The movie, 'A Kiss - Not For the Press,' marks a rare fictional portrayal of the ultra-secretive Kremlin leader.

Mr Putin is not mentioned by name. But the plot about a man from Saint Petersburg who, like Mr Putin, speaks German, has a secretive job, marries a stewardess, fathers two daughters, and becomes president, leaves no doubt.

'What is he like in life and in the family? What is in his soul? Will he have room left in his heart for love?' asks the film's glossy publicity brochure.

The film's answer to the last question is yes.

Actor Andrei Panin plays a kinder, gentler version of the icy statesman dominating Russia's dreary state television programmes.

'Mama, he's a normal man,' gushes the hero's wife, played by Darya Mikhailova, who manages a passing resemblance to Mr Putin's wife Lyudmila, in a preview shown to journalists on Tuesday in Moscow.

In reality, little is known about Mr Putin's personal life, compared to that of other world leaders.

He rose to power eight years ago with almost no media probing or public scrutiny. His plans after he is replaced in a March 2 election are also shrouded in mystery, with speculation that he will become premier and may even return later as president.

Details the Kremlin permits emphasise an all-action president who skis, practices martial arts, and understands firearms. Photographs of him fishing bare-chested last year were the closest the diminutive but fitness-mad 55-year-old has come to being a sex symbol.

But forget the paparazzi-crowded love interests of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, or the multiple Hollywood treatments of life in the White House: Mr Putin's family life is off limits to the press.

His wife seldom appears in public, while the identities of his daughters Maria and Yekaterina are guarded so closely that almost no photographs of them as grown-ups have been published.

Now 'Kiss' promises to break that taboo in spades.

'You want to know if there are erotic scenes?' producer Anatoly Voropayev asked journalists. 'Well, there are no bedroom scenes.' 'There are!' interrupted the actress Mikhailova.

Actors and producers were defensive about the film's odd history.

'Kiss' was in fact completed in 2003 and a source close to Russian state television suggested that Kremlin interference prevented immediate release.

Questions have also been raised over why the movie is being shown only on DVD, starting Feb 14, and not in cinemas.

Mr Voropayev testily denied any intrigue, saying that personal reasons were behind the film's delayed release and that the decision to go straight to DVD was based on commercial logic.

However Mr Voropayev did admit to entering difficult territory with the film.

He said he was sure to be accused of '(a) a personality cult, (b) of working at the behest of some kind of forces, and (c) of following government orders.' 'Already people are saying that this is practically a cult of personality,' he complained. 'But we believe our society has got to the point where it can appreciate' the film.

Andrei Kolesnikov, veteran Kremlin correspondent for the Kommersant daily, said that Mr Putin is unlikely to be a fan.

'They have a negative view of such films in the Kremlin. They see it as forming a cult of personality and that honour is something reserved exclusively for television,' he said.

Mr Kolesnikov said he had seen a pre-release version of the film, which he described as 'pretty hopeless from an artistic point of view. As a historic portrait it's useless. It's got nothing to do with reality and it's very naive.' -- AFP