FILM: Inside Japan’s Nuclear Meltdown (2012)

PBS Frontline. 2012. Inside Japan’s Nuclear Meltdown. Accessed on Nov 17, 2013, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/japans-nuclear-meltdown/

This 55-minute documentary shows how the triple disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plants unfolded during the first few days after an offshore earthquake triggered a 14-meter tsunami which inundated the nuclear plant complex that subsequently led to the full meltdown of three nuclear reactors. The movie recounts the Japanese government’s and TEPCO’s responses to contain the disaster. In order to highlight their attempts to solve the dire situation, the film producer shows footage of workers at the plant and interviews key figures such as Mr. Naoto Kan (the Japanese Prime Minister at the time the accident occurred) and Mr. Akio Komuri (the Managing Director of TEPCO Nuclear Division).

The documentary highlights the tension that arose between the Japanese government and TEPCO executives over decision-making strategies to rein in a potential catastrophic nuclear radiation disaster that would affect not only Japan but also the world. It depicts how decisions were made to select and instruct workers to cool the nuclear reactor after the backup power generators went out and the workers’ experience as they reflect back on their endeavors. A few members of the Japanese Self-Defense Force and of the Tokyo Fire Department shared their thoughts as they recounted their efforts to control the situation.

The film also gives voice to a resident who lived close to the plant.  Mr. Kimura, a Japanese farmer who worked in a nearby area when the disaster occurred tried in vain to search for his family members who were swept by the tsunami.  He had to face difficult choice between evacuating the area and staying on to find his wife, father, and daughter.

Overall, the film does a good job portraying the frontline scenes of the Japanese effort to avert a more damaging disaster. The evolving crisis inside the nuclear complex is well explained by the narrator and nicely illustrated by still and moving visual aid.  This documentary would be an excellent companion to two essays: Gabrielle Hecht’s “Nuclear Nomads: A Look At the Subcontracted Heroes” and Sara B. Pritchard’s “An Envirotechnical Disaster: Nature, Technology, and Politics at Fukushima,” Environmental History 17 (April 2012): 219–243.

Anto Mohsin, Science and Technology Studies, Cornell University.