Having already ripped off The Exorcist with his pretty dreadful 1974 movie The Antichrist, director Alberto De Martino has a bash at copying one of the other major horror successes of the '70s, The Omen—and he does a slightly better job this time around.

The decent cast certainly helps: Kirk Douglas stars as industrialist Robert Caine, who slowly comes to realise that his plans for a nuclear power plant in the third world might lead to the Apocalypse, as prophecised in the Bible; Simon Ward is his son Angel, who is determined to see the project to completion at whatever the cost; the lovely Agostina Belli plays Sara Golan, Robert's love interest, whose unborn child may or may not be The Antichrist; and Anthony Quayle appears as scientist Dr. Griffith, who unravels the truth but pays for his discovery with his life.

With such solid performers at his disposal, De Martino is able to deliver an entertaining slice of horror hokum despite the script's somewhat talky nature, its preachy anti-nuclear message and more than a few implausible plot turns, with the film's highlights being the juicy decapitation of a political leader by helicopter blade, beautiful Belli getting nekkid for a raunchy romp with ageing Kirk (such a coupling might sound unlikely, but if Michael can get it on with Zeta Jones in real life, then why not?), Caine's trippy dream sequence (which delivers the truly horrific sight of a naked Kirk Douglas), and a chilling scene where a room full of newborn babies are accidentally poisoned by a negligent nurse.

6.5 rounded up to 7 for IMDb.

Amiable and determined wealthy agnostic industrialist Robert Caine (an excellent performance by Kirk Douglas) and his shrewd and ambitious son Angel (well played by Simon Ward) plan on building a nuclear power plant in the Holy Land. When various people associated with the project start meeting gruesome untimely ends, Roger realizes that he might be involved in an ancient biblical prophecy about the Anti-Christ and the end of the world. Director Alberto De Martino, who also co-wrote the ingenious and intriguing script with Stan Donati, whips up a very clever and inspired supernatural horror chiller that brilliantly realizes Old Testament prophecies through modern technology. Moreover, De Martino maintains a steady pace throughout, does a sound job of creating a tense and ominous atmosphere which becomes more increasingly spooky and unsettling as the story unfolds, and stages the gory murder set pieces with tremendous fluid style and flair (a memorably grisly decapitation by helicopter blade rates as the definite splatter highlight). In addition, we also get a wonderfully trippy apocalyptic nightmare sequence with a naked Douglas running on a beach and being warned by a crazed fanatic (a superbly intense portrayal by Massimo Foschi) about Armegeddon. Douglas holds the whole film together with his strong and commanding presence; he receives sturdy support from the gorgeous Agostina Belli as sweet and helpful reporter Sara Golan, Romolo Valli as helpful priest Charrier, Anthony Quayle as the pragmatic Professor Griffith, Alexander Knox as the respected Professor Ernst Meyer, and Spiros Focas as formidable adversary Harbin. Popping up in nifty bit parts are Virginnia McKenna as Robert's disapproving wife Eva, Adolfo Celli as asylum head Dr. Kerouac, and Geoffrey Keen as a sinister gynecologist. Erico Menczer's slick cinematography gives the picture an impressively polished and expansive look. Ennio Morricone's lush, moody, and shuddery full-scale orchestral score hits the shivery shot. Well worth seeing.

Undoubtedly one of the most ambitious Italian exploitation/rip-off efforts of the 1970's, "Holocaust 2000" shows the courage (or stupidity?) to amalgamate TWO contemporary popular themes of Sci-Fi horror. Back in the glorious decade of the 70's, the end of the world could either be inflicted by humanity's own damn fault (ecological disasters or scientific revolutions) or biblical prophecies (the birth of the Antichrist, etc). This film, directed by the tremendously underrated Alberto De Martino; king of Italian rip-offs, features a mixture of both themes and the script really isn't as imbecile as it sounds! Superficially, this film looks like a straight imitation of "The Omen" in which a prominent American industrialist replaces the position of the prominent American ambassador, but the difference is that the industrialist's work is also relevant – crucial, even – to the development of the plot. Unfortunately, but almost inevitably, the film's strength is also its main weakness… Blending religious & ecological themes quickly results in a lot of complexity, confusion and especially a whole lot of skepticism. Even though the script is surprisingly well elaborated and quite intelligent, you can't help thinking it's overly grotesque and far-fetched. Kirk Douglas, charismatic and reliable as ever, stars as the millionaire industrialist Robert Caine, whose lifework involves the large-scaled construction of a thermo-nuclear power plant in the Middle Eastern region. This gigantic project, with its seven turbines and its ten-headed output-system could provide powerful energy for the entire Third World; only the safety precautions are unstable and questionable. Caine and his lovely young girlfriend Sara also discover that the plant's design suspiciously bears a lot of resemblance with the biblical beast that is believed to unleash an apocalyptic fire that burns down the entire planet. The more reluctant Robert gets to carry on with his project, the more his adult son Angel insists on continuing and he even takes control. Meanwhile, Sara is pregnant and Robert is overcome with fear of his unborn baby being the Antichrist whose birth would complete the apocalypse.

"Holocaust 2000" is wrongfully accused of simply being another uninspired Italian clone of "The Omen", but I certainly beg to differ! Admittedly some of the basic aspects are blatantly copied from Richard Donner's milestone, like the social setting and particularly the circumstances surrounding the death sequences, but Alberto De Martino's film contains a lot more ingeniousness and originality than everybody thinks! Multiple sub plots are even downright marvelous and suspenseful, most notably the scenes inside the psychiatric clinic and Caine's nightmare visions. The first hour is terrific, with a constant spitfire of clever dialogs and an overall macabre ambiance, but I do admit the last 45 minutes are a little tedious and repetitive. Particularly the ineffective "mystery" of the Antichrist's identity is quite foolish, because it's more than obvious since the start of the film already. De Martino had a decent budget to work with for a change, and this is clearly illustrated through the convincing set pieces and professional photography. The music is courtesy of Ennio Morricone, so you can blindly accept it is brilliant, and Kirk Douglas' performance is more than impeccable to guide you through the mediocre moments. Vastly underrated film, ripe for re-discovery! And even if you don't care for this type of storyline, at least you got to love the awesome helicopter-decapitation moment! I rewind that scene each and every time!