Chernobyl (2019)

Directed by: Johan Renck | 330 minutes | drama, history | Actors: Jessie Buckley, Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson, Paul Ritter, Robert Emms, Sam Troughton, Karl Davies, Michael Socha, Laura Elphinstone, Jan Ricica, Alan Williams, Adrian Rawlins

The miniseries ‘Chernobyl’ looks like a political thriller. As an intensely suspenseful film about conspiracies, intimidation, paranoia, heroes and villains and just about the nearer end of the world. You are regularly on the edge of your seat, hold your heart (almost literally) and empathize with the main characters. The wry thing is that this is not a made-up story, but bitter truth. An unfortunately all-too-true account of misplaced vanity and pride, of moral poverty – not to say inhumanity and malice – and simply of an unparalleled tragic ‘accident’. This is not a series that you work through with a bowl of popcorn and then happily continue with your life. This is impressive; you should pause here for a moment.

Now you can say that this reality check is purely the result of the seriousness of the actual event that took place, but then you ignore the persuasiveness of the series and the quality of the people behind and in front of the camera. Because you can’t help but keep a series about an accident in a nuclear power plant fascinating for almost five and a half hours. And not only that: to create a series that exudes authenticity, with a largely non-Russian (or non-Ukrainian) cast.

As far as this last aspect is concerned, this is a small blemish – if you can call it that – on the production. Because yes, the degree of authenticity that is achieved is admirable, but you can’t help but think that it would have been more true if ‘just’ had chosen for local actors. Of course the language is only part of the interpretation and it is questionable whether actors of the same caliber could have been found, but it is strange to watch all English speaking people in such an originally Russian/Ukrainian looking and feeling environment. have to hit. And when an English-speaking stand-in of President Gorbachev also appears, the alienation is complete.

But once you just accept this fact and concentrate on what is happening and being said, it is no problem at all to be carried away by the series, which is divided into five episodes of more than an hour. The first episode consists almost entirely of a ‘live’ registration of the accident. What is going on at the plant, who is involved? The hectic, the panic. To call it oppressive is an understatement.

Then (and in later episodes) the news reaches the people (including government leaders) who have to assess the situation and take measures. Immediately the consequences of the accident are not properly estimated. That is, in the most favorable case, for example when it comes to the dour but ultimately reasonable Vice-Chairman of the Council of Ministers Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skarsgård). It is much more serious that other (government) leaders and ‘party members’ want to cover up the entire ‘incident’. With the radiation it seems to be not too bad and there is certainly no need for evacuation. Just shut it up and clean it up, and we won’t have to talk about it anymore.

But alas, a disaster has indeed occurred, with thousands of people exposed to radiation, many of whom will die at least within a decade or so, if not much sooner. Nuclear scientist Valery Legasov (a great Jared Harris) appreciates the situation, as does his (fictional) fellow scientist Ulana Khomyuk.

Although Legasov is primarily a voice crying in the desert, he quickly manages to get Boris Shcherbina on his side. Thanks to God, this one knows how to arrange almost all the equipment and personnel that Legasov asks for – to prevent a much bigger disaster. No expense is spared to get everything under control as quickly as possible. Sometimes people have to be sacrificed, since they have to get close to the exploded reactor (core).

To this, Legasov and Shcherbina proceed only if there really is no other solution. However, it is shocking to say the least to see the delay in evacuating the local population. Everything to keep the outside world from getting wind of this fiasco, which would mean losing face for the Russians. Only when radiation is detected in some places in Germany (originating from Chernobyl) and even children are no longer allowed to play outside, Russia will also have to believe it. The communist system, which keeps people over their heads and does not always put the right person in the right place, is exposed here in all its flaws. Sometimes extra emphasis is placed on this in the dialogue, which is unnecessary and therefore weakens the scene, but this only happens sporadically.

‘Chernobyl’ provokes a lot of anger and disbelief from the viewer, who will be familiar with the incident, but not with this kind of detail, or the degree of deceit and inhumanity. There is the realization that a people can be just as proud, humane, benevolent and righteous, you do little when an entire nation keeps you under your thumb with a web of lies and tactics of intimidation, threat and exclusion. But ‘Chernobyl’ is also about dealing with loss and injustice, (having to) perform inhumane acts, resigning yourself to your own end, standing for your principles, the resilience of people, and the solidarity that can triumph in spite of everything. .

Almost the entire series is interesting, provocative, shocking. In the penultimate episode, the focus briefly shifts from the oppressive work on the reactor and the search for the truth, to a young man who has to shoot (domestic) animals with a few soldiers in an evacuated zone, because they are a danger to people due to their heavy exposure to radiation. public health. It is terrible to see how even litters of puppies have to be killed, and the effect this has on the young man who had never fired a shot in his life. Still, this piece reduces the intensity and threat that characterized the series up to that point. With the industrial sounds on the soundtrack, and the desolate, barely colored environments as a fitting backdrop for the bleak events and the shadowy political games played by the government.

Other than that, however, ‘Chernobyl’ is a nail biter from start to finish. They are horrific facts that reach the viewer. Of course, the many thousands (probably tens of thousands) of deaths caused by the disaster are part of that, but the improbably proud attitude that has not exactly contributed to a speedy solution is truly unimaginable. They are lessons for the future. If not for governments – which will not consciously improve their lives anyway – then for journalists, scientists and other critical thinkers who must always look beyond and protect citizens. With information… and the truth.