In the late 60's and early 70's, Charlton Heston went through what I call his 'science-fiction period', making 'Planet Of The Apes', 'The Omega Man' and 'Soylent Green' between 1968 and 1973. Only 'The Omega Man' has not been available on laser, until now, that is. Released theatrically in 1971, 'The Omega Man' is based on Richard Matheson's novel 'I Am Legend'. This adaptation is set in a near future world devastated by a biological warfare induced plague. The only survivors are Heston, a military researcher that discovered a vaccine too late, and 'The Family', mutants with a hyper-sensitivity to light and a zealous hatred for the technology that they blame for the destruction of civilization and that Heston represents. When Heston discovers a small group of unaffected survivors, he sees this as an opportunity to 'start over'. The Family, however, sees then as a threat to their 'new order'.
With my only memories of 'The Omega Man' coming from TV and video, though I like the film, I have always considered it, at best, a 'B' movie. This new letterboxed presentation of this Panavision film certainly plays much better, but I still doubt that anyone will mistake this film for Academy AwardŽ material.
The transfer for this laser edition looks quite good, for early 70's film stock. Some colors seem to be in the early stages of fading, but overall, Warner has coaxed a pretty decent transfer out of it. Colors appear mostly accurate, particularly reds and fleshtones. A tiny bit of film grain is visible here and there but nothing too objectionable. The image is nice and sharp with good detail. Brightness and contrast are also good, though some shadow detail is lost. The transferred ratio is about 2.30:1.
The mono soundtrack is not in the best condition. Noise reduction has cleaned up most of the hiss but left the overall sound somewhat flat. Highs are often too bright and occasionally exhibit a mild distortion. Low bass is virtually non-existent. Not the worst I've heard, but a long way from the best.
The film runs 98 minutes and contains 29 chapters. Warner has also included a 10 minute featurette, 'The Last Man Alive - The Omega Man'. This mini-documentary shows some behind-the-scenes stuff but focuses mostly on Heston's psychological approach to his character. List price is $34.95.
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