Chernobyl HBO Miniseries

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Dr. Funk, May 6, 2019.

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  1. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    a joke that is not funny!! : )
     
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  2. Johnny Action

    Johnny Action Forum President

    Location:
    Kailua, Hawai’i
    You’re just jealous about his goatee, and the Angelina thing...
     
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  3. GodShifter

    GodShifter Forum Member

    Location:
    Dallas, TX, USA
    Yeah, that’s it.

    (Actually, people tell me I look like him all the time. That’s fine).
     
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  4. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    wow... that was interesting! thanks...
     
  5. englishbob

    englishbob has left the SH Forums...19/05/2023

    Location:
    Kent, England
    The French version arrived yesterday and I've just got through the whole lot in 3 sittings. A really great feature, absolutely did not disappoint.

    The accents where OK, although once or twice there where some really obvious cockney Londoners in the middle of Pripyat (like the man with the baby in Ep 1.) which was a bit ridiculous to be honest, and Ricky Gervais's mate from The Office

    This program is on a subject I would have poured over the extras for, but the extras are completely worthless, up to 2-3 minute "featurettes" at a time, amounting to probably no more than 25 minutes in total.

    For a 2 disc set that has a list price of $59.99 in the US, this is pretty much poor value for money and the show deserved a better edition with extras for that sort of money.
     
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  6. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law

    Perhaps, if they had gotten Tatiana, from "The Heat":
     
  7. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    Writer Craig Mazin & presenter Peter Sagal have a fantastic 6 part podcast that accompanies the series called The Chernobyl Podcast. Each podcast episode is corresponds to an episode of the TV series, taking a deep dive into the writing process, what to adapt/invent and what to leave to the historical record. Craig is fantastically knowledgeable about the disaster itself and the production of the TV show. The sixth episode is a 'bonus' episode, produced after the series became such a hit and examines the reaction to the show, as well as including the thoroughly delightful Jared Harris. The subject of actor's accents is addressed fairly early on in the first episode of the podcast.

    Consider the podcast series as the 'should have been the writer's commentary track on the discs'. Thankfully it is widely available on just about every podcast hosting service (accessed via Apple Podcasts app here via my iPhone).

    Otherwise the lack of worthwhile extras is what persuaded me to buy the series digitally after I'd watched it rather than on disc. If the discs had have included the Dolby Atmos soundtracks, included some worthwhile extras (Sky produced a good one hour documentary around the surviving individuals such as Brukhanov's son to tie in with the show), features on the production etc it would have been a no brainer. As the discs, at least the UK version, looked to represent the least possible effort...
     
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  8. englishbob

    englishbob has left the SH Forums...19/05/2023

    Location:
    Kent, England
    YouTube does a better job of providing the extras than the official product, and its free

     
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  9. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    That's the Sky doc! Found it an interesting and insightful piece, even after reading the History of a Tragedy & Midnight In.. books.
     
  10. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    I binged the miniseries last night. It was a worthy production and, if accurate, taught me some things I hadn't understood before. Harris was good. Amazing how he lands these sorts of key roles for himself. I especially appreciated the music, camera work and while those established an emotional thrust, the focus remained on the scientific and human stories of what happened. Epic disaster is an understatement.
     
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  11. mr. steak

    mr. steak Forum Resident

    Location:
    chandler az
    Getting around to this and I am riveted. The first two episodes have floored my wife and me. As sad as the situation being portrayed is I am looking forward to the rest. Best thing I've watched all year.
     
  12. Bachtoven

    Bachtoven Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    You might as well stay on the floor, as it gets more intense as it progresses! Easily among the best shows I have seen.
     
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  13. mr. steak

    mr. steak Forum Resident

    Location:
    chandler az
    Thanks for the heads up. Between the explanation of the the explosion fallout and the plant men going into the basement water we stopped breathing a couple of times. And the helicopter getting too close.
     
  14. dougotte

    dougotte Petty, Annoying Dilettante

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I was recently chatting with a colleague who grew up in Ukraine. He revealed that his family lived about 200 miles northeast of Chernobyl when it occurred. But, most of the radiation floated toward the west. They were not evacuated, but he said an uncle who lived closer was evacuated.
     
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  15. Goldy

    Goldy Failed to load

    Location:
    Ukraine
    Kyiv is 80 miles away and we weren't evacuated.
     
  16. mr. steak

    mr. steak Forum Resident

    Location:
    chandler az
    One more episode to go. This has been a masterpiece of dramatic storytelling and presentation.

    Kinda made the mistake of starting the podcast yesterday. So good as well. Now I want to catch up on the podcasts before I get to the last episode but I wan't to finish it off tonight.
     
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  17. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    The last episode is about as perfect an hour of television as you are ever likely to see.
     
  18. GodShifter

    GodShifter Forum Member

    Location:
    Dallas, TX, USA
    I would agree, but many who liked the series found the final episode to be lacking in terms of the first three. I read some reviews that didn't particular care for the last episode, too. I thought it was very well done.
     
  19. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    I agree, it was very well done. I can understand why some people felt the series should stay purely with the disaster and attempts to mitigate it (or lack thereof), and the aftermath/consequences. But the courtroom dramatization was very important to attempt to wrap up the scientific and human explanation of what happened, and to show the declining health of the main characters.
     
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  20. iworkatinitech

    iworkatinitech Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    What I found interesting is that after watching the series I bought the book "The Truth About Chernobyl" by Medvedev and was shocked at how different he saw the events as they unfolded. For instance his perspective of Scherbina was drastically different than what the series shows, similarly his perspective on Akimov was also different. I thought that it was one of the books that the series was based on (along with Voices from Chernobyl). All in all, I found both the series and the book extremely well done.
     
  21. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    Also worth reading Is Serhi Plokhy’s Chernobyl: History of a Tragedy and Adam Higginbotham’s Midnight in Chernobyl. Both offer detailed accounts of the before, during and after with differing levels of detail.

    Plokhy’s book is particularly good at describing the Soviet ‘system’, the management process whereby projects would be advanced and completed from being greenlit higher up. It accounts for Soviet management and reporting practices, which failed so catastrophically on the night in question, a style of management and reporting who’s roots went back decades, long before the construction of the plant or of nearby Pripyat.

    Higginbotham’s book by contrast deals with a wider array of people. Of particular interest is Maria Protsenko’s story. Protsenko was the chief architect of Pripyat and knew the city inside out. On the day of the evacuation, there were no maps for the out-of-city bus drivers to follow to get to the various pick up points within Pripyat; city maps were a state secret and where accessible only for those approved to do so. On the day of the evacuation, Protsenko spoke with each incoming bus drivers, providing them with scribbled maps and verbal directions as to where to go. She spent the day on the streets of Pripyat, effectively bare legged. She suffered radiation burns to her legs, merely by being on the streets for a period of time.
     
  22. duneman

    duneman Forum Resident

    A Ukrainian friend of mine said the same thing. So no radiation at all came your way?
     
  23. Goldy

    Goldy Failed to load

    Location:
    Ukraine
    Of course it did, it just wasn't announced. To this day we've got different official ambient radiation thresholds to rest of country.
     
  24. duneman

    duneman Forum Resident

    Wow - ok, I get it, thanks.
     
  25. BILLONEEG

    BILLONEEG Senior Member

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Heads up for anyone wanting to get the "Chernobyl" DVD. The DVD set at Walmart sells for $24.96 but if you look around (& maybe on an endcap) you may find it on display for $9.96 with a different UPC sticker. The $9.96 UPC ends with "1254". Get it while you can. My store only had three at the low price. Good luck!
    [​IMG]
     
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