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Summary:
Frank Black knows that a dangerous
situation is developing when a psycho-sexual killer who has spent months
slaughtering horses across North Dakota begins to gain the courage to
focus his attentions on human victims.
Season One on DVD
Full Transcript Available
Quote:
"Man is the cruelest animal." —Nietzsche
Synopsis: In North Dakota, a woman named Sally Dumont
rides a horse to her farm. As Sally guides the animal to a stall in the
stable, she discovers another horse, its coat stained with blood, lying on the
ground inside its pen. As she kneels down next to it to investigate, Sally
notices someone wearing a pair of rubber boots standing in the adjoining
stall. Terrified, she makes her way to a phone and calls for help. Suddenly,
the intruder looms up from behind and knocks Sally unconscious.
Frank
meets with Sheriff Jeff Falkner, who believes the incident does not warrant
the Millennium Group's attention. But Frank notes that twenty-one horses
have been killed in the surrounding area during the last two and a half
years. He believes that the perpetrator is a psychosexual killer in the
making-someone who must be stopped before his sickness compels him to take
human life.
Police
discover the word "help" written in human blood near the telephone where
Sally Dumont placed her call for help. They also discover human semen in
the stall next to where the horse was killed. Frank believes the perpetrator
was reacting to an entirely new experience: for the first time, he had
a woman, and not a horse, in his power.
The
perpetrator, a man named Willi Borgsen, uses an electric cattle prod to
shock hogs in a tractor trailer oustide of a bar. When approached by the
owner of the rig, Willi incapacitates the driver by shocking him with the
cattle prod. Police later discover the driver's beaten body in a wooded
area nearby. Upon investigation Frank realizes a set of boot-prints at
the scene match the type of footwear worn by the perpetrator. He also concludes
that the suspect is incapacitating his victims with an electric cattle
prod, a device used by slaughterhouse workers.
The
body of another victim, a woman named Mary Ann Wright, is found on a farm
with a dead horse nearby. On a barn wall is scrawled the message, "thank
you." Willi telephones Frank using a special number set up by police to
report information about the crimes. Willi taunts Frank telling him that
committing murder brings him great pleasure.
While
discussing the case with Claudia Vaughan, a local veterinarian, Frank is
shocked when he sees foals being led to slaughter. Claudia explains that
P.M.U., or Pregnant Mares Urine, is the main element in Hormone Replacement
Therapy which is the most profitable pharmaceutical in the United States.
Mares are deliberately kept pregnant for their urine, and when the animal
gives birth, the foal is killed and the meat is shipped overseas. Frank
concludes that the killer was raised on a P.M.U. farm.
Willi
again telephones Frank. He warns that killing Mary Ann Wright did not satisfy
his urges. Frank warns that his bloodlust will only intensify. After Willi
hangs up, Frank realizes Claudia Vaughan is his next victim. Falkner, Watts
and Frank break down the door of Claudia's home, but she has vanished.
Frank realizes Willi took her to a slaughterhouse that deals in horses.
As
the men enter the slaughterhouse, Willi engages a motorized pulley system
from which animal carcasses are hung. Falkner sees a still-conscious Claudia
swinging among the carcasses, a meat hook through her jacket. Suddenly,
Willi steps from the shadows and jolts Falkner with a stun-gun, knocking
him to the ground.
Frank
searches the slaughterhouse for Willi. The stun-gun is jabbed into Frank's
back, sending him tumbling into a killing box. Willi fires a pneumatic
bolt (used to slaughter livestock), narrowly missing his prey. A sheriff's
deputy sneaks up behind Willi, but his boot crunches a fragment of bone.
Willi turns, firing a bolt into the deputy's chest. Frank escapes through
a wire mesh at the bottom of the killing box. But Willi gains the upper
hand, aiming the gun at Frank's forehead. Suddenly, a wave of horses charges
towards Willi, trampling him.
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Photographs:
- Frank and a horse share a quiet moment
- Frank Black stands in darkness
- Borgsen, clad in his slaughterhouse wear
Abyss Rating:
(3/5)
Media Review:
"Though
he is often called in to offer profiles, it is rare when we get to
witness Frank actually creating one. This interesting installment of
the show allows us that window into this world. Some of the aspects to
the narrative are very sinister (the murderer, the abattoir setting)
but others prove silly (the overwhelming pro-horse mantras). Still,
the straightforward police work matched with a truly craven criminal
makes this episode enthralling, if not completely successful." —Bill Gibron, DVD Talk
Trivia:
"Broken World" earned Millennium
a position among the annual honorees of the Genesis Awards in 1997. An award given to productions that acknowledge significant
animal-rights issues, Millennium earned recognition for
addressing the production of Premarin,
extracted from the urine of pregnant
mares, in this episode's story.
Millennium editor Chris Willingham
informed the Abyss that "Broken World" was one of those episodes that
was trimmed in the cutting room as a result of its graphic nature.
"There have most definitely been shots that were not used for
censorship reasons. In 'Broken World,' there was a lot of
slaughterhouse footage that could not be used due to its graphic
nature. Watching the dailies was difficult for the editor." Such
scenes are often lost, Willingham explained, but never at the expense
of the episode's story. "Lots of little things are cut from every
episode, but the producers certainly wouldn't remove anything that
forwarded the story. That's what its all about, story. The things that
are removed may be interesting from a film fan perspective but they
surely don't help the storytelling process. Otherwise, they would not
be dropped."
The working title for this episode was
simply "Equus," the Latin word for horse.
Death Toll:
3
Title:
A biblical reference, the
episode's title reflects the reaction of the citizens of Williston,
North Dakota once they learn a serial killer is being born in their
midst. Only in a broken world could such cruelty and such crimes
come to be. Truly, this is a title that could be appropriately
applied to many a Millennium tale.
Awards: Genesis Award -
Millennium: "Broken World," Outstanding Communication of Animal-Rights
in
Dramatic Television Series (Awardee)
Starring:
Lance Henriksen as Frank Black
Terry O'Quinn as Peter Watts
Guest Starring:
Jo Anderson as Claudia Vaughn
Van Quattro as Willi Borgsen
John Dennis Johnston as Sheriff Falkner
Donnelly Rhodes as Peter Dumont
Ingrid Kavelaars as Sally Dumont
P. Adrien Dorval as Fatso
Michael Tayles as Deputy Billy Maxwell
J.B. Bivens as First Deputy
Tom Bougers as Tom
Sue Fuller as Mary Ann
Production
Credits:
Production #4C19
Music by Mark Snow
Production Designer Mark Freeborn
Director of Photography Robert McLachlan
Associate Producer Jon-Michael Preece
Consulting Producer Ted Mann
Consulting Producer James Wong
Consulting Producer Glen Morgan
Co-Producer Ken Dennis
Co-Producer Chip Johannessen
Co-Producer Frank Spotnitz
Co-Executive Producer Jorge Zamacona
Co-Executive Producer Ken Horton
Co-Executive Producer John Peter Kousakis
Executive Producer Chris Carter
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