Movie Musings: The Eyes of Tammy Faye

 

For the first half hour of so of “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” I kept thinking Jessica Chastain was playing Tammy Faye Bakker like a cartoon character. Then it dawned on me: Tammy Faye's public persona was, pretty much, a cartoon character.

The story starts with Tammy Faye as a little girl who desperately wants to go to church but her mother won't allow it bcause she's divorced and her presence would remind people of that. Tammy Faye does eventually sneak into the church, where she is touched by the Holy Spirit and starts speaking in tongues.

The movie then skips ahead to Tammy and Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield) in bible college, and how their romance started. It then shows how they became affiliated with Pat Robertson, the beginnings of The 700 Club, and their own PTL Club. Jerry Falwell (played wonderfully by Vincent D'Onofrio) is introduced into the mix as well. It also shows how they realize when Tammy cries on camera, donations start pouring in.

Their obsession with their opulent lifestyle and their ever-growing “ministry” – for anyone who doesn't know their story – is just one of the reasons for their downfall. The rumor of Jim's homosexuality is brushed over and his affair with Jessica Hahn doesn't get much more of mention than that. More time is spent on a relationship Tammy Faye had with record producer Gary Paxton. All of this gave her plenty of reasons to cry.

People who remember the Jim and Tammy Faye days, as I do, should find the movie interesting because it gives some behind the scenes looks at the power couple, albeit fictionalized. People who don't remember those days should feel blessed that they didn't have to live through the “golden age” of televangelism.