by Foster Harlfinger, Contributing Writer
The Eyes of Tammy Faye lives and dies on Jessica Chastain’s incredible lead performance. As the title suggests, Chastain portrays televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker, who gained notoriety in the ‘70s and ‘80s as the co-host of the popular Christian television program The PTL Club, along with her husband Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield). The film follows Tammy throughout most of her life, from her time in the church as a youth, to her professional experiences as an evangelist, talk show host, and recording artist.
Michael Showalter, perhaps more famous for his sensibilities as an actor and comedian than as a dramatic director, confidently directs his actors and offers countless moments of humor and unexpected heart. The Eyes of Tammy Faye will remind viewers of other recent films like Bombshell and I, Tonya in the sense that the varying success of each of these three films is due to their terrific lead performances and the outrageous true stories on which they are all based. More enjoyable than Bombshell, though not quite as skillfully constructed as I, Tonya, Tammy Faye remains consistently enjoyable throughout. An Academy Award nomination for Chastain is essentially a lock, and I would not be surprised to see Garfield snag a nomination for his contributions to the film. Though they are unlikely to receive any awards recognition for their work in this film, Vincent D’Onofrio and Cherry Jones round out this excellent cast by offering two memorable supporting performances as well.
Should any audience members find Chastain’s portrayal to be over-the-top, I would recommend that they seek out interview footage with the real Tammy (of which there is plenty). Chastain’s work in this film is nothing short of transformative, and it elevates the material in practically every scene. Barring some occasionally distracting chipmunk-like cheeks from our two leads, the makeup work on these actors remains highly impressive, and I am sure that the makeup artists will likewise receive well-deserved acclaim this awards season.
Though most audiences should have a decent time with this humorous and kitschy biopic, your own personal enjoyment will largely depend on your opinion of the film’s treatment of these controversial characters. There are things to appreciate and despise about many of the real life personalities Tammy Faye depicts, and the film takes a hard stance in its portrayal of Tammy as a misguided, but genuine empath in contrast to the manipulative and money-hungry Jim. Regardless of your religious or spiritual orientation, you’ll be sure to come away with an opinion of your own by the time the credits roll.
As a whole, The Eyes of Tammy Faye is an enjoyable experience if you are in search of a film with excellent performances and an occasionally thought-provoking story. However, in spite of its excellent and memorable final scene, Tammy Faye ultimately should have narrowed its focus by providing greater insight into the psychology of these two highly interesting personalities. In an age saturated with biopics, I doubt that the filmmaking in Tammy Faye will be able to distinguish itself in the way that a film like Jackie was able to do with its artful cinematography and impossible-to-ignore musical score, or a film like Steve Jobs was able to do with its sharp dialogue and clever plot construction. It will be interesting to see how Tammy Faye will fare this coming awards season given that it will be competing against Spencer, which features a highly anticipated portrayal of Princess Diana from none other than Twilight’s Kristen Stewart. If the early reactions from these two films are any indication, Stewart and Chastain will be competing head to head for the Lead Actress trophy at this year’s Academy Awards. While I cannot yet offer a comment on Stewart’s performance in Spencer, I can confidently state that a win for Chastain’s career-defining performance as Tammy would be well-deserved.
Grade: B-
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