the pretender
Not the crappo and now cancelled US TV show, but the rather good local faux-reality series on TV3 this evening, late, after that fantastic CSI by Tarantino.
It’s about Dennis Plant, the blue party candidate for Wakatipu South. He’s your archetypal Queenstown developer, and thinking he can connect with “the little people” decides to run against the incumbent, the (“unmarried tree-hugging” and female) Associate Minister for the Environment. A filmmaker follows him around on his campaign.
I scratched around on the TV3 site until I found this page about it. So the good news is, it’s a series. Just as well, because it was damned funny.
Like the bit where the Labour candidate sends him a fruit basket, wishing him well on his campaign. In some sort of exaggerated Southern Man thing he takes it as an insult, “she’s insinuating my campaign is, you know, fruity”.
Hmmm, I guess you had to be there. Did anyone else see it? (DPF can’t have seen it, or he would have blogged on it already…)
llew
22 August 2005, 11:20 #
I saw part of it & wondered WTF it was (flitting between rooms, no time to research it).
But I agree, it was quite funny.
Patrick
22 August 2005, 22:09 #
If you say it’s good, I must remember to catch it next week.
Alan
22 August 2005, 22:34 #
I can confirm that it is good. And has cameos from all sorts of real politicos: like Rodney Hide (showing that, despite what one may think of his politics, he’s a stand up bloke) saying that “Dennis Plant is really an Act party candidate in the wrong party”...
Alan
27 August 2005, 12:19 #
Review in the Herald here for what it’s worth.
Joshua
30 August 2005, 00:59 #
I watched it… spent the whole time wondering if it was for real or not. Just seemed too true to be true, if you know what I mean.