Essential for anyone that watched the superb show.
In terms of acting, writing, direction, and historical accuracy, HBO and Sky’s collaboration on Chernobyl is second to none because the drama felt like a show that’s unlike any other.
In many ways, it’s possible to view Chernobyl as a collection of different genres and tones.
For example, large parts Craig Mazin’s drama unfolded like a horror film because we all knew what was happening, and yet, it still didn’t reduce the horror of what unfolded. A prime example of this was the scene involving the brave soldiers that had to clear the poisonous graphite from the roof following the reactor exploding.
Elsewhere, the heroism of the miners and those divers that had to reduce the water levels was extraordinary, however, these incredible acts of bravery and sacrifice were extremely difficult to watch because you knew that these men and women were absolutely doomed.
In terms of a tonal shift, you could argue that the season finale saw Jared Harris (Valery Legasov), Stellan Skarsgård (Boris Shcherbina), Emily Watson (Ulana Khomyuk) acting in a courtroom drama as the pursuit of justice was paramount in the wonderful final episode.
If you’re looking for straight-up drama though, it’s arguable that the scenes where Barry Keoghan’s young soldier had to shoot those contaminated dogs, and Lyudmilla Ignatenko (Jessie Buckley) comforting her dying husband Vasily Ignatenko (Adam Nagaitis) won’t be beaten.
Simply put, there isn’t a facet of the production that wasn’t flawless but as is the norm with any production, it all starts with a script and the research, writing, and respect that Craig Mazin showed to all those who had their lives changed by this horrific accident deserves massive respect.
Aside from writing every episode, Mazin also participated in a wonderful podcast series that answered all the major questions and narrative decisions that he made. In fact, he specifically asked for this podcast to be made because he knew that people would have questions.
Like any adaptation of an historical event, not everything is going to be 100% accurate but to his immense credit, Mazin explained every step of his creative process and handled the story with the respect, truth, and care that it required.
At present, Chernobyl is the highest-rated show on IMBD and if you’re looking to learn a bit more about the tragic accident, Mazin has recommended the following.
2) Sorry, I should say #ChernobylHBO because hashtags.
So first… COME AND SEE is a Soviet classic, and in my opinion, the greatest war movie ever made. It somehow manages to be restrained and unblinking all at the same time. Hard to watch. Important to watch.
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
4) Chernobyl – The Severe Days… documentary by Vladimir Shevchenko. Like 3828, it concentrates on the liquidation… and there's some remarkable footage of the miners. This is where we first saw the hand-lettered sign urging the miners to work 24/7….
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
6) Surviving Disaster was a BBC movie starring Ade Edmondson as Legasov. It's a somewhat different vibe than ours, but I think it's terrific. Side note: Ade was Vyv in The Young Ones!
Chernobyl seems to turn comedy people into drama people…
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
8) Seconds From Disaster is another dramatization/doc… this one from National Geographic. It's quite a bit longer than Zero Hour, but like that one, it's definitely pitched more for a general audience.
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
9) I hope you find all these books and documentaries as interesting as I did, but of course, there's a whole lot more out there, including @HigginbothamA's new book.
Happy learning!
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
If you've watched #ChernobylHBO and feel like making a small difference in the life of a child affected by the disaster, please consider donating to @Chernobyl.
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
In my bibliography for #ChernobylHBO, I forgot to mention "Producing Power" by Sonja Schmid. It's a terrific history of the Soviet nuclear power industry leading up to Chernobyl. This one's mostly for hardcore Chernobyl nerds.https://t.co/BlXVVw2cdE
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 6, 2019
Ack! Forgot this one. Excellent documentary! A must-see! https://t.co/mkKP4g189v
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019
He has also made every single script of the show available for the public to read, for educational purposes.
As promised, I have made the scripts for #ChernobylHBO available for download. You can find them here: https://t.co/1idf6se53F
And thanks to my podcast partner @johnaugust for supplying a home for the files. Happy reading!
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) June 4, 2019