Chernobyl (miniseries): Difference between revisions

[[File:View_of_Chernobyl_taken_from_PripyatIAEA_02790015_(5613115146).JPG|200pxjpg|thumb|To What is the cost of lies? It's not that we'll mistake them, afor justthe worldtruth. The real danger is athat saneif world.we hear enough lies, then we no Therelonger wasrecognize nothingthe sanetruth aboutat Chernobylall. ~ Valery Legasov]]

'''''[[w:Chernobyl (miniseries)|Chernobyl]]''''' is a [[w:2019 in filmtelevision|2019 HBO miniseries]] based on the [[Chernobyl disaster|nuclear accident]] at the [[{{w:Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant|Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant]]}} in 1986.

:''[April 26, 1988: Alone in his apartment in Moscow, Professor {{w|Valery Legasov}} replays his voice on a tape recorder]''

:'''Valery Legasov''': What is the cost of lies? It's not that we'll mistake them for the truth. The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, then we no longer recognize the truth at all. What can we do then? What else is left to abandon even the hope of truth and content ourselves instead with stories? In these stories, it doesn't matter who the heroes are. All we want to know is: "Who is to blame?" In this story, it was {{w|Anatoly Dyatlov}}. He was the best choice. An arrogant, unpleasant man, he ran the room that night, he gave the orders... and no friends. Or at least, not important ones. And now Dyatlov will spend the next ten years in a prison labor camp. Of course, that sentence is doubly unfair. There were far greater criminals than him at work. And as for what Dyatlov ''did'' do, the man doesn't deserve prison. He deserves death.

:''[Legasov stops the tape, sips a glass of water, and then startsrestarts recordingthe tape from where he left off.]''

:'''Toptunov''': No, that's not --

:'''Dyatlov''': This is an emergency, everyone stay calm. Our first priority is to --

:'''Dyatlov''': You're confused, RBMK reactor cores don't explode. Akimov! ''[picks up the phone to call out]''

:'''AkimovToptunov''': ''[whispering, to ToptunovAkimov]'' Sasha...
:'''Akimov''': Don't worry, we did everything right. Something... something strange has happened.

:'''Akimov''': ''[toglances at Perevozchenko]'' Comrade Perevozchenko, what you're saying is physically impossible. The core can't explode. It has to be the tank.

:'''Dyatlov''': ''[hangs up the phone]'' We're wasting time. Let's go. Get the hydrogen out of the generators and pump water into the core.

:'''Dyatlov''': ''[pounds the table, swaying on his feet]'' Enough! I'll go up to the vent block roof. From there, you can look right down into reactor building 4. I'll see it with my own... with my own eyes. ''[vomits on the table]'' I apologize. ''[collapses]''

:'''Viktor Bryukhanov''': The [[Vladimir I. Lenin]] Nuclear Power Station.

:'''Zharkov''': Exactly. Vladimir I. Lenin. ''[points to the image of Lenin on the nearby wall]'' And how proud he would be of you all tonight. Especially you, young man, the passion you have for the people. For is that not the sole purpose of the appartusapparatus of the State? Sometimes we forget. Sometimes we fall prey to fear. But our faith in Soviet socialism will always be rewarded. Now the State tells us the situation here is not dangerous. Have faith, comrades. The State tells us it wants to prevent a panic. Listen well! It's true, when the people see the police, they will be afraid. But it is my experience that when the people ask questions that are not in their own best interest, they should simply be told to keep their minds on their labor and leave matters of the State to the State. We seal off the city. No one leaves. And cut the phone lines. Contain the spread of misinformation. That is how we keep the people from undermining the fruits of their own labor. Yes, comrades... we will all be rewarded for what we do here tonight. This is our moment to shine.

:'''Gorbachev''': Good. Very good. Well, it seems like it's well in hand, so... if there's nothing else, meeting adjourned.

:'''Shcherbina''': This is Professor Legasov of the Kurchatov Institute. Professor, if you have any concerns, feel free to address them with me, ''later''.

:'''Gorbachev''': Well, I don't hear any ''facts'' at all. All I hear is a man I don't know engaging in conjecture in direct contradiction to what has been reported by party officials.

:'''Legasov''': Um... An RBMK reactor uses {{w|Uranium-235}} as fuel. Every atom of U-235 is like a bullet traveling at nearly the speed of light, penetrating everything in its path: woods, metal, concrete, flesh. Every gram of U-235 holds over a billion trillion of these bullets. That's in one gram. Now, Chernobyl holds over three million grams, and right now, it is on fire. Winds will carry radioactive particles across the entire continent, rain will bring them down on us. That's ''three million billion trillion bullets'' in the... in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat. Most of these bullets will not stop firing for 100one hundred years. Some of them, not for 50,000fifty thousand years.

