Reviews (2)

THIS IS THE ZODIAC (MAYBE)
EDWARD JAMES OLMOS AND GEORGE DZUNDZA TURN IN EXCELLENT PERFORMANCES IN THIS THINLY VEILED RECREATION OF THE ZODIAC MURDERS OF SAN FRANCISCO. OLMOS' ROLE STARTS OUT PURPOSEFUL BUT ENDS UP PATHETIC WHILE DZUNDZA BEGINS AS WEIRD AND TURNS PREDATORY. IT WAS GREAT TO WATCH THEIR CHARACTERS CHANGE AS THEY PLAYED OFF OF ONE ANOTHER. WHILE IT WAS INTERESTING THAT THE SCOREKEEPER'S VICTIMS AND M.O. CLEARLY PARALLELED THOSE OF THE ZODIAC, I FEAR THAT THIS FILM WOULD ONLY BE A 2 STAR AFFAIR (AT BEST) FOR THE NON-ZODIAC BUFF. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

The Zodiac Killer case revisited
A San Francisco detective is obsessed with catching a serial killer who has been killing people for over 20 years. When the detective learns that he has only a few weeks of life left, he tries his one last shot - taking the suspect for a ride down memory lane, hoping to force him into a confession...

What makes the movie interesting to true crime buffs like myself ;) is the fact that it's very obviously based on the never-solved case of the serial killer "Zodiac" from San Francisco area in the 1970s. The movie is a faithful recreation of the "canonical" crimes of the Zodiac, with Edward James Olmos starring as an SFPD detective clearly modelled after Inspector Dave Toschi (who hunted the real Zodiac).

....

Unfortunately, the film concentrates on a certain theory proposed by one recognised writer...This almost spoiled the movie for me, as I find many aspects of this theory annoying in the extreme. Still (and in spite of its ending, as realistic as the idea of Jack the Ripper being the Duke of Clarence), so far it's the best movie on the Zodiac out there (the 1970s movie is reportedly too silly to watch), and it has a nice musical score, too. ... Read more

Reviews (34)

So good it's hard to believe it was a TV show
I was certainly sorry when Fox cancelled Millennium, but on the other hand, it's damn near miraculous that a show this intelligent, original, challenging and disturbing made it on to TV at all, let alone managed to survive for three seasons. I give this tape only four stars because although the series got off to an excellent start it didn't really hit its stride until the last third of the first season, when elements of the supernatural started creeping (and creep is definitely the operative word here) into it, and Millennium slowly transformed into the absolute best horror/fantasy/sf series ever. Although it was always just as much a drama, too. Forget TV, I can't even think of very many films in the genre that can touch this program for subtlty and smarts. For instance, in the brilliant episode "Powers, Principalities, Thrones and Dominions," it becomes fairly apparent that one character is an angel and another is a man posessed by a demon, but nothing is ever explicitly indicated. Now, in pretty much any other show or film they'd hit you over the head with it. They'd probably have the demon-guy's eyes glow red when no one's looking or just have him outright state something that makes his identity unmistakable. They'd probably have the angel-guy sprout wings at some point. But Millennium was almost unique in the extent to which it always demonstrated unusual faith in the intelligence of its audience. And I'd like to add my voice to the chorus clamoring here for the release of the series on DVD, just in case anyone from Fox happens by.

Please FOX, release Millennium on DVD
I agree with what many others have said, Millennium is by far one of the best shows ever made. FOX has made a habit of killing great TV series (Firefly is another example of that). I hope FOX will realize that there is a huge following for this show and release all three seasons in the ultimate DVD box set!!!!!!!!!!!!

Millennium was the best show
Why they took Millennium off the air I will never know. I looked forward to the show every Friday night. Fox should have let it go on to at least the year 2000 like it was meant to be. Please bring out a boxed set.

