MillenniuM after the MillenniuM: A love letter to fans

Daryl_G_Morrissey

Way back, in the 1990s, The X-Files was riding high. Fox wanted another hit show so they asked Chris Carter, creator of said X-Files, to develop another show. What he came up with was MillenniuM.

Set in the same universe as The X-Files, MillenniuM would be something completely different. Darker, scarier and unnerving.

The main protagonist, Frank Black, was an ex-FBI agent working as a consultant for a group of ex-law enforcement personnel, known as The MillenniuM Group, who tackled cases that the overstretched Police couldn't. Serial killers, cults, religious killings, stalkers etc.

Each episode was almost a mini-movie, with a budget that many small independent movies of the time would wish for. The pilot could quite easily have been a feature-length film.

Many found the series to be too dark and downbeat, which would eventually lead to its cancellation.

What many failed to realise was that MillenniuM was too far ahead of its time. Looking back, now, shows like Dexter, The Sopranos, The Shield, The Wire, Sons of Anarchy etc. took these dark themes and tones and made a success of them, because the audience was now ready. MillenniuM had primed them.

But, back in 1996, with shows like Frasier and The Simpsons being all cosy and happy, MillenniuM didn't stand a chance.

However, MillenniuM had, and still has, a strong and loyal fan base. That's where this documentary comes in.

Jason D. Morris has directed a documentary, with all of the major players providing candid interviews, interspersed with clips from MillenniuM and other shows that it influenced.

The opening titles hark back to the opening titles of MillenniuM, dark and foreboding, while the score does more than enough justice to Mark Snow's original score, to bring the whole documentary together quite nicely.

This finished documentary is a masterful production that does justice to MillenniuM, its cast and crew and, especially, its fans.

Running from 1996-1999, MillenniuM ran over three seasons before being cancelled before the millennium finally succeeded.

score 10/10

Daryl_G_Morrissey 29 March 2020

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw5589164/