Chernobyl (2019)

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Talal86

hopefully it also get a 4k release. 1080p is too pixelated, you can hardly tell who's who

I’m guessing this a joke without a smiley?

[Patches]

Originally Posted by theater dreamer

I've watched The Wire, Breaking Bad, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Shield, Sherlock, Mad Men, Better Call Saul, Band of Brothers, etc. The criminally underrated Billions. Nearly all the highly-rated dramatic series and miniseries. I've loved them all in their own way. But Chernobyl...five episodes, each an hour or slightly longer. Each one, impossibly, better than the one which directly preceded it.

Chernobyl, in my humble opinion, is peerless in the annals of television.

If you are reading this discussion, this post, and have not yet watched Chernobyl for whatever reason-maybe you didn't feel compelled to tune in. Or, maybe you don't have HBO. Please take my word. Just. Watch. This. Bug a friend or family member to borrow their HBO Go login info. Or sign up for a month. If you place a premium on brilliant storytelling, meticulously constructed scripts, masterful acting, and production design that enhances, not overpowers the story, do not put off watching Chernobyl. It is must see television.

It's riveting from the very first moment when Valrey Legasov (Jared Harris, son of the late Richard Harris), in voice over, with a pitch black screen, asks the audience,

"What is the cost of lies?"

[Show spoiler]He briefly recounts the arrogance, ineptitude and gross negligence of the principal characters responsible for the meltdown. Then, after mailing a collection of audio tapes with every recollection from two years of research, testimony and soul searching, he returns to his apartment, and takes his own life. The narrative then jumps back two years earlier. Lyudmilla Ignatenko walks out of the bathroom after a bout of morning sickness. A moment later, as she walks from the kitchen, off in the distance, you see the first flash from reactor 4 lighting up the night sky, followed by the massive explosion when the oxygenated reactor core goes. A brief moment later, the shock wave blows through nearby Pripyat. The duality of that instant, the sheer scale of the massive nuclear catastrophe, and the foreshadowing of the very human cost, is brilliantly balanced.

Chernobyl is the rare television event that not only lives up to the hype preceding it, it exceeds it. The three principle actors-Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, and the brilliant Emily Watson, all deliver pitch perfect performances. The pacing is spot on.

The mark of a great film, or show, is that it leaves you wanting more. When the credits finally rolled after the brilliant final episode, and the catastrophe's epilogue, I wanted more. Much more, even though I've watched each episode three times.

A few things:

I generally agree. However, I don't think it's peerless because I've seen The Leftovers and Twin Peaks: The Return. Highly recommend those for anyone seeking out television as next level as Chernobyl.

Additionally, does Game of Thrones even deserve to be in this conversation anymore after its abysmal conclusion?

[popeflick]

In a way this film opened my eyes to the actual safety of nuclear power: it took rancid incompetence to make it happen. And if you take even the highest death estimates nuclear power has saved 20x the lives in taking coal off the grid.

[rickah88]

Originally Posted by TheHutt

This series would actually deserve a steelbook.

Yes please, with a Geiger sound when you open it.

[arsenal_fan]

Originally Posted by dcx4610

I really enjoyed it. I just wish the writing matched the presentation. I had certain problems with the liberties they took with the story but overall it got the message across. The biggest issue for me was using English actors and dialogue in English. That was just too hard for me to accept and took me out of it.

Still, an outstanding TV show and I'll definitely pick up the Blu-ray. I had heard for someone that it wasn't going to get a home release. Glad they were wrong.

Fine review. I did tune in and out of the show a bit during the sequences with Emily Watson, the miners, the firefighter's wife and a couple of other bits that I don't quite remember now. Still an overall enjoyable series and one I'd watch again.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by dcx4610

I really enjoyed it. I just wish the writing matched the presentation. I had certain problems with the liberties they took with the story but overall it got the message across. The biggest issue for me was using English actors and dialogue in English. That was just too hard for me to accept and took me out of it.

Still, an outstanding TV show and I'll definitely pick up the Blu-ray. I had heard for someone that it wasn't going to get a home release. Glad they were wrong.

Just about every film or tv series about Ancient Rome does that.

[dcx4610]

Originally Posted by hoytereden

Just about every film or tv series about Ancient Rome does that.

I think it's a trend that needs to die. I think audiences are sophisticated enough now where they would accept subtitles as long as the reviews are good.

If you are just doing a run of the mill TV show set in Rome or another non-English speaking country, I don't have a problem with it. When you are doing a deadly serious and amazingly accurate (presentation-wise at least) historical drama like Chernobyl, I want them to go all out.

Gorbechev speaking perfect English was just too much for my brain and took me out of it.

[rickah88]

Had no problem with the dialogue decision.
I much prefer that aesthetic choice over subtitles. I like to read books and watch movies, not the other way around.

