Faye Dunaway is a legend. Her iconic roles as Bonnie Parker in “Bonnie and Clyde,” Evelyn Mulwray in “Chinatown,” as well as her Oscar-winning performance as Diana Christensen in “Network” cemented her career. But Dunaway also developed a reputation. She had some difficulties with director Roman Polanski on “Chinatown,” and was fired from the play “Tea at Five.” Of course, Dunaway is perhaps most associated with her chilling portrayal of Joan Crawford in the camp classic, “Mommie Dearest” — an exacting performance that “ruined” her career; she struggled to find meaty roles thereafter.
HBO’s celebratory showbiz documentary, “Faye,” directed by Laurent Bouzereau, showcases Dunaway as the seminal 1970s screen actress she is, and touches on some of her “issues,” including her alcoholism and her bipolar disorder. Using extensive and candid interviews with Dunaway, along with her adopted son Liam, Bouzereau hopscotches through Dunaway’s childhood and career, landing on the highlights — her famous morning after Oscar photo, taken by Terry O’Neill, who would later become her husband — and the lowlights, including the aforementioned “Mommie Dearest.”
The documentary includes only brief clips from some of her key ‘70s films like “The Towering Inferno,” “Three Days of the Condor” and “Eyes of Laura Mars,” but it does features a segment on “It Had to Be You,” Dunaway’s ill-fated TV sitcom.
“Faye” also includes interviews with her “Barfly” costar Sharon Stone, Mickey Rourke and others, who discuss Dunaway’s impact and legacy. The documentary plays almost like a redemption story, justifying her searing performances by the effort and pain that went into them, including her Maria Callas in “Master Class,” a stage production Dunaway tried, but failed, to direct as a feature film.
Salon spoke with director Laurent Bouzereau about Dunaway, “Mommie Dearest” and his approach to making “Faye.”
Let me ask a question you ask in the film: What comes first to mind when you think of her? What do you recall about seeing her?
What I recall is “The Towering Inferno.” That was the first movie I saw her in, and I was very impressionable at the age. Not only the movie, but I never forgot her. I never forgot the shot of the elevator doors closing in on her as she goes down the elevator on the side of the tower. I was petrified something was going to happen to her, and from that moment on, I was hooked. I had seen an extraordinary actress who expressed so much in a film that had so many movie stars including Steve McQueen and Paul Newman. She stood out to me. From that moment on I followed everything she did. “The Towering Inferno” was the first movie poster I ever bought. It’s a “pinch myself” moment to get a chance to tell her story in a very intimate and personal kind of way. That’s what comes to mind — the discovery of her and the power of an actor.
But you didn’t really feature “The Towering Inferno” in “Faye”!
We had that shot! I talked about it with Faye, and there was nothing really all that insightful about her appreciation of it. [She said]“I just dropped by for a couple of scenes.” She was funny about it. We did talk about Steve McQueen, particularly “The Thomas Crown Affair,” which essentially relies on style and not so much on plot. It’s a beautiful film, with a great score, and Faye has a different hairdo and outfit in every scene she appears in.
You illustrated her story with photos and film clips. You also have interviews with Dunaway, but also her son, friends, writers/scholars and costars. Why did you take this approach for a documentary on Faye Dunaway?
I had Faye Dunaway, which was pretty amazing. I didn’t have that privilege when I was doing the story on Natalie Wood. I wanted to embrace Faye. I wanted each person coming in the story to be symbolic of other people. I couldn’t get certain directors because of schedules, but I was glad I got Jerry Schatzberg, who not only directed Faye [in “Puzzle of a Downfall Child” in 1970]but they went out together. James Gray symbolizes another generation of filmmakers embracing someone like Faye. I wanted Sharon Stone picking up baton from Faye in the ’80s, and ’90s. Then Mickey Rourke or Mara Hobel, who shared the screen with her in completely different films [“Barfly” and “Mommie Dearest” respectively]. I wanted to get a nice diversity of people who experienced different sides of her. What is it like to share the screen with her, or socialize with her as an up-and-coming actor? What is it like to direct or date her? And what is it like to be her son? Liam [O’Neill] was a close friend of ours and he ignited the whole project. We talked about a doing a film about his dad, who passed away. Liam said, “I have so much footage and photos, it would be great to do something on my mom.” We had dinner and convinced Faye — and continued convincing her . . .
“Faye” feels like a redemption story. What was the intent with this documentary?
I’m glad you see it as a redemption story. To some extent it is. She is opening up in a very real and contemporary way, and is very accessible. The curiosity awakens in young people who don’t know who she is, and they visit or revisit her films and realize the power that she holds. For me, that’s the hope. The intent is “Don’t forget someone like this.” I’m a storyteller. I’m not a reporter. I was intrigued by her story, and I feel there is a lot to learn from her. She is quite an inspiration. Folks should go down the rabbit hole and discover more.
How did you work with Faye on the film? Was she just the interview subject or did she review what would be discussed in advance? Did she have any creative control about what to include, or what was off-limits?
