In a certain sense, I really couldn't blame anyone calling "Time Bomb Y2K" a rather messy documentary. It is quite unfocused (without a clear focus) and touches on a number of different topics without necessarily buttoning up any of them. Yet, somewhat remarkably, this tapestry of Y2K coverage manages to nail the exact sentiments of the time period almost perfectly in the hands of directors Brian Becker & Marley Mcdonald.
For a very basic overview, this doc tells the story of the lead-up to the turn of the millennium (1999 into 2000) and how the Y2K computer glitch threatened to plunge the world into another dark age. Was it a hoax? Was it a crisis narrowly averted by hard work and planning? How were the general public reacting (or overreacting, potentially) to it all? Those are primary areas into which "Time Bomb Y2K" delves.
First and foremost for a doc like this, "Time Bomb Y2K" creates a sense of nostalgia through the use of archived news footage and personal videos. As someone who lived through the event and the time period in general, I can vouch for the authenticity of what is presented here. It is an accurate description of what the late-1990s felt like.
This film also does the practical, even-keel work of explaining just how the Y2K glitch occurred and what was done to prevent it from crashing digital systems on 1/1/00. Instead of the "it's a hoax or it's the end of the world" dichotomy presented at the time, the filmmakers here make it pretty clear (without inserting their own voices) that it was simply a lot of money thrown at the problem and a lot of time from computer programmers that ultimately saved the day.
The hallmark of "Time Bomb Y2K", however, is how it presents a society just beginning to reckon with the "digital world" and the way information can be disseminated therein. The mass panic, conspiracy theories, and misinformation around Y2K was eerily similar to more recent public health related events--the only difference being that in 1999 one had to access it via dial-up internet or VHS tapes.
So, though I usually do not enjoy documentaries without a strong focus/thesis, this one worked in spite of that principle because every tangent somehow managed to produce its own interesting material. It tapped into my adolescent nostalgia, showed a populace grappling with an oncoming digital age, and illustrated that while events come and go, people's responses to them are often similar through the decades.
