It might just be Sarah Palin's last chance to re-establish herself as a viable presidency candidate ahead of the 2012 US elections in the wake of a disastrous PR run. A new film commissioned by Palin, the former governor of Alaska, will present her as a Joan of Arc-like figure beset at every turn by vicious leftwing enemies seeking to thwart her ambition of reviving the conservative legacy of Ronald Reagan.

The Undefeated has been shot by rightwing film-maker Steven K Bannon, who met the documentary's $1m costs from his own pocket. Palin initially reached out to the director with the aim of recruiting him to work on videos pushing her cause, but Bannon offered to make a feature-length film instead.

Rife with religious imagery, the movie will chart Palin's rise from Alaskan "soccer mom" to vice-presidential candidate. Drawing on content from Palin's book Going Rogue: An American Life, which has sold more than 2m copies, the film will seek to explain her decision to step down as governor of Alaska following her unsuccessful run alongside John McCain in 2008.

"This film is a call to action for a campaign like 1976: Reagan v the establishment," Bannon told the RealClearPolitics website. "Let's have a good old-fashioned brouhaha."

The movie will not mention Palin's notorious reaction to criticism of her reaction to the January shooting of Democratic congresswoman Gabriel Giffords. She responded to suggestions that a now infamous campaign map showing Giffords's electoral district in the crosshairs of a gun had influenced the shooter Jared Lee Loughner by accusing her opponents of manufacturing a "blood libel", a phrase which refers to the false accusation that Jews killed Christian children to use their blood in religious rituals. Palin's use of language was widely criticised, and her reaction to the shooting compared unfavourably to the more statesmanlike response of President Barack Obama. Subsequently, her chances of building enough momentum to secure the Republican nomination for the 2012 race have appeared to dwindle.

Bannon's two-hour movie features interviews with Palin supporters in Alaska and conservative bloggers such as Andrew Breitbart. The politician does not appear on camera, but her voice is used for narration via clips from the audiobook version of Going Rogue. RealClearPolitics reports that the film makes "unmistakable allusions to Palin as a Joan of Arc-like figure".

"I'm a huge fan of Steve's work," Palin aide Rebecca Mansour, who set up the deal, said in a statement. "His film on President Reagan, In the Face of Evil, is my favourite documentary, and his Generation Zero was a rallying cry for the Tea Party movement early on. I think his new film really captures the essence of Governor Palin's stewardship of Alaska, and I think people will be really surprised by it. It shatters so many false stereotypes because it shows what she actually accomplished as governor. You can't leave it thinking the same way about Sarah Palin."

The Undefeated will open in Iowa, the classic US swing state, in June. Bannon also hopes to set up on-demand screenings for home viewings via cable television.