Chernobyl Abyss (2021)

AKA Chernobyl Under Fire.

Radiation's a dangerous thing. A sad thing. Like death. You won't know when he's nearby, but he'll kill you. Slowly.

This is the story of one of the voluntary fire-fighters you might've heard about, who not only played a part in extinguishing the initial reactor fire in Chernobyl, but went back, to open a vault, to let the water out and prevent a steam explosion that might've caused much worse spread.

It's the story of him and his girlfriend. For the son he didn't know he had.
There are no happy endings in a story like this, and I knew that. I'm not sure why I watched it.

Probably because it's fascinating. Tragedy. Sacrifice. What people do unwillingly, or knowingly, or for their loved ones, and how the Russian machine works, or used to work, when this all went down... like how school kids were out on a parade while the radiation was a haze throughout the city. To make it clear there was no danger. They knew there was.

They recreated the scenery nicely, though the special effects weren't great.

The relations though. Those were.

Maybe the initial firehosing ceremony felt a little silly somehow, but you won't feel that way when it's over. With the way it goes full circle then.

It's heavy stuff.

It may be propaganda. It may be glorified. I don't mind. It doesn't matter. Those who sacrificed themselves to shut that fire were glorious souls, no matter how different they might've been in reality.

They recreated this one well. No frills. All fire.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle