife of his brother, who is head of the European Union. He asks, “how is life with my brother, the rising star?” Aside from the fact that it’s a piece of wood, this is
not something you’d say about the head of the EU.

Which gets to another funny thing about the film. Like it’s predecessor, this film uses the story, sometimes awkwardly, to espouse right-wing phobias about global governance. For example, the Antichrist makes gratuitous reference to a global currency, which was advocated by John Maynard Keynes and might be a pretty good idea. But not if the devil wants it!! The EU and UN have conceded national power to the antichrist’s world government. We learn this from a painfully expository news brief that explains facts that would be common knowledge to anyone in the world of the film. It would be like tuning in to CNN to hear “this just in, the United States government is composed of three branches: the executive, the legislative and the judicial.” A broadcaster, who has a perky demeanor, as though she were reporting the birth of a baby panda at the local zoo, also informs us that the members of the global parliamentary system will probably relinquish their votes to allow the Antichrist character total power. Why would they do that? Uh… cut to the next scene. Fast!

There are so many funny parts that I can’t cover them all. One is when the Antichrist, who is supposed to be a savvy media mogul, thinks that the collapse of the U.S. economy and a series of natural disasters will make the networks happy because their ratings will be boosted, which is obviously wrong for a number of reasons, e.g. that ratings won’t make money for the networks if the country’s falling apart. Also, nobody in the film notices the fact that the events of the film parallel biblical prophesy until things get really far along. “Oh, a plague of locusts, wonder where that came from?” And–this one is more of the bible’s fault than the movie’s–if God is omnipotent, wouldn’t the devil know it and if he knew, why would he think he could defeat God?

The battle scene at the climax of the film is almost incoherent. Armies appear out of nowhere and the Anti-Christ falls for something that barely qualifies as a trick. The Chinese agree to surrender. How? Why by bringing half their army to the Antichrist’s center of operations, of course. Nothing suspicious there. They drive their tanks from China to Israel and right up to the bad guy’s HQ. Then, much to his surprise, they attack. In response, the Antichrist calls for the forces of evil to rise to his aid, but all that happens is the sun goes black and his troops start to fight more effectively. And by the way, how come nobody on the Antichrist’s side has second thoughts about sticking with their team when he reveals himself to be Satan–horns, wings and all? The soldiers near him literally don’t react to the change.

Given it’s audience and the people who made it, the funniest part of the film, although it’s not “ha ha” funny is the its lack of theological sophistication. For example, it implies that God and Satan experience time in the same way that you and I do. Which gets to the overarching reason why I like these movies. The reveal the intellectual poverty of the bible-thumpers they are aimed at and succeed with.

I’ve always wondered though; even if you’re stupid, can’t you tell other stupid people from smart people? I mean, I’m not as smart as either Einstein or my high school friend, Justin. But I can tell that Einstein was smarter than Justin and if I had to listen to one about physics or almost anything else, I’d listen to Einstein. How stupid do you have to be to not see the stupidity behind this film and it’s ideas? I guess the answer is that the vulgar bible thumper rejects the whole “thinking” thing altogether,
so it doesn’t matter.


DVD Extras

Hal Lindsay, a biblical “scholar” talks about how the prophesies of the bible are coming true for the following reasons. World attention is focused on the Middle East. Ok. I’ll grant that one. There has been an increase in religious deception. Uh… I don’t know. There have always been cults, heretics and hundreds of mutually exclusive religions/sects. I think all religions are probably deception. What’s he mean? How is he measuring this phenomenon? He doesn’t say. There is more war. Hmm. It seems to me that WWII was the apex of warfare. And now the cold war, with its hot little sub-wars, is over too. He says there is “international revolution.” No idea what that means. Also, there are, in JC’s words “rumors of wars.” That sounds like something that was mistranslated. “Psst, I hear it’s splitsville for Jada Pinkett and Will Smith… and Russia might invade a Baltic state.” We are also seeing an increase in earthquakes (not true) famines (there used to be more, I think) and plagues (yeah, there’s AIDS and those African viruses that turned out not to be such a big deal, but small pox and polio are gone, syphilis can be treated, the plague is rare and so on) and changing weather patterns including floods. I don’t know about the floods, but I’ll grant the weather patterns. Of course, the people behind this film help to keep the politicians most responsible for global warming in power, so that one’s kind of self-fulfilling. But if you believe Lindsay, the return of Christ is near and the Anti-Christ is somewhere on earth right now. Probably eating a Christian baby to celebrate Passover. I know it’s kind of silly even to engage the arguments of people like this at all, but this is one of the least persuasive arguments I’ve ever heard. Mildly amusing. Maybe this is what is guiding GW’s foreign policy.

Dr. Paul Church, (who probably got his doctorate at the same place my soda did) the guy from TBN, has a short talk in which he says pretty much the same thing.


Ruthless Ratings

  • Film, Overall – 2
  • DVD Extras – 5
  • Story – 0
  • Acting – 3
  • Direction – 2
  • Rewatchability 5

FUN FACT!- The director of this film also has Leprechaun 3 on his resume.


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