Chernobyl (2019)
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Chernobyl Review
Chernobyl is a 2019 historical drama miniseries produced by HBO. It’s a very well made and strikingly mature show, but one that wasn’t as riveting as I’d hoped it would be.
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“What is the cost of lies?“
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Following the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 and its tumultuous aftermath, the show took a surprisingly layered and emotional approach to telling this story. It is both humane and very empathetic toward the regular people of the then Soviet Union and what they all endured during this horrible disaster.
Obviously, they ended up criticizing the government very strongly, but the emphasis on telling the story of the people who survived this ordeal struck a chord with me and it was a terrific choice that really worked. It’s surprising how not too political this miniseries was.
It featured an outstanding ensemble cast with Jared Harris and Emily Watson probably delivering the most here. The character development was solid, though not great given the confines of the limited series format and the show’s bad decision to focus on so many people all at once. The result was a bit disorienting and not as effective as it should have been.
Chernobyl’s main strength is its attention to detail in recreating its time period and place. The production design, costumes, effects and directing are all terrific, but it is the dialogue that was the best and most sophisticated part of this project. Many conversations here are emotionally resonant and even quite deep.
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The main issue here was that the show was a bit too slow in pace and thus not as engaging as it could have been. It lacked more of a thriller atmosphere that I was hoping to see as it more often than not focused on its numerous characters and not enough on the actual story at hand.
Overall, Chernobyl has its definite flaws, but this miniseries is still quite successful at capturing a particular time and place so vividly and horrifically. The empathetic approach really worked while the dialogue was impressive throughout.
Worst Episode: 1:23:45.
Best Episode: The Happiness of All Mankind.
