The disaster threatens next door Arte authors mix game and conversation passages in a film about a conceivable nuclear accident near the German-French border. The TV review.
April 26, 1986 marks the 35th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, when a nuclear reactor exploded and caught fire due to human and technical inadequacy. A “super GAU”, which means that the monstrous accident can no longer be controlled. The consequences affected all of Central Europe, the accident in which the US five-part film “Chernobyl”, which is currently broadcast on ProSieben, and rightly so many times award-winning, is retold in a gripping and authentic manner and accompanied by a self-produced documentary series, has an effect to this day.
In the material accompanying the German-Luxembourg co-production “Super GAU – The Last Days of Luxembourg”, Arte also refers to the Chernobyl reactor accident and the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, ten years ago. There are also nuclear power plants in Europe that are cause for concern. The trio of writers Jonathan Becker, Jean Huot and Myriam Tonelotto, who only portrayed Myriam T. due to differences in content about the choice of interview partners, plays here on a fictional level how a nuclear accident would affect the French nuclear power plant Cattenom, which is close to the border. A scenic simulation, so to speak.
“Super GAU – The last days of Luxembourg” on Arte: no day like any other
For a power plant technician, a small family, a TV journalist, the day begins as usual. Journalist Emma (Sophie Mousel) is dissatisfied because too little news is happening in Luxembourg. She applied to Munich, the grandma she grew up with is supposed to accompany her on this change, but she doesn’t want to. A routine job is waiting for Emma. She should report on an art exhibition. Your interview partner is Sonia Fischer (Fabienne Hollwege), mother of two school-age children. The further experiences of this family are told as well as those of Emma and her cameraman Nico (Joël Delsaut).
At this point black smoke is already rising over the nuclear power plant. Visible from afar, but nobody is worried yet. The operators and the authorities are silent. Until two factory employees in their conscience shoot a simple educational video, point out the escaping radioactivity and put the film on the Internet. The beginning alarm quickly turns into pure panic. Later a chapter follows that continues the thread three years later and tells of the further fate of the surviving protagonists.
Arte feature film “Super GAU – The Last Days of Luxembourg”: Important content served brittle
A comparison with the lavishly produced US series “Chernobyl”, which was commissioned by the subscription channel HBO, would be unfair. Fewer funds were available for “Super GAU”, as can be seen from the apparently artificial computer images. Anyway, the intention was different. Arte calls this program contribution a “documentary fiction”. Because in the acting scenes there are conversations in which experts like the nuclear engineer Patrick Majerus, the atomic physicist Dr. Jean-Marie Brom and the Luxembourg politician Erna Hennicot-Schoepges provide background information.
“Super GAU – The last days of Luxembourg”
First broadcast: Wednesday, April 21, 8:15 p.m., Arte. See here in the media library.
The range of topics includes sociological, historical, medical aspects, meaningful and important contributions, visually ambitious, but unfortunately rather brittle. Much is explained and little is shown. Dramaturgically unfortunate that a long stretch of words was already inserted into the film exposure before the cut back to the fictional event occurs in the eighteenth minute – a shame if viewers were lost as a result of this dry introduction.
“Super GAU – The Last Days of Luxembourg” on Arte: Reference to the pandemic
Because the content presented is of general interest. The experts also address questions that one might not necessarily expect from this topic. In the – quite realistic – vision of the future, thousands will be driven from their homeland because of the radioactive contamination and have to live in camps all over Europe. One should have heard what doctors have to say about the physical and psychological consequences of such severe losses. Of course, the findings do not only apply to Central Europeans.
Another aspect resonates subliminally. Radioactivity is invisible and is therefore initially not perceived as dangerous by some people affected, perhaps even played down – just like SARS-CoV-2 and other deadly viruses. A mental bridge that gives science fiction – science fiction in the original sense – intentionally or unintentionally an acute reference to the present. (Harald Keller)
