大象传媒

Key players, including Rudy Giuliani, Stormy Daniels, Steve Bannon and ambassador John Bolton, shed light on Trump鈥檚 second year as he faces challenges from his past.

Trump is finding his feet as president. But an encounter from his past threatens to catch up with him as adult film star Stormy Daniels claims she was paid to keep quiet about a sexual encounter with Trump.

This episode brings reminders of Trump's biggest challenge to date - the 2016 scandal that threatened to upend his campaign for office when recordings of Trump talking about 鈥榞rabbing鈥� women came to light. But Trump weathered that storm with an extraordinary moment of audacious showmanship, proving that bullish, bold narratives play well with his audience.

It looks briefly like Stormy might have the power to out-Trump Trump, but he brazenly withstands pressure from the press, even in the face of new revelations from his former lawyer Michael Cohen.

Trump's core base stick by him as his defiance speaks to his most vocal supporters. Trump鈥檚 playbook appears resistant to what would ordinarily be huge crises for a sitting president. But these are not ordinary times.

The difficulties mount for Trump as the Mueller inquiry into claims of Russian interference in Trump鈥檚 2016 campaign gains pace. But the president brings in Rudy Giuliani and a change of strategy, which sees the case played out over the airwaves.

As Trump鈥檚 ratings fall and his Republican party flounders in the mid-term elections, he faces challenges from the rise of Democrat rivals. Trump pushes back, leaning more heavily on the appeal of his populist nationalism.

The film shows the astonishing power of Trump the survivor, whose very boldness defies scrutiny, and when the Mueller report appears to exonerate the president, Trump emerges more confident than ever.