She was extremely aware that I, meaning me and my producers, had final cut. At the same time, I didn’t want her to feel that I’m going to do a film that is not something she is going to like. I wanted to be truthful. I told her the camera is going to be constantly running, so when she’s acting up — and I wanted to open the film with that — she knew that was being recorded. There was no hidden agenda. I had her son remind her of that. I wanted to capture moments that may trigger something extraordinary. I didn’t want miss out on that.
This is the opposite of what she is used to; there is no script.
Dunaway is seen being “fussy” early on in your documentary. Her reputation for being “difficult” has preceded her in her late career. Dunaway claims her toughness generated results, and one quote in the film indicates that if she wasn’t in so much pain, she would not be as good as she is. What are your thoughts about her diva-like persona?
I respect that. I have seen male actors behave far worse than she does. I think she gets a bad rep because she’s a woman. They can’t wait to build you up and they can’t wait to tear down. She was so far up maybe that’s what happened. Her reputation preceded her over her work. I don’t know what it is about her that caused that kind of reputation. I’ve seen it and been on receiving end of it on several occasions. That was part of the challenge and excitement of telling her story. Despite the reputation, and obstacles, and mood swings, it was tough. But if it wasn’t tough, we wouldn’t be talking about it. It would be another vanity project.
“Faye” includes discussions of Dunaway’s alcoholism and bipolar disorder, as well as her love of Blistex. What surprised you about the film’s subject?
[Laughs] Everything surprised me! I was surprised she has a different persona when the camera starts rolling and she knows she has to work. She is a consummate professional and she wants to master the camera and her relationship with the camera is very impressive and very stressful. You meet somebody different than if you are socializing and having dinner.
Dunaway absolutely invested her full self in her iconic roles, and Elia Kazan tells her that “feeling” is her strength. She did her best work with demanding directors like Arthur Penn, Sidney Lumet and Roman Polanski, but was sabotaged by Frank Perry, who did not rein her in making “Mommie Dearest”? She plays characters who are larger than life but says, “That’s not me.” What observations do you have about her roles and career?
She is an incredible performer, but she is very much a director’s actor. She relied on a friend of hers, William Alfred, a playwright, and they would dissect the roles together. I knew Sidney Lumet and Arthur Penn years ago and I talked with them, and they all said she was extraordinary. Yes, there is the famous “hair” story of “Chinatown,” [recounted in “Faye”]. I didn’t remember any director saying she’s a nightmare. They said she’s a force on the set. If you are not an equal, and if you are intimidated by that force, it is over. Frank Perry had done a movie [“Doc” in 1971] with her before “Mommie Dearest.” Maybe she felt more isolated in “Mommie Dearest,” in that she was carrying the whole film by herself and there was not that exchange happening. You look at the films Perry was doing in that era, “Monsignor” with Christopher Reeve and Geneviève Bujold, and that movie sucks. The actors are borderline embarrassing in it. Then he made “Compromising Positions,” which is not memorable. He was not a director who was on her side. I think he was a director who potentially lost control.
“Mommie Dearest” was a setback, followed a few years later by “Barfly,” which was an attempt at a comeback. Then she made an ill-fated effort to bring “Master Class” to the screen. What are your thoughts about her up and down career? Was Faye her own worst enemy after her string of hit roles? Was her being a “tough woman” threatening?
That is a double standard that is hopefully on its way to be a thing of the past. I saw “Mommie Dearest” when it came out in France, and I knew nothing about it. I went because it was Faye. and I thought, the movie was really awful. For someone like me. who loves Brian De Palmaand Spielberg, and cinematographers like Vilmos Zsigmond, it was like watching a Hallmark movie. It’s flat and completely ridiculous. I did not like that film, and I was really shocked when it became a cult classic. People are laughing at it than appreciating it. I don’t think it’s good cinema.
The thing that is mesmerizing to me is that around the same time, you have Warren Beatty and Dustin Hoffman making “Ishtar,” and you don’t see them being interviewed and someone saying, “Let’s talk about ‘Ishtar’” the way that each time Faye is interviewed, they bring up freaking “Mommie Dearest.” I don’t know what it is. It’s this double standard. Maybe because she made it such a big deal for herself, that she has invited [criticism].
“Faye” shows how she tries to reshape her career, producing and directing, but she took a lot of roles that were more to keep working than up to her standards. What are your thoughts on her legacy? Your film is now contributing to that.
Her legacy is giant. If you only have “Bonnie and Clyde,” “The Thomas Crown Affair,” “Chinatown,” “Network” and “Eyes of Laura Mars” — and I would include “Mommie Dearest” because it is the antithesis of everything she had done — she will be remembered for those roles. I hope that this film can be remembered as part of her legacy in the sense that it was her attempt at explaining herself and her journey. She dedicated herself to her art form. That is powerful, and that comes across strongly. She had such passion in discussing those roles.
“Faye” is streaming on Max.
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interviews by Gary Kramer
