The Apocalypse Begins at Home

The Antichrist-as-Child Film

Abstract

This essay argues that the antichrist-as-child film is a unique category of the apocalyptic genre that bridges both secular and religious narratives. While operating under an obvious religious framework, these movies are perhaps the least hopeful of all apocalyptic texts, revealing that corruption has struck the most sacred of all institutions: the family and the child. Examining two foundational texts from the 1970s, Rosemary's Baby and The Omen, as well as examples from the twenty-first century, this article concludes that contemporary versions operate as a far more vicious attack on what they portray as parental failings according to present ideologies.