Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone

Most of the people that will watch the series will point out that it is somewhat inaccurate or that it leaves out other historical significant events happening at the same time. This is 100% true, so if you are looking for a historical documentary on Eastern Europe and the fall of communism in the 90s, you should look elsewhere.

This series is basically archival footage of the BBC. Curtis selected from hundreds of hours of material the most interesting bits. And some of them are SO SO interesting. For example, the message that Gorbachev records from Crimeea where he was ousted by the military and that's recorded over his nephew ballet practice. It creates a different side to the reality which you would have never known otherwise. It humanizes the character, while at the same time showing you a sort of amateurish side to the whole affair... Or maybe it shows the crisis situation in which they were all in... There can be many interperations, and almost every single piece of footage is a gem.

I found many similarties between Russia of those years and what happened afterwards in the former communist block. Thanks Adam Curtis for creating yet another masterpiece.

Adam Curtis made an excellent choice not to narrate Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone. Although at times I've almost heard his voice and it would have fitted perfectly, the images were so strong and speaking for themselves that narration would've just spoiled them.

In fact it would be very difficult to summarize in one review what this documentary tried to convey. We saw a lot of extremes one associates with Russia, probably intensified because we're observing a country partially rooted in European culture.

It was inevitable that Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone offers some insights in the former Soviet republics, as well, even some satellites of the Warsaw pact. I'm pointing this out since it still puzzles me why a lot of people use the terms Russian and Soviet interchangeably.

Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone was very good, both in terms of content and delivery. Even the inevitable bias, given the footage stemming from BBC archives, was so slight that it didn't ruin the objectivity of the documentary.

I could lie and say I've watched every Curtis, I haven't, in honesty I've watched around 5 of his creations. Often found his work a mixture of mesmerisingly brilliant and somewhat simplistic.

What he's done here is truly impressive, and I say this as someone with a particular interest in the subject matter. For weeks friends have been telling me "I must watch the new Curtis" and "it's all the stuff you find interesting, how haven't you seen it".

I folded and turned it on, and have been thinking about it ever since.

He's somehow managed to organise (with his team) a patchwork of archival footage into one of the most hauntingly brilliant works of film. Many moments I thought, he's going to miss this thing, this moment or important reference and yet he never does.

A harrowing and important work, makes the viewer feel the absolute madness of the place and time, the visceral horror and unbelievable unfairness of it all.

Trauma zone is profoundly affecting, It's a series that is so disconcerting, chaotic, unsettling and surprising that I found I couldn't binge watch it. I had to take my time to digest what I was seeing. I lived through the period in question and had literally no idea of what was really happening in Russia. This is more a work of art or perhaps an "emotional history" than a straight history (and looking at some of these reviews some people have not appreciated this). It's aiming to reflect what it was like to live through this and frankly I am surprised if anyone in Russia retained 100% of their sanity with everything that happened. This series is stupendous in its breadth and the footage it includes provides a disturbing insight into a turbulent and almost hallucinogenic period of recent history for Russia and the former USSR. It's brilliant basically.

.... But after watching this, I realise I knew virtually nothing.

I was born in 1971 in the UK. I studied modern history. I lived through the of the Cold War and vividly remember the Berlin Wall coming down. I remember the attempted coup in Russia. I remember the joy at the Cold War ending and Russia emerging from communism

Watching this, I now realise all I had was a hideously narrow view of things. You can't help but feel utter sorrow for the Russian people as the world collapsed around them and the wealth of the country was stolen. It's heartbreaking

This is a horror film. It was aptly named.