Ukraine on Fire (2016 film): Difference between revisions
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{{Distinguish|Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom}}{{Infobox film |
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{{Infobox film |
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| name = Ukraine on Fire |
| name = Ukraine on Fire |
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| image = Ukraine on Fire.jpg |
| image = Ukraine on Fire.jpg |
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| music = |
| music = |
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| studio = Another Way Productions |
| studio = Another Way Productions |
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| distributor = Another Way Productions<br>Cinema Libre Studio |
| distributor = Another Way Productions <br />Cinema Libre Studio |
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| released = {{Film date|2016|06||Taormina Film Fest|2017|07|18}} |
| released = {{Film date|2016|06||Taormina Film Fest|2017|07|18}} |
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| runtime = 95 minutes |
| runtime = 95 minutes |
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Revision as of 21:53, 30 April 2022
| Ukraine on Fire | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Igor Lopatonok |
| Written by | Vanessa Dean |
| Produced by | Igor Lopatonok |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Lex Lang |
Production company | Another Way Productions |
| Distributed by | Another Way Productions Cinema Libre Studio |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Ukraine on Fire is a 2016 documentary film directed by Igor Lopatonok. It features Oliver Stone, the executive producer, interviewing figures surrounding the 2014 Ukrainian revolution such as Viktor Yanukovich and Vladimir Putin.[1][2] The film premiered at the 2016 Taormina Film Fest.[3]
Plot
The film presents a thesis on the sources of contemporary Ukrainian nationalism, detailing events such as the Cossack Hetmanate, the Russian Revolution (1917-1921), the occupation of Ukraine by German-Austrian troops, the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, the incorporation of Western Ukraine into the USSR, Ukrainian collaborationism in World War II, the Great Patriotic War, the Volyn massacre, the events in Babiy Yar, the 1990s, the Orange Revolution, the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, the referendum on the status of the Crimea, the confrontation in Odessa, the war in Donbass, the crash of MH17 and other events.
The film associates the Ukrainian 2004 Orange Revolution and 2014 Revolution of Dignity with Ukrainian radical right and antisemitic political organizations, such as the Right Sector, and with WWII era western Ukrainian far-right paramilitary organizations. These are asserted to include the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and Stepan Bandera, characterizing both as ideologically similar to the Italian fascists and German Nazis allied against the Soviet and post-war Polish governments.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and former Ukrainian Interior Minister Vitaly Zakharchenko, as well as American journalist Robert Parry are interviewed, mostly by Oliver Stone, about the events of recent Ukrainian history.
Release and Reception
The film premiered at the Taormina Film Festival in Italy;[4] thereafter, it did not receive a general theatrical release. In early March 2022, it was reported that the documentary had been removed from YouTube, the company explaining they "removed this video for violating our violent or graphic content policy, which prohibits content containing footage of corpses with massive injuries, such as severed limbs"; subsequently, the film was uploaded to Rumble for free viewing.[5] As of 12 March 2022, the documentary was again available on YouTube, this time with a content warning attached.
Rod Dreher, writing for the American Conservative, gave this impression: "I expected 'Ukraine On Fire' to be propaganda, and indeed it was. But that doesn't mean it is entirely a lie, and in any case, it's important to know how the other side regards a conflict, if only to understand how they are likely thinking."[6]
Andrew Roth, writing from Moscow for The Guardian, observed that Ukraine on Fire is part of "a series of documentary projects featuring Stone about Russia and Ukraine that reflect a strongly pro-Kremlin worldview", remarking further that "Stone has noted that the films, which are strongly critical of the 2014 Euromaidan revolution and have been attacked as propaganda vehicles, are very popular in Russia."[7]
The University of Toronto's Stephen Velychenko, the author of several books on Ukrainian history, strongly criticized Stone's pro-Russian bias.,[8] suggesting him to "peruse Karen Dawisha’s recent book Putin's Kleptocracy (2013) and some of Andrew Wilson’s and Timothy Snyder’s books on Ukraine".
James Kirchick of The Daily Beast called the documentary a "dictator suckup",[9] noting that "Yanukovych ceased being president on 22 February 2014 because he fled Kiev, rendering himself incapable of performing his presidential duties under the Ukrainian constitution. Over three-quarters of the country’s parliament, including many members of Yanukovych’s own party, voted effectively to impeach him that day", and "It is astoundingly patronizing for Stone to lecture Ukrainians—thousands of whom have fought and died defending their dismembered country from an all-out invasion by their much more powerful neighbor—about what they do and do not know about Viktor Yanukovych, Russia and the potential for a new Cold War".
Human rights protection groups in Ukraine also called the documentary "undistilled Kremlin propaganda",[10] arguing among others that from the main Ukrainian political figures described as neo-Nazis by Oliver Stone, only Oleh Tyahnybok resorted to xenophobia and anti-Semitic rhetoric, and that his neo-Nazi party Svoboda later lost most of their seats in the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election where they got 4.71% of votes.
See also
References
- ^ "Oliver Stone zoekt de waarheid achter Oekraïnecrisis in nieuwe documentaire". Site-KnackFocus-NL (in Dutch). 2016-06-30. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
- ^ "UKRAINE ON FIRE – Documentary Dives Deep Into Current Conflict Between Russian and Ukraine, Shows Another Side To The Story". AMFM Magazine.tv. 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
- ^ ""Ukraine on Fire": Oliver Stone e Lopatonok al Taormina Film Fest". Telefilm Central (in Italian). 2016-06-17. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
- ^ "Oliver Stone-produced 'Ukraine On Fire' premieres at film festival in Italy - New Cold War: Know Better". Retrieved 2022-03-10.
- ^ "YouTube flags Oliver Stone's Ukraine documentary". Washington Examiner. 2022-03-09. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
- ^ "War on Our Own Memory".
- ^ "Oliver Stone derided for film about 'modest' former Kazakh president". TheGuardian.com. 11 July 2021.
- ^ Velychenko, Stephen (January 1, 2015). "Stephen Velychenko: An open letter to Oliver Stone". Krytyka. Archived from the original on April 10, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- ^ Kirchick, James (January 5, 2015). "Oliver Stone's Latest Dictator Suckup". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on January 5, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ "Oliver Stone's "Ukraine on Fire" is undistilled Kremlin propaganda". Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group.