Realize Tammy Faye’s eyes

It took about 10 years for Jessica Chastain to obtain his adaptation of the documentary Tammy Faye’s eyes done, and it was worth the wait. The recently released dramatization of the documentary is revealing, well done and convincing, while highlighting the life in the world of Tammy Faye Bakker.

As a director, Michael showalter was accused of putting the vision of Chastain and the company on screen. Comedian and actor himself, he appeared in sketch groups State and Stella, and co-wrote and starred in Hot humid american summer and his TV spin off—Showalter first sought to highlight the performance of the film, while also capturing what he called “the Bonfire of vanities aspect of how these two people ended up in this maelstrom of dementia. We spoke to Showalter about how he made this possible, from his endless hours watching the PTL Network, to the narrative choices the film makes around Tammy’s love life.

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The AV Club: Jessica Chastain worked on the production Tammy Faye’s eyes in a feature for a while. When did you get on board and what was your vision?

Michael Showalter: I know the story, I know the characters, and I’m interested in stories of good intentions that have gone horribly wrong. I like the kind of Bonfire of vanities aspect of it all, the way these two people ended up in this maelstrom of madness and the way its tentacles reached so wide, even right down to our current situation. There are so many relevant things going on there.

There are also larger-than-life colorful characters, so cinematically I saw colors and costumes and just made this world a reality.

I remember watching [The PTL Show] and there is a spectacle aspect to the spectacle. So I liked the opportunity to work on a film about a group of people doing a TV show.

Tammy Faye Bakker’s character is a really, really compelling central character, kind of a misunderstood character that we know in our culture as kind of a laughing stock and a bit of a villain. I love the opportunity to show that maybe if you take layers off you will see it in a different way. And of course, I loved the opportunity to work with Jessica Chastain, whose work I admire so much. I felt like it would be really exciting to collaborate with her on this topic.

AVC: I read that Jessica had met the two children of Jim and Tammy Faye, and that they had given their blessing to the film. Have you ever spoken or met with them?

MRS: I didn’t, but I certainly talked to Jessica a lot after she did. We were getting reports from Jessica about what those conversations were.

I guess in a way I wanted to keep some distance to myself. I wanted to stay focused on the movie, just the physical movie that we were making. But I always wanted to know what Jessica’s conversations were with them, and it was important to us that we make a movie that they thought was right, I guess in some ways without going so far as to say that we were need them to authorize it or something like that. We were aware of trying to be precise in our portrayal as much as we could [in relation to] what was happening.

AVC: The film doesn’t really defame Jim Bakker. He’s going to jail and it’s clear he’s done some really bad things, but it’s not a movie about what he made. It’s not a movie about the money flowing or that sort of thing. It’s a Tammy Faye movie.

MRS: Yes, it is about this woman and her experiences, but also what surrounds her. These other things continued, and [as a viewer] you look at it from a different point of view.

AVC: From what I understood – and correct me if I’m wrong – is that Tammy insisted that her relationship with her producer was a platonic relationship, but that they were sort of soul mates, which she always thought was cheating. In the movie, they actually cross the physical border of cheating. Why take this relationship in a different direction for the film?

MRS: That would be a great question for the screenwriter. I think, without putting words in his mouth, maybe he would say that’s not true.

AVC: For a lot of people, you are associated with the world of comedy, and you have been for a long time. Tammy Faye’s eyes is not really a comedy. There is a bad joke about a leper and there are comedic elements, but was it a challenge? How did you still imbue the film with a humorous sensibility or did it even cross your mind?

MRS: For me, as a director, anyway, I often treat comedy and drama the same. Whatever the scene, if it’s funny, then it happens. If it’s not funny, it’s kind of the same for me.

I think that these characters in this world, there is something funny about it without necessarily being satire or necessarily making fun of it. The world is a little overwhelmed. So I felt that my sensitivity could correspond to that. I see it as part of the absurdity or I try to find opportunities to be playful or fanciful with the approach to things.

I think the main thing for me was that I was really interested in this story and these characters in this world, and so I didn’t look at it like I needed to completely change the way I approach it. . It was really the same thing that I always do, which is just approaching each scene the same for what I believe is the intention of the scene, and then doing my best to execute it. Each project is different, the characters are different, and each presents new challenges to find a way to hopefully tell the best side of the story, whatever it is.

AVC: You mentioned that you remember watching PTL. Did you watch any before making the film, and what did you like about the network?

MRS: I just like that they have fun. They are extremely charismatic. They seem to be a little unscripted and really just kind of on the wing. There is something almost improvised there.

Also, sort of like an aesthetic thing, there are just people everywhere. Everywhere you look there are only random people. One thing I’ve always found so interesting is that there are always five people on the couch with Jim. You have no idea who they are.

If you go back and watch the movie again you will see that there are those scenes where Jim is on Club 700 or PTL, and there are only eight random people sitting with him at any time on the show. There were just people everywhere, answering the phones, in the audience, on stage. It was a bit like a big giant party and it fascinated me.

AVC: It feels like the movement is huge. “Everyone is involved. You should be too! “

MRS: Oh yes. There’s something going on and you want to be there, which is kind of the same kind of feeling you get when you watch Saturday night live. There’s all these cool people out there and they’re backstage and all these people coming like, “oh look who’s here. This random person has arrived! You want to be in this studio with them because you feel like something special is going on.