(Image Source: HBO )

 

 

BY ZACH TOOMBS

 

 

Sarah Palin is none too happy with a new HBO film depicting her experiences on the 2008 campaign trail. The made-for-TV movie -- “Game Change” is based on the bestselling book of the same name.

 

“This is Sarah.”

(“American Woman” by Guess Who)

“You know, they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pitbull? Lipstick.”

 

The film stars Julianne Moore as the former Alaskan governor. As HBO ramps up for its March 10 debut, Palin is countering the movie’s press with her own rehashing of the 2008 campaign.

 

On Sunday, Palin’s political action committee, SarahPAC, created this new Flickr account — “Game Change We Can Believe In.” The blog features positive photos of Palin on the 2008 campaign trail, including one of her palling around with SNL cast members and a pic of a smiling Katie Couric.

 

And on Fox News Sunday last week , Palin encouraged audiences to skip out on the movie, in which she’s depicted having a near nervous breakdown before her vice presidential debate.  

 

CHRIS WALLACE: “Millions of people are gonna’ see that.”
PALIN: “Well, I’m sorry that millions of people are gonna’ waste their time. And I’m sure that they have more productive and constructive things to do.”
WALLACE: “Is there any truth to that story?”
PALIN: “I was never in a funk.”

 

In a blog post on SarahPAC’s website this week, Palin’s treasurer said HBO has, quote, “distorted, twisted and invented facts”. But former aides for John McCain — including chief strategist Steve Schmidt — have stood behind the film in interviews with the Los Angeles Times .

 

"‘This was a surreal experience for me,’ Schmidt said of the movie, in which he is played by actor Woody Harrelson. ‘Ten weeks of the campaign are condensed into a two-hour movie. But it tells the truth of the campaign. That is the story of what happened.’"

 

Politico’s Mike Allen reports Palin did not accept offers to screen the movie and refused to sit down with writers conducting research for the film. Still, he says:

 

“The film aims for a balanced portrait of Palin, reviving embarrassing episodes, but reflecting her extraordinary political strengths -- an electrifying performance on the stump, and an incredible connection with a swath of the electorate that often feels overlooked. The film shows how ill-prepared she was, but also gives a sympathetic portrayal of the onslaught and demands the small-state pol suddenly faced.”

 

The film does deviate from the book. For one, it doesn’t focus at all on the conflict between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama — the narrative that made up more than half of the novel. But the authors — journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann — were heavily involved in adapting the story for film. The movie’s director, Jay Roach, told Entertainment Weekly depicting Palin wasn’t easy.

 

“It was daunting ... This is not a caricature, and it’s not an impersonation. Julianne wanted to get not just into the surface — her skin, her clothes, her hair, and her accent — but to kind of internalize what she could imagine Sarah was going through psychologically, what anxieties she was experiencing stepping out on to the national stage.”

 

Roach also directed the HBO film “Recount” about the 2000 presidential election.