Ladies and gentlemen... The splendiferous comic stylings of Barack Obama

Meanwhile, off in the wilds of Wasilla, the increasingly irrelevant Sarah Palin made this desperate bid for attention. (BTW: Note that she still identifies herself as "Politician" on her Facebook page.)

Double your pleasure with Sarah Palin

Looks like ReelzChannel -- the cable network that picked up the controversial (and, ultimately, award-winning) miniseries The Kennedys -- is wading into the political maelstrom again. One day after HBO's March 10 premiere of Game Change -- Jay Roach's filmization of John Heilemann and Mark Halperin's best-selling and eye-opening account of the 2008 Presidential race, starring Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin -- Reelz will air Undefeated, Steve Bannon's hagiographic portrait of the half-term Alaskan governor and 2008 GOP vice-presidential candidate. Funnily enough, both productions will air after Super Tuesday, at a time when Republicans may be looking for a brand new Presidential prospect....

Or as I noted in my Variety review last year, Undefeated "leaves open the question of whether [Sarah Palin] will run for president in 2012. But it persuasively argues that, in any event, she'll continue to be an influential and galvanizing force as a leader of the Tea Party movement. Don't be surprised if you actually do see excerpts from this [documentary] at some political convention in the not-so-distant future."

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Coming soon: Game Change

Some folks have pre-emptively complained that the upcoming HBO-produced adaptation of Game Change -- John Heilemann and Mark Halperin's best-selling and eye-opening account of the 2008 Presidential race -- mostly ignores the Obama/Clinton primary battles to concentrate on John McCain (played by Ed Harris)and Sarah Palin (Julianne Moore). But this newly released trailer suggests that, hey, the made-for-cable movie will be must-see TV anyway. Premiere date is March 10.

The last word on The Undefeated

"The box office fate of Sarah Palin's bio-documentary The Undefeated has uncannily mimicked the political fortunes of its subject: after a bright start, much publicity and high hopes the film has fizzled out to disappointing reviews and waning popularity." That's how Richard Adams of The Guardian sees it -- and I can't say I disagree. I will add, though, that I'm slightly surprised that the ex-governor's more rabid admirers didn't turn out in greater number to buy tickets. Assuming, of course, she has as many rabid admirers as she used to.

Of course, it's altogether possible that her fans are biding their time, waiting to buy the DVD at Wal-Mart. Which, by the way, is where I bought a copy of The Undefeated several weeks ago. No, not that Undefeated. This Undefeated

Before there was The Undefeated, there was Journeys with George

With all the coverage being generated this weekend by the Sarah Palin documentary, I'm reminded of a delicious irony regarding another movie about another polarizing Republican: Journeys with George, arguably the most sympathetic film ever made about George W. Bush, was directed by... Nancy Pelosi's daughter. No, really.

When I reviewed it for Variety at the 2002 SXSW Film Festival -- at a time when then-President Bush was near the peak of his post-9/11 popularity spike --  I noted: George "recalls a time not so long ago when the untested son of President No. 41 was considered even by some Republicans to be an intellectual lightweight sorely lacking in presidential gravitas. [The documentary] strongly suggests that Bush's image as a callow boob was only partially justified and likely was much more apparent than real."

The film started out more or less as a pastime for director Alexandra Pelosi, "shot during downtime from her duties as a producer for NBC News. At first, she's simply one of the faceless dozens among the print and TV journalists on a shaky Access Air plane -- which, Pelosi pointedly notes, is usually used to transport convicts. (A much nicer aircraft is provided once Bush actually nails the Republican nomination.) But a funny thing happens along the campaign trail: The more she aims her mini-DV camera at Bush between stump speeches and photo ops, the more the candidate opens up while noticing, and gradually befriending" the first-time filmmaker.

At its frequent best, I wrote, the documentary offered audiences "a golden opportunity to witness the 'unplugged,' after-hours George W. Bush at his most congenial. George offers a portrait of a gregariously charming and self-mocking fellow who's perfectly at ease in his own skin, and who's no less slick and savvy a politician for being willing to make himself the butt of jokes. Indeed, at one point, he even goes on the press plane loudspeaker to mock his own verbal gaffes at the last campaign stop."

I caught a good deal of heat from a few of my liberal friends -- and was somewhat snidely criticized, years later, by no less an august personage than James Wolcott -- for concluding: "At first, Bush's handlers try to keep the candidate inaccessible to the press pack. But after he loses a few primaries to rival John McCain -- whose half-hearted speech in support of Bush is screamingly albeit unintentionally funny -- the candidate suddenly becomes accessible, unplugged -- and indefatigably charming.

