Horror Film Chernobyl Diaries Protested – called “Insensitive”

By Melissa Garza

Nowadays, it seems that people can’t make a movie without someone being up in arms.  It is common practice to have petitions, demands of boycott and people crying that they’re offended about something or another.  Rather than just opting not to watch a movie that one finds distasteful, they need to go on a full-out rampage to make sure that no one else can make the decision to see it.  The latest film to be given this type of negative publicity is Chernobyl Diaries. 

I absolutely despise people who protest and encourage boycotts of productions.  Whether it’s the church protesting The Da Vinci Code because of what they perceive as blasphemy or GLAAD protesting Vincent Vaughn’s movie The Dilemma for the way in which it uses the term ‘gay;’ I find the whole process  wrong.  I am 100% pro-Gay rights but I’m also 100% for the Freedom of Speech and for the freedom of art to be displayed as intended.   Now, I have never had any desire to see The Dilemma but it pisses me off that any organization can take a phrase out of context to get a word they don’t want to be used removed.   They cry insensitivity and demand for it to be changed.  If you don’t like something, don’t watch it.  If it weren’t for actions like this, GLAAD would be on the list of organizations I donate to.  If their focus was strictly on gay and lesbian rights and doing what they can to stop the amount of gay and lesbian teenagers who attempt suicide each year, I would gladly give a portion of my check to them.  The fact that they use their weight as an organization to boycott freedom of speech has ensured, at the very least, they will not get a dime from me.

On the flip side of GLAAD is the worthless anti-gay group, One Million Moms.  OMM recently boycotted JC Penney because they hired Ellen DeGeneres as their spokesperson.  Wisely, JC Penney basically told the public to go to hell!  They even responded with a new ad for Father’s Day featuring the same-sex couple and real life dads Todd Koch and Cooper Smith with their children Claire and Mason.  That’s awesome!  Good for them!   I wish more companies would make this stand.  They didn’t give the nonsense or the threats the time of day.  It would be so much better if organizations would grow a set and do that more often.  As soon as these boycotts are ineffective, groups will stop attempting them.

Don’t get me wrong.  I understand the urge to want to bury something.  When I first saw the 2004 version of The Stepford Wives I was appalled.  It was my opinion that the original was an intelligent production that fought against sexism and expressed the fears of women once again being dominated by men.  The remake was a piece of sexist garbage – so much so that they played into the stereotype of women hating women by making the creator of the ‘Stepford wives’ female.  Now, this film offended me, but it never entered my mind to protest it.  Nor would it enter my mind because everyone has their own right to see it and make that judgment for themselves. 

Currently, there are 2 petitions trying to ban and boycott Chernobyl Diaries.  The film follows tourists who convince an extreme tour guide to take them to the abandoned city of Pipyat where they find ghosts of the Chernobyl disaster.  To be honest, when I saw the preview – I became very excited to see the movie.  It looks like it’s going to be a win for horror.  The trailer freaked me out so if the movie does the same, I’ll be very happy.

Anyways, the petitions and protestors claim that because the Chernobyl Disaster was a real event the film is insensitive to those who lost their life.  I’m of the mindset that it’s a work of fiction and anyone with a half-of-a-brain knows that the creators of the movie are not stating that the ghosts are real.  They are not capitalizing on the tragedy.  They merely used that event as the location for a ghost story.  I completely disagree with the opinions of those up-in-arms over the release.  Still, they are entitled to their opinion and they have the right to voice it.  They do not however have the right or power to make demands of the studio to pull the film.  Even if the majority of people did not want this movie to come out, the creators still have the freedom to show it.  In the end, the money or lack thereof that the movie makes will determine if it is a success.

I am just so sick of how overly-sensitive society has become.  In a free society, we have the right to say whatever we want.  Now there are words that I have decided I will not use.  I would never personally use a derogatory term with the intent to offend anyone.  Personally, I think that’s childish.  Nonetheless, I will fight for someone who I completely disagree with so the freedom of speech is preserved.

We do not have the right to infringe on someone else’s freedom so that we can avoid being offended.  I remember in school there was this teacher who hated the color orange.  She hated it so much that if you wore orange, she’d give you detention.  Everyone let her get a way with this nonsense.  There were rumors that she had been raped while wearing an orange shirt or she had seen someone killed who was wearing orange – but that all turned out to be bullshit.  She was on a power-trip and wanted control.  That’s what this comes down to – control.

Words are not weapons.  People need a tougher skin.  If they disagree with something, please by all means, scream it from the highest mountaintop….but don’t try to push your belief on me. 

It’s the same thing with people who want to ban pornography.  I love porn parodies.  I understand that it is against the morals of some and that they don’t enjoy it.  That’s fine.  They don’t have to buy it.   I’m not going to force them to purchase it and no one is going to stop me from owning it.

For heaven’s sake, I remember when people were protesting Silent Night Deadly Night because of the depiction of Santa Claus.  If memory serves, Roger Ebert was up in arms as well.  Give me a break! SNDN is a great fun film.  I would not let my nephew or niece watch it because I have common sense; but for one adult to try and prevent another adult from watching it is ridiculous.

Now, just like most other idiots who want to win an argument, Yago Alayza, creator of one of the petitions, all but succumbed to Godwin’s Law when asked about his stance.  He stated, “Anyone visiting Chernobyl should have the same respect as if they were visiting Auschwitz or the Khmer Rouge Museum in Cambodia.”

The bottom line is historical events mean different things to different people, but a tragedy is a tragedy whatever way you slice it.  Now though Alayza may find it disrespectful for the film to utilize the Chernobyl Disaster as a plot point, he has no right to tell others that they should feel the same way.  Personally, I don’t.  I do not think it is disrespectful.  For example, I may find a film disrespectful if they depict a tragedy in a comedic fashion.  Most likely, I wouldn’t watch it in that case.  Still, I would support the fact that other people had the right to view it if they chose.

He also brought up Auschwitz as if no one has previously used WWII for entertainment purposes.  Has he ever seen a single episode of South Park?  How many times in films were Nazis used for entertainment purposes?  What about Hitler?  The fact is that it has been done.   Hell, even Walt Disney cartoons utilized Nazi imagery.

For whatever reason, Chernobyl Diaries struck a chord with Alayza –and that’s fine.  It’s good to have conviction, but it’s dangerous and absolutely wrong to force your conviction on everyone else.

Now, I am hoping to go see Chernobyl Diaries tomorrow.  I can’t wait.  Also, I have no issue saying I’m wrong.  Once I watch it and review it, if I find it disrespectful – I’ll say so.  If I think the movie isn’t worth your time, I’ll tell you that too.  One thing I can assure you that I won’t say is “boycott this film.”