MEDIA: OMEN REMAKE ADS EVIL (and other Press Perplexities)

This is kind of surprising to me and I think it marks a distinct swing-to-the-right of the press. In [[http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060528/ennew_afp/afpentertainmentusfilm_060528201110|a May 28, 2006 article]] from www.AFP.com and News.Yahoo.Com an unnamed journalist reported:

With the clamor over religious thriller "The Da Vinci Code" barely fading, a major Hollywood studio is mining the same vein with a Satanic "666" marketing campaign for its new horror film.

"The Omen", a remake of the 1976 horror classic, is the kind of film that routinely makes it big at the box office, appealing to the coveted demographic of young and predominantly male thrill-seekers.

Twentieth Century Fox has banked "The Omen" on a promotional campaign based on "666", the number associated with Satan, based on Revelation, the last book in the Bible.

Even the film's worldwide debut is set for June 6, 2006, or 06/06/06, which the studio conveniently has shortened to 666 in the film's logo.

Ha, that last bit is actually not true--check out a screengrab I took from DrudgeReport.Com this morning:

First off, that ad uses "6+6+06" which suggests the classic "666" number combination and isn't the "06/06/06" that the article "reports". Secondly, I challenge the unnamed journalist to SEE the original Omen film and see if he/she/it could come up with a better marketing campaign for a movie where the son of Satan is born on June 6? I also take issue with the idea that the original Omen is a "horror" film at all. If you've seen it, you'd be hard pressed to mention more than two instances of real horror. In an actual horror film there would be monsters or gore or scares. The Omen is a thriller--filled with suspense. If it's a horror film at all, it's because you're horrified at the idea of the son of Satan being real and growing up to be the President of the United States.

I also take issue with something else the article says:

"The Omen" is the story of a father who realizes his adopted infant son, Damien, who has a 666 birthmark on his skull, is a reincarnation of Satan.

Uh, when was Satan "carnated" in the first place? Even if you believe in all this crap, Satan was never human--he was an angel. He never walked the Earth. Man, and we bloggers get the bad reputations!

In other movie "news," Roger Friedman of Fox News posted a funny little claim in an article "reporting" on X-Men 3's success at the box office this past weekend--check out the screengrab I got on Saturday:

So, that 3rd Star Wars movie was called Attack of the Sith?

Come on, "reporters" you may be reporting on entertainment, but for Christ's sake, how difficult is it to get your friggen facts right?

Finally, I'd like to blog about [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/6/story.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10383967|this May 29, 2006 article] from Reuters.Com available at http://NZHerald.co.nz which reports on how Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie "took over" the country of Namibia in the lead up to Jolie's baby being born. Here's a clip:

The Republic of Namibia - the impoverished country of 1.8 million known for its wild remoteness - not only welcomed the movie stars, it handed over control of its international land borders and airspace to them.

As the world awaited the birth of the child at a luxury villa complex on the coast, Namibian authorities said they had bowed to pressure from Jolie and Pitt and granted them the right to ban foreign journalists from entering the country - a remarkable move for the Government of any sovereign state.

Now, I'm sure I'll come across as a Jolie/Pitt apologist here, but isn't it a bit overdramatic of the reporter (uncredited again) to put it quite that way? Was there an act of Namibia's parliament or Congress that handed over official control over the countries "international land borders and airspace" to the celebs? Or was it simply a couple of disgustingly rich "stars" asking Namibia's government for preferential treatment?

The way this unnamed reporter puts it, you'd think Brangelina could order an asault on another country.

Again, you're reporting on the entertainment industry, guy. You've already got two of the best looking people on the planet mentioned in your article and you have to be more sensationalistic?

It's just "nice" to see this incredible decline of modern journalism pass through all corners of the field. From coverage of imagined Iraqi WMD right down to the Namibian currency being revalued by Brad Pitt.

OK, I made that last bit up--what do you want from me? Real "journalism"? I'm a blogger--never forget that!