Faye

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Faye

2024

1h 31m

Documentary

Biography

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Popcornmeter

89%

Tomatometer

36 Reviews

78%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

In FAYE, the first feature documentary of the Hollywood legend, Academy Award®-winning actress Faye Dunaway candidly discusses the triumphs and challenges of her illustrious career, with breakthrough, Academy Award®-nominated roles in "Bonnie & Clyde," "Chinatown," and "Network" -- for which she won Best Actress in 1977 -- while also reflecting on the film "Mommie Dearest," which she views as a critical career misstep. Through those reflections, she courageously explores personal discoveries including her struggles with mental health issues and bipolar disorder, her family history growing up in a small town in Florida, and how the intensity of the characters she played still impacts who she is today. In addition to Faye, the film features interviews with her son Liam Dunaway O'Neill, as well as her colleagues and friends including Sharon Stone, Mickey Rourke, and James Gray.

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Critics Consensus

An unapologetic celebration of a hallowed actor renowned for being both brilliant and tempestuous, Faye is a must-watch for fans of the incomparable Dunaway.

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Camilla Long

The Times (UK)

Aug 27, 2024

To say it was a damning illustration of how Hollywood sucks up and spits out even its biggest stars would be to understate how many of her friends, drowned in berets, cravats, titfers and competitive scarves, looked irretrievably flattened...

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Dan Einav

Financial Times

Aug 22, 2024

3/5

[Faye] doesn’t shirk accountability or invalidate the experiences of co-stars who say they feared her, but invites a reappraisal of the sexist notion that she was a belligerent prima donna.

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Tim Robey

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Aug 19, 2024

3/5

Respectful if not revelatory, Bouzereau’s film gives her legacy a massage, gently probing, but also leaving her in peace.

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Chris Feil

The Daily Beast

Jun 5, 2025

In dodging the audience’s most obvious questions, the film only creates more. At this point in her career and diagnosis, it’s understandable that Dunaway would not wish to stoke the embers of past fires, but this leaves Faye feeling remarkably incomplete.

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Hayley Croke

Loud and Clear Reviews

Oct 25, 2024

3.5/5

Faye is a sensitive character study on an acting legend. While Bouzereau’s decision-making feels safe, and even at times dull, there is an understanding after getting to the core of who Faye Dunaway is as to why.

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Chance Solem-Pfeifer

Willamette Week

Aug 21, 2024

Her work was nothing short of an obsession, but there are too few moments of fellow artists speaking directly about its particulars—the sizzling rage, agony and intelligence that made her an icon.

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Ed .

@RT01276001 Aug 29, 2025

Faye Dunaway starred in The Starlet and Supergirl, Dionne Warwick hosted the Psychic Friends Network, Anthony Quinn co-starred with Bo Derek in Ghosts Can't Do It and Cher dresses the way Cher dresses. None of these actions take away from their legacies and superlative talents. Faye's scene in Network where she whips herself into a frenzy in her meeting with Robert Duvall is unlike anything else ever appearing on screen without an X rating.

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Garry A

@heavyg May 1, 2025

I appreciate that she talks about the imperfections of her life...having bi-polar issues and being an alcohol. It's a solid documentary.

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Sal D

@JustTheLaw Aug 11, 2024

Interesting enough documentary about Faye Dunaway, the person and the actress. Could have been more though I found her son Liam’s comments and perspective the most truthful and meaningful.

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Steven t

@SST609 Jul 20, 2024

Really good doc about an all time great actress.

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Jake S

@RT31283430 Jul 17, 2024

An insightful portrait of a legendary talent.

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Christopher A

@RT02684104 Jul 16, 2024

I think any serious fan of 1960s/1970s American film has been waiting for a comprehensive look at Dunaway's life and career -- what a life and what a career! I'm not sure anyone could have done more in 90 minutes than what Bouzereau does here. This doc presents (and dissects) Dunaway's most famous projects (Bonnie & Clyde, Chinatown, and -- yes -- Mommie Dearest), with commentary and context provided by notable journalists and scholars (and not just fellow famous actors). Dunaway is more candid here than she's ever been before (way more than in her memoir from the 90s) -- talking about her manic depression and bipolar disorder, and her son talking about her alcoholism (they both get emotional at certain points in the film, and I found those moments quite moving). I'm not sure why some people are calling this a fluff piece -- it most certainly isn't one. It's a well-rounded, fast-moving, and consistently entertaining look at one of American film's most complex and intense and interesting actors. A worthy documentary!

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Laurent Bouzereau

Director

Faye Dunaway

Self

Liam Dunaway O'Neill

Self

Sharon Stone

Self

Mickey Rourke

Self

James Gray

Self

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Synopsis

In FAYE, the first feature documentary of the Hollywood legend, Academy Award®-winning actress Faye Dunaway candidly discusses the triumphs and challenges of her illustrious career, with breakthrough, Academy Award®-nominated roles in "Bonnie & Clyde," "Chinatown," and "Network" -- for which she won Best Actress in 1977 -- while also reflecting on the film "Mommie Dearest," which she views as a critical career misstep. Through those reflections, she courageously explores personal discoveries including her struggles with mental health issues and bipolar disorder, her family history growing up in a small town in Florida, and how the intensity of the characters she played still impacts who she is today. In addition to Faye, the film features interviews with her son Liam Dunaway O'Neill, as well as her colleagues and friends including Sharon Stone, Mickey Rourke, and James Gray.

Director: Laurent Bouzereau
Producer: Laurent Bouzereau, Markus Keith, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank
Distributor: HBO
Production Co: Amblin Entertainment, HBO Documentary Films
Genre: Documentary, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 13, 2024
Runtime: 1h 31m

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