[XavierTheaterPotato]

I also prefer it, while it would be nice for them to go an extra mile to get Russian Actors to speak Russian with added subtitles. But the show is good enough as it is for many of us, most people will turn away at the mere sight or knowledge of having to read subtitles all the way through a movie or show. I already have a hard time connecting to characters when I have to read their lines because I myself can not understand them, it rids me of any sort of emotional connection if I'm forced to do that.

[Cremildo]

Originally Posted by dcx4610

I think it's a trend that needs to die. I think audiences are sophisticated enough now where they would accept subtitles as long as the reviews are good.

Originally Posted by rickah88

Had no problem with the dialogue decision.
I much prefer that aesthetic choice over subtitles. I like to read books and watch movies, not the other way around.

[TheHutt]

I found English dialogue very adequate. One should ask oneself: what language would the characters speak to each other? And the answer is: they would speak Russian, with some accents due to different people being from different regions of the USSR: the Ukraine, Moscow, Tula (the miners), Georgia (Bacho), Armenia (Garo)...

So if the characters speak English to each other, it is corresponding quite adequately to the language spoken within the world of the series, including the different accents of British English. For instance, having Scottish accent for the miners was a stroke of genius.

[cgpublic]

Originally Posted by dcx4610

I think it's a trend that needs to die. I think audiences are sophisticated enough now where they would accept subtitles as long as the reviews are good.

If you are just doing a run of the mill TV show set in Rome or another non-English speaking country, I don't have a problem with it. When you are doing a deadly serious and amazingly accurate (presentation-wise at least) historical drama like Chernobyl, I want them to go all out.

Gorbechev speaking perfect English was just too much for my brain and took me out of it.

I am of two minds on your comment.

At first listen, the decision to have the actors speak in English sans Russian accent was questioningly noticeable.

After time and consideration, I found the decision to do so elevated the proceedings to a production and related approach akin to a new take of a classical play.

Ultimately, I determined that the director's decision was bold but correct, as the underpinnings of the material, i.e., the essence of the work, is more powerful than the event and related context.

Regardless of how one settles the issue, we can all agree that Chernobyl is deserving of the highest regard and related release.

[SleazyForWeasley]

I was originally taken aback by all the british accents, but settled in pretty quickly because of how quality every aspect of the show was. I am surprised they didn't at least have the actors attempt Russian accents in the English language. The Americans had a lot of Russian dialogue and is one of the best shows in the last 10 years.

[bryantburnette]

I didn't need them to have Russian accents because I knew they were supposed to be Russian.

[spolcyc]

I was taken back by the British accents and not Russian. But after listening to to the shows podcast, the writer made a great point. Many people find the Russian accent comical especially in the West. It goes back to Natasha and Boris from Rocky and Bullwinkle.

As for subtitles, unfortunately we live in a time where the majority of audiences are looking at their phones or tablets while the TV is on and only glance at the screen. If there were subtitles, HBO would lose close to half their intended audience.

[Cremildo]

A show this revelatory, well-made and impactful and all some people can think about is the language? I find it stunning that there are those who think this would have sparked the same level of interest and achieved the same reach had it been made in Russian. Maybe they could've used an accent, I'll give you that, but it's such a minor thing in the context of what the show is about...

[infiniteCR]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

I’m guessing this a joke without a smiley?

The smiley would have been unnecessary exposition. So this was a refreshing change.

[Underworld54]

The entire incompetence of the Chernobyl disaster was incredible. The cover-up, no iodine in hospitals, no immediate evacuation. So very frustrating.

[loukomalada]

Originally Posted by Patches

A few things:

I generally agree. However, I don't think it's peerless because I've seen The Leftovers and Twin Peaks: The Return. Highly recommend those for anyone seeking out television as next level as Chernobyl.

Additionally, does Game of Thrones even deserve to be in this conversation anymore after its abysmal conclusion?

Just pre-ordered Chernobyl, not watched it yet been waiting for the blu-ray. Really looking forward to it

Btw, is The Leftovers that good? I have not heard about it, but Twin Peaks: The Return is among the best things I have ever watched. So thinking i might just blind order The Leftover based on this post you made lol

[James Luckard]

I just wanted to add some useful from the UK Chernobyl thread.

Another member contacted the DP of the miniseries, and he confirmed it was shot at 24fps, which was not a given, since it was a UK/US co-production.

The UK distributor originally announced the series would be DVD-only there, but they added a BD, due to the show's unexpectedly huge popularity.

Unfortunately the UK BD, which comes out on July 29, will be 25fps, presumably because that's the HD master they had available. It will not play on US systems, and it will not reflect the intended speed.

The HBO BD should come out in 4-6 months, based on past HBO miniseries. That BD will definitely be the proper speed, because nobody commercially releases 25fps BDs in the US.