"It's been reported some of President Bush's current handlers are worried that Journeys With George will make Dubya look somehow 'less presidential.' Actually, the only thing they have to complain about is the timing of the [documentary's] release: Had it appeared prior to the 2000 election, there likely would not have been any disputes over the Florida vote count, because Bush's electoral victory would have been all the more resounding."

I still stand by that last sentence, despite everything that unfolded during President Bush's two terms in office. It continues to annoy the hell out of many people -- hey, it annoys the hell out of me -- but a key to the guy's success as a candidate in 2000 was what can only be described as his regular-guy charm. Mind you, I've always been immune to that charm -- so much so, in fact, that I took time off from attending the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival  on Election Day 2000 to do volunteer work for a local Democartic Party "Get out the vote" effort. (That's right -- I was at Ground Zero in Broward County when the chads started hanging.) But Journeys with George enabled me to better understand why other voters might have opted to cast their ballots for someone who... who... well, who proved that, hey, in this country, anybody really can grow up to become the President.

Hitler rages because he got the Sarah Palin doc into only 10 theaters, decides to go see Harry Potter instead

Palin Campaign Headquarters - Launch of 'The Undefeated' - 7/14/2011 from Moosehelmet Films on Vimeo.

Curiously enough, he seems especially upset that he's booked The Undefeated into only two Texas theaters. But never mind: He's still wild about Harry.

Another shameless attempt to attract blog traffic with something else about the Sarah Plain doc

Here's another insightful and elegantly written review -- which just happens to quote me. Yeah, you guessed it: I'm going to milk this cow until the teats run dry, and then I'll make belts and hamburgers. (Note to the humor-impaired: That was a joking reference to a barnyard animal, not a sexist remark about... well, you know.)  

Is God punishing cities where the Sarah Palin doc is screening?

PalinWeek.com reports. You decide. Meanwhile, Judy Berman of Flavorwire.com rounds up reviews written by people who have seen The Undefeated -- including me, of course -- so you don't have to. And Conor Friedersdorf of The Atlantic reports that moviegoers are conspicuous by their absence at an opening-day screening of the Sarah Palin documentary. Which is not to say, however, that the film doesn't have its defenders here and there.

The Undefeated: The thriller from Wasilla

Oddly enough, this is the second documentary titled Undefeated that I've reviewed for Variety this year. I must admit: I preferred the previous one. But compared to what Kyle Smith had to say in the New York Post -- yeah, that New York Post -- I'd say my review of the Sarah Palin movie was a flat-out rave.

Coming soon to a theater near you: Sarah Palin

According to RealClearPolitics.com, the former governor of Alaska is the star of an upcoming film titled The Undefeated. And no, it's not a remake of the 1969 John Wayne movie.

Free movie: Fantasyland

Just a little while ago, I was asking myself: How can I lure more people to this blog? I mean, other than run more photos of Sarah Palin in black leather or Sally Field on the cover of Playboy or Julia Roberts flaunting her legs? And then it hit me: What this blog needs is more free movies, dammit. And so, just in time for the start of baseball season, and right before my beloved Houston Astros begin their journey to a second World Series, here's Fantasyland, a glimpse into the world of fantasy sports, and an introduction to the personalities, characters and stories that make up this billion-dollar industry. It specifically features Jed Latkin, argubaly the most obsessed fan of fantasy baseball in the known universe. Enjoy.

"I'm into leather!"

Sorry, but I just couldn't help thinking of that classic line from Annie Hall when I saw this photo. Pretty stylish, eh? I mean, if you're into the dominatrix look.

It's official: Sarah Palin is a punchline

Listen to Sarah Jessica Parker's throwaway line in this trailer -- for a movie that, not incidentally, looks pretty damn funny -- and you'll see what I mean.

Shatner does Palin

And now, fresh from the triumph of his Gonzo Ballet, William Shatner reads Sarah Palin's farewell speech. No, really.

VPILF

OK, come on, admit it: You knew this was coming. And here is the official announcement. I would like to go on record as volunteering my services as a talking head for any TV chat show that needs, er, a qualified film expert to discuss this hot topic. And I can give you the name of a conservative political observer who'd be qualified to hold up his end of the discussion.

For Sarah Palin bashers, a note of caution

Attacking a Presidential candidate's VP pick may be great fun -- and, in some cases, entirely justified -- but is it politically effective? There is ample evidence to suggest the answer is: Probably not. Take a look at two TV spots from campaigns past -- 1968 and 1988. On the '68 page, click, under the "Democrat" heading, on the seventh block from the top (or, if you prefer, the second block from the bottom). On the '88 page, under "Democrat," check out the eighth from the top. See what I mean? Be afraid. Be very afraid.