Review: The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2000)
[3.0/4.0]
Many media observers have stated that modern American news coverage by the mass media has shifted from substantive issue exploration to tabloid journalism. In an intense competition to garner the most viewers, issues are presented in a summary manner with only the salacious details covered. This film is a documentary exploration of a real individual, Tammy Faye Bakker, at the heart of one particular scandal. It attempts to portray a broader picture than what could be understood from news headlines.
In the late 1980's the television empire of Christian evangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker crumbled beneath allegations of adultery and corruption. The pair had launched and run the successful PTL (Praise The Lord) television ministry, which included a broadcast network and sprawling theme park. Investigative reporting eventually uncovered an affair between Jim Bakker and a ministry staffer which brought scandal to the ministry, but it was the eventual revelation of embezzlement that undid the Bakkers' empire. The public humiliation of the couple was eagerly covered by the mass media.
The film gives a chronological recounting of Tammy Faye's biography, concentrating on the details of the collapse of the PTL network. It divides the events into several chapters which chronicle specific upturns and downturns in Tammy Faye's fate.
Many viewers will remember Tammy Faye from the original press coverage as a freakish, maudlin character sporting heavy layers of clownish make up. The coverage portrayed her as a weepy, cloying whiner and as a result outsiders may not have had a sympathetic opinion of her. Many view television evangelists as inherently corrupt, and some were happy to see the Bakkers punished for living a lavish lifestyle on viewer donations. Some may have been happy to see the ministers publicly humiliated for not living up to the principles they preached. The act of preaching is intrinsically a patronizing relationship between the preacher and congregation. When a broadcast medium is used for the communication, some viewers will be offended by the assumption that the they need to be preached to.
The reality presented by the film shows a less exaggerated, although still odd, portrait. Tammy Faye lacked the judgmental vitriol of other evangelists, as demonstrated by her unconditional acceptance homosexuals and HIV infected patients from the moment the issue came to public awareness. Although the Bakkers did live well, off the contributions of others, they do appear to be less corrupt than many of their contemporaries.
The basic purpose of a documentary is to frame a factual topic and present the events in a manner that is enlightening and entertaining, and this film succeeds at this level. For a documentary to excel, it must raise a larger question and relate the story to a more esoteric exploration, which this film falls short of. Although it is hampered by the unwillingness of some of the key participants in the events to be interviewed, the film is successful in constructing a coherent narrative. The tone of the story is intentionally kept light in order to present the quirkiness of the individuals to be entertaining. The presentation is certainly sympathetic to Tammy Faye, but it does not shy away from displaying her oddness.
Recommended. The film presents a detailed perspective on events that were covered by the mass media, and shows that there is a story more substantive and interesting than the sensational coverage may have indicated. It falls short of exploring any serious philosophical issues that a viewer might expect of a documentary, but it is an entertaining insight into the world of television evangelism, and of one particularly intriguing individual.
(c) 2000 Murali Krishnan The Art House Squatter http://ArtHouseSquatter.com
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