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.

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.

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.

Adam Curtis blesses us again with another multi-hour, hard-hitting, raw documentary. The concept of the footage speaking for itself is risky; however, the bet pays off fully, transporting the viewer into a realm of real-life ultraviolence. While not entirely a novel concept, it is a far more intellectual endeavor than a pundit panel or a classic history documentary.

Growing up in the 1990es Russia, my recollections of the period are vague and are in the process of being excavated by a psychologist. The series rips up the protective cortisol abatement of psychological trauma I experienced only as a spectator - a seven-hour panic attack fueled by violence, injustice, and disregard for human life.

While this viewing experience may sound like a definition of Hell, it is strangely therapeutic - perhaps by being so personal. It also, perhaps unintentionally, has a message of perseverance in face of the horrors of the human condition.

Scene highlight: man drinking low-quality bootleg vodka with disgust - sums up the atrocities depicted in the documentary quite well.

An amazing series, filled with extraordinary first-hand archive footage presented without audio narration that provides viewers with unique and often highly-intimate perspectives on life in the USSR and Russia during this period. Overlaid only with basic English text, it provides an unfiltered and graphic visualisation of the often-appalling world that Soviet citizens endured - and then how dark malignant forces took root. Watching this series helps one to better understand why Russia and her neighbours are the way they are today, to appreciate the immense pain and endless hardships endured by generations of people across a vast stretch of land. It feels epic and is epically insightful in the process. Brilliantly presented, compelling TV. Living history at its best.