Millenniun TV Fox Series
I thought the Millenium on Fox was the best SFi/adventure series on TV,I actually started to like it more than the X-Files series. I never knew that it was being taken off the air untill I waited for it to come back on in the Fall season and to my dismay it did not. It would be nice if the Sc-Fi channel would become interested in it and started a new series. Chris Carter have you thought about "reinventing it on a channel like the Sci-Fi channel". My comments will probably go by the wayside...but just maybe some how "Out there" someone will think about the possibilities of bringing it back. Signed, "Misser of the Best Sci-Fi/Adventure on TV", KarlBuzz

Millenium TV Series Deserves to be on DVD
I'm adding my voice to the list of others here who have expressed their interest in seeing the Millenium TV series brought to DVD.

I read just over a year ago on www.digitalbits.com (http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/120202htfchat.html) that Millenium may be coming to DVD, however, I have yet to find any additional information on this topic.

I loved this series and was very sad to see it come to such a sudden end. If it ever makes it to DVD, I'll be there to buy it. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Get's better each time you watch it
I first caught this movie on cable on a Saturday afternoon about halfway through and thought "I have to see this, again." I was not disappinted. Amateurishly filmed and with one or two somewhat weak subplot this is, nonetheless, a fairly tight mystery where the viewer is given all the clues (in fact, I had to rewatch it a few times to catch what I had missed).

Loosely based upon true events (the Australian atomic bomb tests at Maralinga in 1956-5 which left thousands of native aborigines dead or dying of cancer), the story surrounds the modern day story of a cinematographer whose father, it is discovered, did not drown while on vacation, as first believed. Instead, it appears from a recent excavation at the test site, that he was murdered after possibly filming evidence of the effects of the bomb tests on the native population.

Because of a government investigation into the claims of the aborigines, the existence of the film and the reason for his father's death become central to the mystery.

The hero is an unlikely one, at best. A childish adult with a broken marriage, he has almost no interest in the events surrounding the tests or the mystery until agents of the goverment arouse his suspicions (along with a mysterious voice which prompts him to watch the TV news). In essence, he becomes an unwilling champion (or is he a dupe?) for the advocates of natives of Maralinga. Who are the good guys and who are the bad never quite becomes clear.

There have been many more suspenseful films and many stories better acted and better told. Perhaps because there are so many questions at the end of this film, and because of its low production quality, it seems more like the story of a real person than of an actor playing a character.

In short, because we expect so little, it seems that we get a lot, including (perhaps) one of the greatest film endings of any thriller, ever.

This is a darned good film for a rainy Saturday afternoon or a cold Saturday night. And it is a better told story than the likes of what Hollywood has put out for the past few decades. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Get's better each time you watch it
I first caught this movie on cable on a Saturday afternoon about halfway through and thought "I have to see this, again." I was not disappinted. Amateurishly filmed and with one or two somewhat weak subplot this is, nonetheless, a fairly tight mystery where the viewer is given all the clues (in fact, I had to rewatch it a few times to catch what I had missed).

Loosely based upon true events (the Australian atomic bomb tests at Maralinga in 1956-5 which left thousands of native aborigines dead or dying of cancer), the story surrounds the modern day story of a cinematographer whose father, it is discovered, did not drown while on vacation, as first believed. Instead, it appears from a recent excavation at the test site, that he was murdered after possibly filming evidence of the effects of the bomb tests on the native population.

Because of a government investigation into the claims of the aborigines, the existence of the film and the reason for his father's death become central to the mystery.

The hero is an unlikely one, at best. A childish adult with a broken marriage, he has almost no interest in the events surrounding the tests or the mystery until agents of the goverment arouse his suspicions (along with a mysterious voice which prompts him to watch the TV news). In essence, he becomes an unwilling champion (or is he a dupe?) for the advocates of natives of Maralinga. Who are the good guys and who are the bad never quite becomes clear.

There have been many more suspenseful films and many stories better acted and better told. Perhaps because there are so many questions at the end of this film, and because of its low production quality, it seems more like the story of a real person than of an actor playing a character.

In short, because we expect so little, it seems that we get a lot, including (perhaps) one of the greatest film endings of any thriller, ever.

This is a darned good film for a rainy Saturday afternoon or a cold Saturday night. And it is a better told story than the likes of what Hollywood has put out for the past few decades. ... Read more