"You can call it 'Journeys with George'... but spell it with a 'G'..."

October 17, 2002 11:48 PM

"You can call it 'Journeys with George'... but spell it with a 'G'..." A network television producer's video diary of her year and a half-long roadtrip on the campaign trail with George W. Bush during the 2000 election. An all-access pass to behind the scenes with W, from the primaries to Bush imitating Will Farrell imitating Bush. [more inside]
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood (12 comments total)

Alexandra Pelosi, NBC television producer, was assigned to cover the Bush campaign. Bringing along her MiniDV camcorder to record her life on the road, Bush asked "Alexandra, What are you going to do with all that video you are shooting?" It was all down hill from there. When Bush won, Pelosi quit her job at NBC, and with a friend, edited the movie in her living room. After submitting it to South BY Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas, it was picked up by HBO, and will air Tues Nov 5th. Weather you love him or hate him, it will be interesting. According to George himself, it is an underground hit at the White House. For a preview look here.
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 11:49 PM on October 17, 2002

I always thought he seemed like someone you could enjoy a beer with, still don't want him in the Whitehouse though
posted by zeoslap at 12:06 AM on October 18, 2002

There's been buzz about this for quite some time. It's said to be neither a puff piece, nor a hatchet job. I'm looking forward to it.
posted by Slithy_Tove at 12:42 AM on October 18, 2002

Parts were shown on Dateline last March; quite entertaining. It's hard to imagine seeing this and retaining a cartoon image of the man, though I'm sure some here will be able to keep their guard up. Must ... not ... like ... Shrub .... He's quite teasingly polite with Pelosi and others he knows are not GOP voters, and a natural cut-up in the campaign milieu of tension relieved by boredom. And when he's not trying to read from a speech, he seems to have far fewer malapropisms.
posted by dhartung at 2:52 AM on October 18, 2002

someone you could enjoy a beer with

Just one?

(sorry couldn't resist)
posted by matteo at 3:20 AM on October 18, 2002

Almost looks like Tim Robbins got his sequel to Bob Roberts after all, but with less vinegar.
posted by rainking at 3:57 AM on October 18, 2002

It's hard to imagine seeing this and retaining a cartoon image of the man
i'd have absolutely no problem having a libation with the man, and even less problem kicking his lying, thieving balls up into his throat as i was leaving. so, we'll see.
posted by quonsar at 4:13 AM on October 18, 2002

I saw this at SXSW. Very well done. Joe Bob says check it out.
posted by shecky57 at 6:00 AM on October 18, 2002

Oh, good, our President is fun to hang out with. That totally changes my perspective on the whole Iraq thing, and the whole Afghanistan oil pipeline thing, and all the other things. I'll keep that in mind come election day.

Steve_at_Linwood: FYI, I'm using sarcasm here.
posted by RylandDotNet at 7:49 AM on October 18, 2002

Bush holds up a bottle of imported Buckler "near beer," label facing the camera, and says, "You're back here with my people. You're back here with the tequila drinkers, yeah. What you need is to go up there and make a little whoopee with the tequila drinkers, get to know them better."

Maybe they'll slip you some roofies and you'll wake up in need of a rape kit, like many a girl has in the company of Frat Boys pretending to be drunk, I mean, "Bush's People."
posted by zekinskia at 9:25 AM on October 18, 2002

A fun, great movie; I loved it.

In my view, the movie depicts Bush as a thoughtful and genial guy at the end of a lifelong struggle to be respected for himself, rather than for who is father and grandfather were.

At festivals, there were plenty of your stringy-haired, baggy-cotton-clad lefties who expressed anger that movie didin't made Bush out to be sheer evil, which they assumed that any documentary, to the say the least of one shot by the daughter of the Democratic congresswoman from California, would do.

Full disclosure: I'm Aaron Lubarsky's lawyer (he put the movie together from Alexandra's DV footage).
posted by MattD at 11:16 AM on October 18, 2002

Ryland: Straw man.
posted by dhartung at 11:18 AM on October 18, 2002