The Russian Woodpecker

source: The Russian Woodpecker

The premise of this movie made in a documentary format is intriguing, and it is interesting to watch as the theory about the catastrophe at Chernobyl unfolds. But that's it - interesting theory, no real facts, no reliable sources, no real technical or physical evidence. Not very convincing. The "genius artist", who came up with the whole idea takes away a lot of the credibility with his artistic nonsensical performance as well. So yeah, I'm not convinced.

I am in no way a conspiracy theorist, but I am also in no way familiar with the very disturbing secrets which clearly lie within Russia and its former (and current) annexed nations. This film presents a very harsh, yet realistic possible explanation for why Chernobyl happened. Why a perfectly functioning nuclear plant which fed both the government and the people suddenly melted down catastrophically. Most people have since chalked it up as "just because", as if nuclear reactors sometimes just blow themselves up randomly. Some may be put off by the filmmaker's unabashedly artistic montages of him in rather avantgarde outfits and scenes, in between heart-stopping clips of him climbing the frightfully high towers that projected the Russian Woodpecker signal, and him attempting to wrangle information out of former Soviet officials. This creativity seeps through to make it more than just another cut-and-dry documentary. The filmmaker himself has a deep personal connection with Chernobyl, and expresses that anger in various artful ways.

From the title of his new documentary, you might come to believe that Chad Gracia is an undercover ornithologist skulking about in the former Soviet Union, attempting to discover a new species of woodpecker. Be assured that this is not exactly what his documentary is about— although he has found an "odd bird" in the guise of one Fedor Alexandrovich, a Ukrainian performance artist, who insists he has discovered the cause of the nuclear accident at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in 1986. Alexandrovich was temporarily separated from his parents as a child after the Chernobyl disaster and placed in a state run orphanage. Back then it was discovered that he had been poisoned by Strontium-90 radiation and still suffers from health problems related to the Chernobyl explosion. Alexandrovich's focus is on the Duga over-the-horizon radio antenna which was designed by the Soviets in 1976 to counter what was perceived as American encroachment in the surveillance sphere during the Cold War. The antenna emitted a chopping sound which was dubbed in the west as "The Russian Woodpecker." Some speculated that this was an attempt on the part of the Soviets at mind control but truth be told, the project was considered a failure (the signal was ineffective due to the effect of the Aurora Borealis and had no deleterious consequences in the U.S.). Alexandrovich goes about interviewing various scientists and aging former Soviet officials (sometimes with a hidden camera) to find out if there was a connection between the Woodpecker and Chernobyl. Of course his interviewees emphatically deny the connection but Alexandrovich, in the spirit of any grand conspiracy theorist here in the U.S., determines that one particular Soviet official (his name escapes me), who was in charge of the Duga radar system, was principally responsible for the Chernobyl disaster. Alexandrovich's accusation comes without a shred of proof and one wonders whether the Soviets would be that stupid to intentionally cause the Chernobyl disaster which would not only eliminate their adversaries but possibly contaminate their own territory due to something as simple as a conglomeration of shifting winds. The Russian Woodpecker contains some fascinating footage of Chernobyl before and after as well as shots of the monstrous Duga. Alexandrovich doesn't really serve his cause well by prancing around in the deserted Chernobyl ghost town dressed like a pixieish Peter Pan. Alexandrovich, a self-styled Ukrainian "patriot", is thankfully no nationalist. His critique of both the former Soviet Union and its current incarnation hit the mark especially when we see how he's forced (at the behest of I believe a former KGB operative) to put in a disclaimer at the beginning of the film, indicating he holds no grudge against Russia (Alexandrovich is accused of "selling out" by a colleague who is unable to sympathize despite Alexandrovich's genuine fear that the KGB or other sinister Russian force might do harm to his young son). Nonetheless, Alexandrovich fails to inject any critiques of his own country Ukraine, notably famous for its long history of anti- semitism (the former president of the Ukrainian Republic, Simon Petlura, is still hailed as a hero in some quarters in the country, despite his links to the atrocious pogroms against the Jews right after World War I). The documentary ends highlighting the Ukrainian rebellion against the pro-Russian president in 2014. The filmmakers make their point about the dangerous resurgence of Russian nationalism. Nonetheless, there are two sides to a story, and the Ukrainians have their share of nationalists who are just as bad as their Russian counterparts. Chad Gracia is best when he chronicles the past utilizing some neat archival footage. Alexandrovich's conspiracy theory remains unproven and this tends to detract from the overall power of the filmmaker's vision.