Netflix fans all share the same complaint about film based on Chernobyl disaster - but what do you think?

Daily Mail​

15-05-2025

Netflix 's Chernobyl: Abyss has certainly left viewers divided with their opinion on the film.
The disaster film, which is based on the real-life Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine in 1986, was released by Russian production company Central Partnership in April 2021.
A few months later Netflix dropped it on the streaming service for viewers to watch.
The movie follows the story of a firefighter called Alexey Karpushin (Danila Kozlovsky), and his role as a Chernobyl liquidator following on from the devastating and historic event.
On 26 April 1986, the No. 4 reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near the town of Pripyat in what was then the Soviet Union (now Ukraine), exploded during a safety test gone horribly wrong.
Chernobyl: Abyss, which is also titled Chernobyl 1986, was directed by Danila Kozlovsky, who also took on the role of the protagonist.
The film is written by Aleksey Kazakov and Elena Ivanova.
Many have rushed online to share their thoughts on the blockbuster - and some didn't think that it was a true representation of what happened.
One brutally said on Rotten Tomatoes: 'A flawed movie that tries to tell a personal tale surrounded by a large tragedy. There are some moving moments, but the lack of strong characters is noticeable.'
'This movie is a personal disappointment for me, and here's why: Several of my close family members perished or were affected by this disaster.
'One of them was my grandmother on my father's side—her name was Frida. That's why this is such a letdown.
'The movie focuses on such trivial and messed-up aspects that, as a viewer and as someone whose loved ones were directly impacted, I was genuinely offended.
'Even though I was born in 2001, I know more about the stories from that time than this stupid and boring movie portrays. In contrast, there's an HBO series that I highly recommend watching.'
'What was the point of this movie? This movie adds no value to the historic events or anything else for that matter. It was boring and dull. The storyline seemed forced and unwatchable.'
Others compared it to another miniseries called Chernobyl.
One wrote on IMBD: 'Don't compare the Netflix and HBO stories.'
'Seriously? After the HBO series? These shoes are hard to fit in, and that's totally not the right size.'
Six-episode show Chernobyl hit HBO and Sky Atlantic in 2019.
It starred the likes of Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Paul Ritter and Jessie Buckley.
'Brave men and women act heroically to mitigate catastrophic damage when the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant suffers a nuclear accident on April 26, 1986,' the synopsis reads.
Meanwhile others rushed to share positive reviews.
One said: 'The film recounts the events from a normal and apparently peaceful perspective of a common citizen of Chernobyl at that time, which highlights the innocence of the inhabitants of that town before the event and being totally oblivious to the government decisions that caused the catastrophe.
'Everything is well planned, the immersion in the time, the planes, the special effects, the frustration.'
'A great adaptation from true event to movie.
'I know its hard to create these adaptations, trying to find the balance between reality and making something palatable for a series can be very difficult.'
It comes after Netflix have revealed that they are rebooting the popular 80s and 90s talent show Star Search.
The program ran for 13 seasons between 1983 and 1995 and launched the careers of many A-listers, including Beyoncé, Britney Spears, and Justin Timberlake.
On April 26, 1986 a power station on the outskirts of Pripyat suffered a massive accident in which one of the reactors caught fire and exploded, spreading radioactive material into the surroundings.
More than 160,000 residents of the town and surrounding areas had to be evacuated and have been unable to return, leaving the former Soviet site as a radioactive ghost town.
The exclusion zone, which covers a substantial area in Ukraine and some of bordering Belarus, will remain in effect for generations to come, until radiation levels fall to safe enough levels.
The region is called a 'dead zone' due to the extensive radiation which persists.