The Eyes of Tammy Faye

I was born in 1985. PTL was only on the air until 1989, so I never saw an episode. I'm from Charlotte, NC, so growing up I thought I knew all the basics about the "scandal".

I didn't meet Tammy Faye until 2000. 15 years after she fell from Grace in the court of public opinion.

We met when I was working at Stein Mart in Matthews, NC. I was a 15 year old cashier. She came into my line one day, and I said "Hi Tammy Faye". She looked shocked, and said I was too young to know who she was. I told her she knew my mom, told her my mom's name, and she instantly remembered her. She met my mom when my mom was the teenager who worked customer service who ordered her custom eyelashes for her from a local store called Jamco. My mom eventually became head teller at the bank that PTL had it's accounts with, so she interacted with Tammy for years.

After that day anytime Tammy would come in we'd talk. Sometimes for a couple minutes, and sometimes longer. Tammy became my own personal Dolly Patron. Her personality was larger than life. We were kindred spirits. We both share a love of makeup, clothes, and shoes. We both never left the house without makeup. We just instantly clicked.

I never heard Tammy ever speak a negative word about anyone. She was the most genuinely kind person I have ever met. I grew to love her almost immediately. Her spirit was contagious. She had almost a child like quality about her. Being around her made you feel good. She radiated pure love, and empathy.

The last time I saw Tammy she had cancer. She was so frail I almost didn't recognize her, but she had her hair and makeup done as always. She introduced me to her son who was with her. What I respect most about her is that she went through cancer on her terms. She never let it change who she was as a person. I asked how she was, and she told me she was at peace with whatever the outcome would be for her because it was in God's hands. A couple weeks later I heard the news that she had died. The world got a little darker that day without the light of Tammy Faye in it. I will always believe she was one of the best people that I have ever been fortune enough to meet, and get to know.

I was lucky enough to be cast as an extra in the film "The Eyes of Tammy Faye" you'll see me quite a few times in a bubble gum pink dress, sunglasses, and hideous beige hat.

I was scared that this would be just one more round of bashing Tammy. As soon as I stepped on set I saw the love and care that the entire cast and crew was pouring into the movie. The first time I heard Jessica laugh portraying Tammy I did a double take because I thought it was her. Jessica embodied Tammy completely. It was like Tammy reached down from Heaven, and took up residence in Jessica's body. It was the most incredible thing I've ever witnessed. Watching Jessica embody Tammy in person was like having my friend back for a couple of days.

The movie does an excellent job of telling the truth. Tammy was naive. Tammy was trusting. She was those things still long after the PTL scandal. She was the most devout Christian who I have ever met. She had absolutely unwavering faith in God through everything she had been through.

Tammy was honest, but she was not cruel or mean spirited. Her honesty always came from a place of love, and she was the first to be honest about her own failings and shortcomings. I believe Jim knew he didn't have the personality to make his vision a reality. He saw things in Tammy that he knew he could never be. He needed a face for his empire, and Tammy was the perfect mascot. It was blatantly obvious that he later became insanely jealous of the fact that she got more attention than he did. She believed she was helping others while Jim was always, and to this day still is helping himself.

There is a reason why Tammy was never charged, and Jim was over the PTL mismanagement. Someone can be innocent in the eyes of the law, and still crucified in the court of public opinion fueled entirely by the media.

Was Tammy perfect, no. She was human, and would be the first to tell you that. Was Tammy a good person? Without a doubt. She was the best of us.

Thank you to Jessica for fighting so hard to give Tammy a voice. She would have been thrilled at the way you portrayed her on film. I feel like Tammy was finally given a bit of the justice, and respect she so deserves. You absolutely deserve an Oscar for your performance.

Thank you to the rest of the cast, and crew for being so kind to us extras. You all helped to capture Tammy's spirit, and remind me how fortunate I was to know her in my own small way. I hope the world can finally see just a little bit of the incredible person who I knew.

"Faith isn't political." Tammy Faye (Jessica Chastain)

But Faith is in The Eyes of Tammy Faye-not just a biopic full of secular missteps but also smart, sympathetic, light-hearted, poignant, and the best female performance of the year. This is from someone who thought Jennifer Hudson in Respect could not be bested.

As Tammy Faye Bakker, Chastain (also a producer) stakes out the dramatic territory of resembling the star-crossed televangelist and giving a nuanced performance, including commendable singing, that could make you want to see both Tammy and Jessica again in another completely different drama. You could also want to see a less innocent Tammy if you remember her blind eye for her husband's manifold indiscretions and corruptions.

