Chernobyl (2019)

Director: Johan Renck
Starring: Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson
Episodes: 5

Synopsis:
An explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant kicks off one of the worst nuclear disasters in history.

Impressions:
I was hearing a lot of recommendations for this series, so I decided to give it a watch. I'm certainly glad I did. While I would not call this series documentary-level accurate, a lot of attention is paid to the details and as far as historical dramatizations go, it's one of the best I've seen. It takes an unflinching look at the flaws in the Soviet system that contributed to the disaster but also highlights the many acts of individual and collective courage that kept the situation from turning out far worse than it did. I particularly liked the character dynamics between Jared Harris' Valery Legasov and Stellan Skarsgård's Boris Shcherbina. Though music is used sparingly, the haunting score by Hildur Guðnadóttir is employed to excellent effect. About the only serious criticism I can level at the series is that Episode 4 drags a bit, but it does so in the service of delivering the effect of the circumstances to the audience. This is definitely worth seeing and I strongly encourage adding it to your collection.

Rating:
Own It