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Chernobyl Heart

  • 2003
  • 39m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
815
YOUR RATING
Chernobyl Heart (2003)
DocumentaryShort

This Academy Award-winning documentary takes a look at children born after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster who have been born with a deteriorated heart condition.This Academy Award-winning documentary takes a look at children born after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster who have been born with a deteriorated heart condition.This Academy Award-winning documentary takes a look at children born after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster who have been born with a deteriorated heart condition.

  • Director
    • Maryann DeLeo
  • Stars
    • William Novick
    • Adi Roche
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.8/10
    815
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Maryann DeLeo
    • Stars
      • William Novick
      • Adi Roche
    • 14User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Oscar
      • 1 win & 1 nomination total

    Photos

    Top cast2

    Edit
    William Novick
    • Self
    Adi Roche
    • Self
    • Director
      • Maryann DeLeo
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews14

    7.8815
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    Featured reviews

    10UkieChic

    I loved this documentary!

    I am Ukrainian and have been a past member on mission trips to Ukraine to visit orphanages that house children living with the after-effects of the Chornobyl Nuclear Accident. I have been there, I have seen with my own eyes what these children look like. When seeing the children in the film, I was reminded of orphans that I've dealt with. The documentary accurately shows the conditions these children live in and the disabilities they live with. They have large tumors, thyroid cancer, heart anomalies, cerebral palsy, and many more disabilities. Having been in two asylums very similar to the ones shown in the documentary,I hope the only reason for making this documentary was to ask for help from those watching. I've seen firsthand how these children respond to visitors. Even those that are bedridden smile or giggle when you touch them or hold them. Those that are mobile constantly have their arms outstretched for you to pick them up. Though they have disabilities, they no more of what it means to love than "normal" people do. Hopefully, for their sake, people will watch this film and be inspired to help!!! It doesn't take much to make a difference.
    reviewpam

    Chernobyl heart

    I saw this film on HBO this morning and was profoundly affected by it. The helpless and abandon children so lonely and suffering brought me to tears. You want to touch them in some way to ease their pain. I, too, was moved to realize just how blessed I really am. It also frightened me when the filmmaker commented that Chernobyl is the next Chernobyl. That the structure is deteriorating and radio active material that remains within it will soon pose even a greater potential for disaster than the first deadly episode. Is there nothing that can be done to prevent this impending catastrophe? I would greatly appreciate any information that an expert might have regarding this extremely grave situation
    10thesaint80

    Making one realise their own humanity

    To say I was affected by Chernobyl Heart would be putting it mildly. Like many people I imagine, I first viewed Chernobyl Heart on HBO and was reduced to tears at the sight of so many suffering children. It is beyond cliché, however watching children suffer so makes me feel like rubbish for ever complaining about anything in my life. On a positive note, I did begin to involve myself with the Chernobyl Children's Project International, and last Christmas donated money and collected money at my job for their obviously worthwhile cause. Now that I'm back at school, I hope I might continue my work with the organisation. I didn't mean to turn this into a plug for CCPI, however it goes hand in glove with watching such an inspiring film.
    3robert-merkel

    Exploitative propaganda

    This film is certainly a testament to the power of images. I defy anyone to watch this and not feel the pain of the children featured. Sadly, though, its shock value is not matched by actually bothering to substantiate its case.

    The use of those tragically deformed children may have great emotional impact, but the documentary didn't bother to actually provide any evidence that their deformities were the fault of Chernobyl. That's because there isn't any, or for that matter any evidence that the level of birth defects has gone up in affected regions (with the exception of babies of pregnant women who actually worked on the cleanup at the time). A further claim was that the infant mortality rate was "three times that of the rest of Europe". This is true, as far as it goes. But the IMR is no higher than Belarus's post-soviet neighbors, and can be explained by the declining standard of living and quality of medical facilities.

    I could go on, but just about every other claim made in the documentary is either misleading, strongly disputed in the scientific literature (I made the effort to check after watching the documentary), or plain bogus.

    If you're a film student, this film is indeed technically brilliant. But it's based on a complete and utter distortion of the real picture.
    10xoleyton

    We all need to heal our 'Chernobyl Heart"

    Chernobyl Heart is a reflection of the growing dis-ease spreading like a cancer around planet earth....we think that because we don't know about the acute suffering of children,and others, thousands of miles away, or are not aware of the severe poisoning of a portion of Mother Earth's body, that it does not directly affect us. But like any cancer that begins to grow in our body, we are usually not aware of it's presence until it reaches a certain critical point...then we begin to FEEL it directly and can no longer deny its existence. What will it take for us to collectively wake up from our self-absorbed coma that refuses to understand anything at all until it's too late. We can donate our money or time in helping victims of disasters, and this is always needed, but why is this never enough? Have we not noticed that throwing money at calamitous situations never seems to solve the systemic problem of greed and corruption in the consciousness of MEN basically in charge of running everything on this planet? Maybe we all need to awaken our OWN Chernobyl Heart, first............before it is too late.

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    Related interests

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    Short

    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Connections
      Featured in The 76th Annual Academy Awards (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      Symphony No 3, Opus 36: Lento e Largo - Tranquillisimo
      Composed by Henryk Mikolaj Górecki (as Henryk Górecki)

      Performed by London Sinfonietta

      Conducted by David Zinman

      Courtesy of Nonesuch Records

      By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

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    FAQ1

    • Where can I find more info about Chernobyl?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 13, 2011 (Japan)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Official site (Japan)
    • Also known as
      • Сердце Чернобыля
    • Filming locations
      • Chernobyl, Ukraine
    • Production company
      • Downtown TV Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 39m
    • Color
      • Color

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