Posting share from GAON Newsletter (Waseda Univ. Korean Contents Creating Circle)
Original Writer: MIN Jungwan
Posted on this blog: 2019. 10. 22.
[Photo from YouTube]
Chernobyl is a 2019 historical drama miniseries premiered in five series in May 2019. Directed by Johan Renck and written by Crag Mazin, Chernobyl dramatizes the nuclear power plant disaster occurred in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, and its after-purification operation. It also depicts those who were engaged in the accident – from the people who caused the disaster to who responded to it.
It features casts including Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgord and Emily Watson. It is undoubtedly called the most popular drama of the year – sweeping best mini-series section, best director and best screenplay awards at the 71st Emmy Awards in 2019. With casts’ outstanding acting and HBO’s exceptional ability to direct historical events, the worst calamity in the World history has further dramatized, which sparked the collapse of socialism with the Soviet era in the late 20th century. This drama especially depicts not only the explosion of the nuclear power plant and its after resolution process, but also the way how the Soviet Government reacted upon it, and the side effects from the process of concealing the truth.
What is the cost of lies?
[Photo from New Scientist]
Chernobyl is mainly constructed with the stories of the people who are responsible for the nuclear disaster, people who caused the accident, and those who endeavor to cope with the accident, realizing the seriousness of the accident. From episode 1, it realistically depicts the explosion and what caused the explosion of the 4th Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Under the supervision of the chief researcher seeking for an apparent output, fellow researchers are forced to push ahead with the experiment although they recognize the danger of it.
From episode 2, the drama shows the bureaucracy of the Soviet Government to conceal the truth behind this accident from the world (especially the liberalist camp). Also, it illustrates the effort of the people who are aware of the dangers of radioactive materials and attempt to identify the cause of the explosion and minimize side effects. By showing a dramatic transition between those scenes, it helps viewers to understand the after process of this accident. Scenes where fire fighters, volunteers, soldiers carrying burdens from the accident, and miners constructing a concrete wall under the 4th power plant to avoid land and underground water contamination are depicted allow viewers to vividly imagine the situation.
Keys you would catch after reading this article
1. Safety Ignorance
Many viewers might question why the people at that time were not aware of the harmfulness of radioactivity. Especially in the scene were a pregnant woman reunite with her husband who was injured from the accident and picking up their life without any countermeasure, many viewers probably sympathize with their situation.
2. Detailed historical research entails vividness.
In terms of story composition, this drama is based on the people’s voice of Pripyat, and Svetlana Alexievich’s ‘Voices from Chernobyl’, which won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Also, even minor factors were all derived from historical research including the actual after process of death, the actual vehicle and helicopter used by Soviet at the time.
3. Imaginary character Ulana Khomyuk
[Photo from mercurynews.com]
Ulana Khomyuk, serves as a medium in which the drama provides a detailed description of the danger of nuclear explosion and its impact on humanity and society. It is a fictional character, not a person who is affected by the actual accident, but a person who delves into the cause of the incident in detail, which gives viewers a scientific evidence of the cause of the incident in detail.
Why did the explosion take place? Hearing from Dr. Legasov, the main character.Most viewers would only be aware of the incident itself, but not about the cause of the explosion or the background of the incident in detail. In the case of the main character, Dr. Legasov, who was in charge of designing and facilitating the RBMK nuclear reactor, gives an insight into why the reactor exploded and how the disaster occurred when it was thought to be safe from data analysis and thus it was very unlikely to explode.
Although it is rather a short miniseries with 5 episodes, you will be able to see a brand new side to the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion. I highly recommend you watch this drama; it will surely leave a deep impression.
Ichigo-ichie 