Documentary sheds new light on Romney travails

A revealing and moving behind-the-scenes documentary about Mitt Romney's unsuccessful run for the US presidency sheds new light on the Republican big-hitter and his family.
"Mitt," directed by Greg Whiteley, made its premiere at the independent Sundance Film Festival, which runs until January 26 in Park City, in the mountains of Utah.
The film, shot over a period of six years to 2012, tracks in intimate detail Romney's failed run for the Republican nomination and later his unsuccessful attempt to unseat President Barack Obama.
It is to be distributed by the Netflix digital platform and enjoys significant access to the Romney family -- to the surprise of even Whiteley himself.

Whiteley admits: "Often, I had to pinch myself, 'How did I get here?'"
The answer: thanks to Tagg, one of Romney's five children, whom the filmmaker met through a mutual acquaintance.

But even then there was resistance.
"I told him about my idea. Tagg said yes, his father said no. But his mother (Ann Romney) said yes." That tipped the balance, the director told AFP after the film's debut at Sundance (on Saturday?), which was attended by Romney.
Whiteley's original idea was simple: follow the campaign to secure the Republican nomination and, if elected, accompany him during the presidential run.

"I was interested in making a film about a Mormon (Romney's religion) wanting to become president," said Whiteley, himself a Mormon.
The objective was to make a film on the political dynamics of the campaign, similar to "The War Room" by Chris Hegedus, which followed the campaign of Bill Clinton in 1992.
But Whiteley was soon forced into a rethink.
"His advisers were really opposed to my presence and my involvement in the campaign. This forced me to focus exclusively on the family," he said.
"If we had been filming the strategic meetings, or a shooting movie on the process, it would have been: will they win or not?"

But in following the family closer instead, the question became: what does it mean for a close-knit family to live through an election campaign, he said.