In dogged pursuit of a campaign movie

Alexandra Pelosi’s campaign trail souffle, “Diary of a Political Tourist,” never completely collapses on itself, but it doesn’t quite rise to the occasion either. The HBO documentary doggedly follows Democratic presidential hopefuls as they try to win the hearts and minds of Iowans and New Hampshire-ites, ending with Sen. John F. Kerry’s coronation at the party’s national convention in July.

Pelosi, a former NBC News producer, made a splash two years ago with “Journeys With George,” her self-described home-movie pursuit of then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign. That film sparked a minor controversy over the way Pelosi got her footage, originally not for public consumption, while still working for NBC. When the campaign ended, she quit her news gig and put together “Journeys,” eventually selling it to HBO.

The film drew strong responses, with some critics believing it made Bush look foolish, like a goofy frat boy, while others feeling it humanized him, even made him endearing. Everyone, however, seemed to agree that it captured a side of Bush that had not been previously seen. A neat trick for a first-time filmmaker.

Pelosi’s follow-up takes the same low-key camcorder approach, but you’re not going to see a side of Massachusetts’ Kerry, North Carolina Sen. John Edwards or former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean that you haven’t seen before.

The daughter of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), the filmmaker focuses on campaign staples -- baby kissing, pressing the flesh, speeches -- but also carves out a niche for herself somewhere between C-SPAN and “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” with her wry running commentary and footage of the candidates performing less orthodox deeds. Dean plays the kazoo, Kerry dishes up chili, retired Gen. Wesley K. Clark bags groceries and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman scarfs down a fried Twinkie, all in the name of democracy.

Pelosi makes some witty music choices -- using Randy Newman’s “It’s Money That Matters” during a fundraising swing in California (“the ATM of campaign finance”) and Linda Ronstadt singing “It’s So Easy” while focusing on the Dean faithful.

Pelosi is also adept at capturing campaign pathos. Watching Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt’s tearful departure speech and Dean’s once enthusiastic army of supporters slip away is made all the more poignant because of Pelosi’s ability to get in close.

Where she stumbles, however, is in her attempts at Michael Moore-style provocation. She seems to lack the follow-through to be a true enfant terrible. Whenever she tries to challenge one of the men or attempts to get any of them to lower their guard, she ends up being treated like a precocious teenager indulged by a group of kindly uncles. Perhaps Pelosi is too impish, or maybe it’s a reflection of some of the candidates’ innate patriarchal attitudes.

There seems to be a direct correlation between the candidates’ wariness of Pelosi -- their lack of willingness to submit to her questions and their preference for simply patting her on the head -- and how close they eventually come to snaring the nomination. Except when Edwards gives her a tour of his bus, he and Kerry rush by her camera, busy men reluctant to participate in what starts to feel like a high school civics project. Lieberman, Gephardt and Florida Sen. Bob Graham, on the other hand, seem to have all the time in the world. The final leg of the documentary, once Kerry has sewn up the nomination, involves Pelosi’s pursuit of an interview with him. She claims to want to know what he did that the other candidates did not.

As usual, she doesn’t get much of an answer, but we do get the most telling moment in the film: Kerry turns the tables on her, taking her camcorder and asking if she is enjoying herself.

A little flustered, Pelosi says, “I’m trapped -- I’m not in the press corps, and I’m not working for the candidate. I’m in between. There’s this dance between the candidate, his staff and the press, and I’m trying to show that dance.”

Given that Pelosi had already made that film -- “Journeys With George” -- it leaves her in a bind with “Diary.” It’s a perfectly entertaining slice of life, but it never goes deeper than that. The politicians, it seems, are onto her. As the president himself once said, “Fool me once ... shame on ... shame on you ... if fooled, you can’t get fooled again.”

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‘Diary of a Political Tourist’

Where: HBO

When: 8 to 9:30 tonight

Rating: TV-PG (may be unsuitable for young children)

Executive producer Sheila Nevins. Writer, director and producer Alexandra Pelosi.