The Eyes of Tammy Faye on HBO Max

In the madness of last Sunday’s Oscars, one standout winner was Jessica Chastain for her portrayal of Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

Chastain’s performance is outstanding as she characterizes the famed televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker in a story that details her life. 

Tammy Faye Bakker had an extraordinary life, her meteoric rise to become one of the most celebrated religious symbols on television in the late 1980s, but also her catastrophic fall from fame at the hands of her husband who stole millions from their production company in the hopes to hush women he had abused over the years.

Directed by Michael Showalter, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, presents the life of a woman who only wanted the best of people, a compassionate individual who had love for everyone she encountered. She strongly believed in tolerance and kindness and actively sought to bring out best in everyone. Tammy went about treating everyone with love and respect, as she deserved they should be treated, as she would want in return. 

The Eyes of Tammy Faye highlight a strong resilient woman who no matter the obstacles in life always tried to put forward a smile and look her best.

Loosely based on a documentary written by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, set about to correct the publics memory of this determined woman. 

Tammy Faye is often remembered for her over the top make up and wild hairstyles and dress sense, but what is often overlooked is the care she had for all humans she encountered. 

At a time when showing love and acceptance towards the LGBTQIA+ community in the 1980s during the height of the AIDS pandemic, Tammy Faye Bakker was out front and championing the love and support for numerous members of the gay community during this difficult time. This is not the stereotypical behavior of a televangelist from the 1980s, but she was a remarkable woman who deserves an accurate representation of her story told.

Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye Bakker is a captivating performance. The genuine humanity of this kind woman flows out of the screen and it is all because of the outstanding job Chastain has done in embodying Tammy Faye. She rightly deserved the Oscar as she is a gifted actor that deserves to be recognized. 

Andrew Garfield plays her philandering husband, Jim Bakker, and he too is a joy to watch in his performance. 

There are moments where you question is this behavior by Jim Bakker is true, but then reminded of the monumental collapse of their company and the long and sad drawn out investigation by the IRS.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye is a film that shows the hardship of life and how cruel life can be and also unexpected. But no matter the cards that you are dealt as long as you go out into the world showing love and kindness to everyone you encounter than only respect you shall receive in return, as Tammy Faye demonstrates time and again.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye is an enjoyable film that deserve all the acclaim and is currently available to stream on HBOMax.