- On the eve of its release, Stalin-era serial-killer thriller Child 44 has been banned by Russia for "distorting historical facts."
- The film depicts Soviet citizens as "physical and moral subhumans, a bloody mass of orcs and ghouls," said culture minister Vladimir Medinsky, who made it clear that the Lions Gate (LGF) film would not be allowed to be shown at any time.
- One factor in the ban may be timing: May 9 is the 70th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany, after what is known in Russia as the Great Patriotic War.
- An appeal is highly unlikely; the distributor in Russia (otherwise a potentially lucrative, top-10 market) is Central Partnership, which is owned by Gazprom-Media, making it essentially government-controlled.