User Reviews

Narrative by Leonard Nimoy of 'Star Trek' fame, this film directed by Donnie Bisley & produced by Monarch Pictures tells in step by step fashion how families can prepare for the world after being destroyed by a computer data glitch known as the "Millennium Bug" in the Year 2000. Apparently people did believe that this could had happen. The fear mongering was enough to warren this tape. For me, I found the date transitioned problem hysteria way overblown. In truth most of the actual problems on the Feb. 1999 report card the film feature on here were just cosmetic that yet to be work on. All the biggies that could had crash the whole system were properly taken care of years before the Year 2000 Information and Readiness Disclosure Act became a thing in 1998 despite what this film is saying. By 1995 new programming for dates to be entered as four digit numbers were being made for the market. Even before DISC PD2000 came out; widowing, data expansion, compression and repartitioning were already being worked by early 1997. The U.S. spent over one hundred billion preparing for the bug. To say that federal agencies and private companies were not ready is understatement. Hundreds of press releases say otherwise which were often ignored by the media. For instance the film tells some examples of likely disasters that could happen but never explain in detail how incorrectly displaying the year 1900 rather 2000 can cause them. One big example is planes falling from the sky which scare mongers like to use. Don't get me wrong, the Federal Aviation Administration did get an F in the report. What the film fails to mention is that the Administration has about 250 different types of computers, some of them not actually meant to be use to help with flying or even navigation. Rather keeping track of certification of personnel and aircraft properties and dictate where construction and operation of airports can happen. As for air traffic management systems that assist aircraft to depart from an aerodrome, transit airspace, and land at a destination aerodrome, including Air Traffic Services (ATS), Airspace Management (ASM) and Air Traffic Flow and Capacity Management (ATFCM). They were already updated by late 1997. As for manual computer flying control on the aircraft. Even if it was affect which is unlike due to date data involving years surprising barely used in day to day operations, the pilot pilots can easy turn it off and fly the plane themselves if it bug the system. That said the ones that I was really worry about at the time were banking, utilities systems & government records as they have the most to lose. When the New Year finally arrived aside from a few glitches here and there, nothing much happened. Certainly nothing that could be called "apocalyptic." By then, techies had spent years patching up code so it could deal with 21st century dates. Still conspiracy theorists had a field day with the mistake date data problem including this movie. I really hate the comparisons of the bug with the myths of Atlantis collapse that Nimoy was speaking of. Most people belief that Atlantis wasn't destroy by their own technology but due to natural disaster such as flooding, but the film says otherwise to preach a hokey Neo Luddism's return to innocent which I doubt the filmmakers deeply believe in. They act like the age before computers was the Garden of Eden or something. It's a lot of crap. In truth, the world would be more a primitive state without computers; easily to control by religious fanatics willing to start wars with each other without showing prove of their claims for power. All of the pseudo forewarning quotes & forced quick cuts of frightening images with heavy dramatic music from the movie is a distracting from what it is clearly the truth. The movie is a giant mega commerical for Ted Wright and his survivalist's friends to sell you stuff. The documentary even has the nerve to show you the phone number in which you can call to find their products. Despite that, seeing examples like how to heat & light your home without electricity, where to gather water & store food them & how to safely dispose of waste when the power is out is pretty useful information. I just wish they didn't make it so obvious that it was sales pitch. I just surprised that no shady computer company appear on this film to sell people upgrades to their hardware and software with the promise of Y2K compatibility. Talk about making a killing. Regardless it looks like Nimoy did. All he had to do is sleepwalked through some over dramatic mumbo jumbo even if deep inside of him, he didn't really believe a word he was speaking. He was too tired and beat up to care. Overall: This highly dated documentary is good for only two things. Some of the material about what to do if there is a long time blackout is still valuable. The other is morbid curiosity about the Y2K problem and mindset of people at the time. So check it out if you want. However it's nothing worth welcoming the New Year with.