Blockbuster Trailer for Putin Event Tantalizes Russians
By Tony Halpin Dec 17, 2014 12:25 PM ET
Russian President Vladimir Putin is preparing to make blockbuster pronouncements on this years most dramatic events, judging from the trailers running on state television for his annual media conference tomorrow.
Drawing comparisons to an advertisement for a Hollywood thriller, a 41-second clip flashes images of destruction, disease, tragedy and triumph across the screen against a soundtrack of booming drumbeats before ending with the date and time of Vladimir Putins big press conference.
Scenes from Ukraines Euromaidan protests and the Sochi Winter Olympics mix with shots of war, Islamic State terrorism in the Middle East, Russias first woman on the International Space Station and the Ebola crisis in West Africa. Extreme weather disasters also feature, as does a shot of a protester burning a European Union flag.
The epic trailer attracted bemusement on Twitter, where some commentators said the soundtrack resembled the theme from the Terminator films, which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as a robot sent from the future to try to save humanity from itself.
If the implication is that Russians are eager to know how Putin will save them from global crises, the reality of his annual meeting with the media is often far more prosaic. Many of the journalists who cram into the event have traveled to Moscow from Russias regions and come primed with questions about burning local problems that they hope a word from the all-powerful president will solve.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-17/blockbuster-trailer-for-putin-media-conference-tantalizes-russia.html