(guest posted by Heather)
Run Granny Run is the inspirational story of Doris “Granny D” Haddock's road from political activist to the Democratic candidate for US Senate in New Hampshire. The documentary initially was to focus on campaign finance reform, but director Marlo Poras instead found himself surprised to be in the middle of one of the most unusual political campaigns to ever happen in this country where a 94 year old woman with few resources but a lot of guts was facing off against a two time incumbent Senator with a load of cash.
Granny D narrates much of the movie, and in her own words: "When I was younger, I always tried to be active in my community but really, who has the time?...... And then when I turned 89, death came. Death took my husband and then my best friend and I thought I was next. I needed a reason to live. And I found that reason. It was my country."
At age 89, Granny D walked from CA to New Hampshire to promote campaign finance reform and was hailed by the likes of Russ Feingold and John McCain. When the Democrats suddenly lost their candidate Burt Cohen who was running against Judd Gregg in NH with only one day to find a replacement for him, Granny D stepped up to the plate and volunteered to run. The movie culminates with the run up to the debate between Granny D who has never debated before and Gregg who acted the part of John Kerry when President Bush was preparing for the Presidential debates.
Much to her own, the media and the public's surprise, Granny D actually beats Gregg in the debate and manages to get 34% of the vote in New Hampshire. The director takes the audience along for the agonizing ride of trying to run a campaign on a shoe string budget with little help from the Democrats and the nervousness and tension during the preparation for and lead up to the debate night.
In the end, Run Granny Run is an everyman's story about how every day people can do extraordinary things and shake up the system if they decide to get involved and that our democracy can survive if we all decide we want to take it back.
The documentary premiered on HBO on Oct. 18th and is running through this weekend. The promo and remaining air times can be found here.