:'''Shcherbina''': ''[Notices Legasov and turns to Bryukhanov]'' Why did I see graphite on the roof?
:''[Bryukhanov and Fomin's smug expressions dissolve.]''
:'''Shcherbina''': Graphite is only found in the core, where it's used as a—neutron flux moderator. Correct?

:'''Fomin''': Well, that—that can't be. Comrade Shcherbina, my apologies, but graphite... that's not possible. Perhaps y—you saw burnt concrete.

:''[Colonel -General Pikalov returns from thedriving testinga tohigh-level givedosimeter hisclose to the reportfire.]''

:'''Pikalov''': It's not three roentgen. It's 15,000fifteen thousand.

:'''Legasov''': ''[Sighs]'' You are dealing with something that has never occurred on this planet before. ''[Shcherbina begins to speak]'' Boron. Boron and sand. Well, thatIt'll create problems of its own, but I—I don't see any other way. Of course, it's going to take thousands of drops, because you can't fly the helicopters directly over the core, so most of it is going to miss.

:'''Legasov''': Then the cellular damage begins to manifest. The bone marrow dies, the immune system fails, the organs and soft tissue begin to decompose. The arteries and veins spill open like sieves, to the point where you can't even administer morphine for the pain, which isis… unimaginable. And then three days to three weeks, you are dead. That is what will happen to those boys.

:'''Glukhov''': ''[somewhat less confident]'' We dig up coal, not bodies.

:'''Charkov''': No no, it's perfectly understandable. Comrade, I know you've heard the stories about us. When I hear them, even I am shocked. But we are not what people say. Yes, people are following you. People are following those people. And you see them? ''[indicates two agents behind him]'' They follow ''me''. The KGB is a circle of accountability. Nothing more.

:'''Shcherbina''': We couldn't put a man on the Moon. At least we can keep a man off thea roof.

:'''Legasov''': That is the most important thing, General. Under no circumstances can men go up there. Robots only.

:''[After a West German robot clearing graphite from the roof fails due to the radiation, Shcherbina is on the phone with Moscow, shouting furiously.]''

:'''Shcherbina''': Of course I know they're listening! I want them to hear! I want them to hear it all! ''[from outside, where Legasov and General Tarakanov can easily hear]'' Do you know what we're doing here?! Tell those geniuses what they have done! ''I don't give a fuck!'' Tell them! Go tell them! Ryzhkov! Go tell them he's a joke! Tell fucking Gorbachev! TELL THEM! ''[smashes the phone to pieces, then drags them outside before tossing them into the grass, then turns to Legasov and Tarakanov]'' The official position of the State is that a global nuclear catastrophe is not possible in the Soviet Union. They told the Germans that the highest detected level of radiation was two thousand roentgen. They gave them the propaganda number. That robot was never going to work. ''[to one of the guards]'' We need a new phone.

:''[General Tarakanov briefs his men before sending them to clear roof level "Masha"]''

:'''Tarakanov''': Comrade soldiers, the Soviet people have had enough of this accident. They want us to clean this up, and we have entrusted you with this serious task. Because of the nature of the working area, you will each have no more than ninety seconds to solve this problem. Listen careful to each of my instructions, and do exactly as you have been told. This is for your own safety and the safety of your comrades. You will enter reactorReactor buildingBuilding 3, climb the stairs, but do not immediately proceed to the roof. When you get to the top, wait inside behind the entrance to the roof, and catch your breath. You will need it for what comes next. ''[indicates photographs of the roof]'' This is the working area. We must clear the graphite. Some of it is in blocks weighing approximately 40 to 50 kilograms. They all must be thrown over the edge here. ''[shows video]'' Watch your comrades moving fast from this opening, then turning to the left, then entering the workspace here. Take care not to stumble. There's a hole in the roof. Take care not to fall. You will need to move quickly, and you will need to move carefully. Do you understand your mission as I have described it?

:'''Legasov''': ''[Scoffsscoffs]'' ''"Why worry about something that isn't going to happen?"'' Oh, that's perfect. They should put that on our money.

* [[w:Jared Harris|Jared Harris]] - [[{{w:Valery Legasov|Valery Legasov]]}}

* [[w:Stellan Skarsgård|Stellan Skarsgård]] - [[{{w:Boris Shcherbina|Boris Shcherbina]]}}

* [[w:Paul Ritter (actor)|Paul Ritter]] - {{w|Anatoly Dyatlov}}

* [[w:Con O'Neill (actor)|Con O'Neill]] - {{w|Viktor Bryukhanov}}

* [[w:Adrian Rawlins|Adrian Rawlins]] - {{w|Nikolai Fomin}}

* [[w:Ralph Ineson|Ralph Ineson]] - General {{w|Nikolai Tarakanov}}