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Spoof hails Varoufakis: puts 'hell' in 'Hellenica'

DPA/The Local
DPA/The Local - [email protected]
Spoof hails Varoufakis: puts 'hell' in 'Hellenica'
Yanis Varoufakis, Greece's "Minister of Awesome". Photo: DPA

An offering that rehabilitates the much-maligned German sense of humour is rocking the internet with a searing spoof metal tribute to Greece's formidable new finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, filled with painful moments of self-mockery.

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Bathed in flaming backdrops and packed with German stereotypes that will make you wince, the four-minute video 'V for Varoufakis', courtesy of ZDF's Neo Magazin Royale show, lampoons just about everything Germans are not supposed to mention.
 
World wars, incest and hooky gold are just some of the dodgy areas the brazenly un-PC production enters, before it prostrates itself before the irresistible might of the Greek finance minister.
 
"He's the lost son of Zeus/With a heart made of stone/Go take all our savings/ But, please, leave us alone!" a moustached, somewhat Kraftwerk-esque vocalist intones to a succession of Varoufakis shots, real and acted, that leave you in no doubt that he is "the Greek Minister of Awesome".
 
Starring German comedian and TV host Jan Böhmermann, the video was posted on YouTube to a storm of viewings with perfect timing.
 
Recent days saw Greece's imposing, shaven-headed "Walking debt" give German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble a run for his money over a further multi-billion-euro bailout sought by Athens.
 
And judging by the German government's bumpy encounters with Varoufakis, 53, then he does indeed "put the 'hell' in Hellenica". 
 
Meanwhile, every seeming bid to flaunt Germany's own prowess, whether for punctuality or its powerhouse economy, is quickly undermined: "...Fourth largest economy in the world…Second largest gold reserves", before a motley chorus of painfully costumed Germans chimes in "Please don't ask where it came from".
 
And even "We started two world wars and almost won them both" (Chorus: "Almost!") pushes the envelope so unflinchingly far that it becomes immediately forgivable.
 
As Berlin duels with Hamburg as the possible venue for the summer Olympics in 2024 or 2028, there is talk of a new German edition of the games wiping the slate clean after the 1936 showpiece staged by the Nazis.
 
And maybe some outrageous but undeniably moreish self-mockery as offered by 'V for Varoufakis' can help let off some steam and set the ball rolling for either city to host the games.
 
But at The Local we are still not sure why the tough yet slick Varoufakis portrayed in the video ("Oh! Those satin shirts!") is twice shown sensuously licking his motorcycle...

 

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