Forget the makeup, which is remarkable by the way, and just enjoy the masterful depiction of an American classic woman-a star rising to the top at a time when television itself was rising in prominence (beaming shows with a satellite was practically a new weapon). She became a star asserting her talent when men tried to refuse her talent, a woman who rebelled against being left alone while her husband, Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield-playing a smarmy wimp) took the glory and money. Also, a woman who had blind faith in God and mammon at the same time.

Director Michael Showalter, clearly sympathetic to Tammy, deftly takes the complicated soul from wide-eyed innocent to a wayward but still naive adult whose increasingly-gaudy makeup paralleled her fall from grace. Tammy and Jim's descent, ending in his going to prison for fraud and her losing her beloved television presence and Heritage USA theme park, is an accurate depiction of pride's and wealth's inevitable toll.

Besides Chastain's memorable performance of a talented woman determined to be more than just a trophy, Eyes is a docudrama chock-full of issues like gay love, male impotence, social repression, and most of all, the morphing of religion into entertainment.

Allied to these sinful markers is the couple's acknowledgement that wealth is ok to be pursued, even if you preach Christian charity. That Tammy and Jim built in the '70's and '80's the largest TV ministry, the PTL Network, would have been a remarkable feat except for the sinful ways they flourished.

As Chastain plays her, Tammy barely knew the shenanigans Jim and his buds, like Jerry Falwell, devised to milk their worshipers for wealth and real-estate empires. The Eyes of Tammy Faye is not just an historical docudrama; it is a fitting chronicle of the misalignment of church and state and the corruptions of success.

Eyes is a messy Greek tragedy of sin and redemption that won't let you take your eyes off it. Especially if you see it on the big screen.

Jessica Chastain's bravura, committed performance lifts Michael Showalter's 'The Eyes of Tammy Faye' above its middling, problematic writing. While the makeup and costumes are stunning, and the performances are flawless, the plot isn't compelling enough to warrant a two-plus-hour run duration. It's still entertaining, but it blows the opportunity to provide incisive views on religion, politics, and money.

Although I didn't remember many details I clearly recall Jim and Tammy Faye from things going on in the mid- to late-1980s. This movie focuses on Tammy Faye but her story can't be told without focusing on how she and Jim got together in the first place and their rocky years as televangelists.

Count me among the skeptics over televangelists in general. My favorite biblical passage (slightly modified) concerns this, "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is to find a totally honest televangelist." Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggert, just two of the charlatans who preached the word while enriching themselves and behaving badly. Look around today and you'll find many more still in business.

But why blame them? If it weren't for the gullible flock who believe their gas-lighting and lies, who send in donations so that they can be "saved", the televangelists wouldn't exist. Jim was crooked, Tammy Faye was gullible, they both were weak and couldn't resist living the lifestyle of luxury that their ministry allowed.

Although a bit too long, a really good movie, especially for those of us who remember Jim and Tammy Faye when they were in their prime. Chastain, who also was a producer, simply nails the role as Tammy Faye, and she also does all her own singing. I already knew she was talented, I just didn't know how talented. And, she did win the Oscar for Best Actress for her performance.

At home, on DVD from our public library.

Jessica Chastain is absolutely "fearless" in her performance as Tammy Faye in a very complex leading role. I went to see this film to watch her. Jessica Chastain blew my mind . There is no question in my mind that Chastain will be nominated for a best actress Oscar. She was tremendous and worth the price of admission.

The film is very entertaining and surprisingly funny given the subject matter. The production presented detailed dedication to period accuracy in every visual detail from set design , wardrobe , hair and make-up, direction & screenplay. A first class period piece in its own right.

In the 1970s and '80s Tammy Faye and her husband Jim Bakker rose from humble beginnings to create the world's largest religious broadcasting network and theme park, and were revered for their message of love, acceptance and prosperity. Tammy Faye was legendary for her indelible eyelashes, her idiosyncratic singing and her eagerness to embrace people of all walks of life.

I knew very little about the subject matter beyond what was in the news when I was a teen. This was covered in the film , but also expanded on the story telling with superb character development . Jessica Chastain raises up in this formula biopic about televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker by giving viewers an absorbing, amusing and provocative performance . It's a 'big' role with a physical transformation, (the race for best makeup begins here) ;To recreate her famous look, from the wigs, to the shoulder pads, and, of course, the spidery lashes, Chastain underwent a full transformation to portray Bakker over four decades, requiring four to seven hours in the makeup chair as makeup, wigs, and extensive prosthetic's were applied. It is a radiant , soulful performance and one that was very entertaining . Worth seeking out . 8/10.