Two Raging Grannies

Taking a page from the playbook of Michael Moore, filmmaker Havard Bustnes has fashioned a kind of stunt documentary in Two Raging Grannies. Hinda, 84, and Shirley, 90, are two Seattle seniors fretting over the conventional wisdom that the solution to America's economic doldrums lies in greater economic growth. How, the women wonder, can growth rise when unsustainable resources are dwindling? And doesn't there come a point when a growing economy will fall off a cliff? The quest to find answers becomes a quixotic and often funny odyssey, as these two disabled ladies crawl their way—in slow-moving, motorized chairs—into various disruptive situations. Appearing as observers in a dull business class, the pair are thrown out by the instructor for asking questions outside the lesson plan. The film's high point finds Hinda and Shirley in New York, somehow worming into a Wall Street awards banquet, where Shirley hobbles onto the stage in the middle of someone's speech to challenge the growth principle (she is whisked away by security, while some tough guy makes expletive-laden vile threats). At other times, Hinda and Shirley engage with various economists over a cup of tea in less rancorous settings. Between these moments, Bustnes captures the lifelong friends squabbling and watching over one another, going to each other's doctor appointments, or visiting a therapy pool. Although the guerilla-theater moments sometimes feel artificial and manipulative, this crowd-pleasing documentary about two “mad as hell” grannies is recommended, overall. (T. Keogh)