Biography of the Millennium: 100 People - 1000 Years (1999) User Reviews

Exciting but not perfect project

[gizmomogwai · 8/10 · 14 June 2008]

At the turn of the millennium Biography tried the difficult and exciting project of attempting to rank the 100 most important people who lived between 1000 and 2000 CE. Any such list comparing the importance of people from different fields- Louis Armstrong versus Einstein versus Simon Bolivar- will be conceptually difficult, subjective and won't be seen as very scholarly, though scholars were consulted. The end result has a lot of great choices, particularly in the top 25, but it's America-centric- Ronald Reagan made the list but Otto von Bismarck doesn't? Why are there so few Asians? (Mao Zedong and Genghis Khan make the list though). And why does Susan B. Anthony make the list but people in other countries who won women the vote don't? (Mary Wollstonecraft, who comes in at #48, is a better, more international symbol of feminism, and perhaps should have ranked even higher). Some choices are dubious- Princess Diana had no achievements, and "Patient Zero"- the first AIDS patient- being on the list is an odd tribute to AIDS patients and it doesn't really belong here. Why not salute the first sufferer of the Black Plague too? It's also biased towards the most recent- Peter the Great only comes in at #83 when he first made Russia a great power. Would Lenin, Stalin and Gorbachev, who rank higher in this list, be as important without Peter?

The presentation of this documentary is good, with some of the music fitting the tone of the narration well. Some of the commentators also point out flaws in the list- the lack of Chinese leaders, how Princess Diana and Reagan don't quite belong- and it's to the documentary's credit that this criticism was included. For reasons unknown, though, some commentaries were cut from the video release.

A memorable night when this documentary first aired on December 31st, 1999

[Ed-Shullivan · 10/10 · 13 February 2019]

I spent the evening alone with my then 11 year old inquisitive son on New Years Eve, December 31st, 1999, and I must say it was a most memorable evening. Of course one would expect since this documentary was produced by westerners, it would be ladened with westerners and may have ignored some of the more prominent people who influenced the world and represented the other continents. I understand that this is still a subjective list and was not based on a consensus from equal votes from around the worlds historians, educators, and entertainment critics. I am sure if this list was produced by China, or England, or Russia, the list of the top 100 people over the past 1,000 years would be drastically different. Having said that, I still enjoyed this documentary immensely and more importantly it held my 11 year old sons full attention for the full length of this special presentation. As each of the historic names were divulged and their contribution to the world were explained by a combination of historic footage and/or illustrations due to the centuries each individual represented, we both sat their intently waiting to see if some of the (in)famous people we had thought of had made this list, or not.

This is a must see if you are a fan of documentaries, and I can only hope that A&E will consider releasing this full length documentary on Blu Ray 4K at some time in the near future. I have watched it a few times now and I intend to watch it again sometime in the near future. Great history lessons. For those who are not content with the list of 100 people recognized try making your own list and see how your audience picks YOUR list apart!

A perfect 10 for 10

My candidate for inclusion

[jonesincanada · 9/10 · 24 July 2008]

I enjoyed this documentary and have been looking for it on DVD for a few years.

While I agree with some of the criticisms leveled against the choices that ended up on the list, the documentary does draw the conclusion that the past millennium was about the rise of the West. If that conclusion is accepted, one would not expect non-Western leaders to figure prominently on a list of the 100 most influential people of the prior millennium. Having said that, I believe that Deng Xiaoping of China should have made the list. By reversing the disastrous policies of Mao, brutally suppressing the Tiananmen Square demonstrations, and gingerly opening China to the world, he exercised a great deal of influence (for good or ill) over the lives of 1/4 of the world's population.

Why are there news makers on the historian panel?

[trevorofcapecoral · 9/10 · 27 April 2020]

I have Long been a true fan of history. This proves to very essential and relevant to History study. sure there has been some differing opinions of people on the list. but my concern is the Historians on the Panel. Why is Steven Spielberg (#91) on the Historians' Panel? Spielberg Himself was the history maker. Along with Robin Williams. (Since when is he a historian?) It is true that Robin Williams is an influential comic actor. He was more of a news making actor than a historian and why? Williams himself is a creative influential actor, for he was an Oscar winning actor in the late 90's. (Too bad he himself was not on the list) Kofi Annan was the first African Secretary general to the United Nations (Again, Since when did he become a historian?) In the later years, Kofi Annan won the Nobel Peace Prize. Another person to consider is Gloria Steinem, who is an advocate for women's rights (Since when did she become a historian?) Richard Holbrooke was the Diplomat to Bosnia and Herzegovina (since when was he a historian?) at the time of Bill Clinton's Presidency, Newt Gingrich was house speaker and Hillary Clinton was first lady (Since when did they become historians?) these two people were the news makers themselves. Norman Schwarzkopf was a millitary leader in the Persian Gulf war. (Since when is he a historian?) I do point out certain flaws on the commentators' panel. I do think about why Princess Diana was on the list. It was because she was a news maker herself and she used her being the Princess of Wales for the good of the people. Dr. Ruth Westheimer revolutionized our attitudes on sexuality (Since when is she a historian?) Dr. C. Everett Koop was Surgeon General in the time of Reagan's presidency who warned about the health risks of smoking. (Since When is he a historian?) Henry Kissinger was Secretary of State in the Time of Nixon's Presidency and won the Nobel Peace Prize for his Diplomacy with China, but he was also accused of Genocide in Cambodia. (Since when is he a historian?) Wendy Wasserstein was a playwright known for her works as 'The Uncommon Women' and 'The Heidi Chronicles'. (Since when is she a Historian) The people who do not belong on the Historian panel are the news makers. This includes Newt Gingrich, Hillary Clinton, Robin Williams, Kofi Annan, Henry Kissinger, Norman Schwarzkopf, Gloria Steinem, Ruth Westheimer, Henry Kissinger, Wendy Wasserstein, C. Everett Koop and of course, Steven Spielberg. but Honestly, I have fond memories of the mini series and I find it useful for history research.