“The most REAL & RAW film of 2020 thus far! Director Amy Jo Johnson brings out the best performance of Felicity Huffman’s career in TAMMY’S ALWAYS DYING! Kathy Kaiser, Matineechat.com
TAMMY’S ALWAYS DYING – Drama – Released on Digital May 1, 2020
DIRECTOR: Amy Jo Johnson
WRITER: Joanne Sarazen
STARRING: Felicity Huffman, Anastasia Phillips, Clark Johnson, Lauren Holly and Aaron Ashmore
As we meet a Mother/Daughter tag team of total disfunction, and despair, Mother Tammy MacDonald (Felicity Huffman), is hell bent on destroying her life the end of each month when her welfare check is gone, thus giving her the sense yet again, there is no point on carrying on…
But, as luck would have it, Tammy’s daughter Catherine MacDonald, a.k.a. Cathy (Anastasia Phillips) is once again there to talk Tammy off the ledge ~ literally ~ keeping her roller-coaster of a life together for another month of craziness…
As Cathy longs to change her life into any type of “normalcy” she can find, Tammy is diagnosed with terminal cancer, rocking both their worlds, so Cathy makes the crushy decision to move back into her Mother’s home to take care of her, the best way she knows how.
And with this untimely turn of events in Cathy’s life, she now, more than ever, longs to rid her life of the chaos that is her mother, as she stumbles across a talk-show, with the mistress of deception, Ilana Wisman (Lauren Holly) at the helm, who manages to lure Cathy into her realm of deceit, offering to share Cathy’s demented life story with the viewers, with of course, a big pay-day at the end.
Now, caught between making herself a better life, or selling out to share her life’s story with the world, Cathy must face the harsh reality that living life without her mother in it, may not end up being the life she’s always dreamed of…
I give TAMMY’S ALWAYS DYING a rating of MUST SEE ON YOUR SMALL SCREEN! Popping on Digital on May 1st on Amazon Prime, TAMMY’S ALWAYS DYING is one of those rare films, that brings so much truth, and dysfunctional reality to the screen, you can’t help but be drawn into its chaotic realism, and profoundly touching storyline. Felicity Huffman is superb, giving an Oscar worthy performance throughout every inch of this fabulous film! I just hope that without this film getting the theatrical release that it deserved, that her incredible performance doesn’t get over-looked come Awards season, as this truly is the performance of her career, playing the psychotic alcoholic mother, hell bent on living out a life of drama, at her daughters expense. Anastasia Phillips gives a note-worthy performance as well opposite Huffman, trying to save herself from the harsh reality of being sucked up into the demented world she has been forced to endure her whole life, at the hands of her own mother. Kudos to Director Amy Jo Johnson too, as she has managed to create a theatrical masterpiece that is poignant, yet touching the whole way through, as you find yourself sinking into the harsh realities of everything being portrayed on screen. TAMMY’s ALWAYS DYING is truly one of those rare films where you realize that even if this isn’t your own life playing out on screen, we all know someone that lives this type of constant dysfunction, thus bringing you a feeling of deep connection to this storyline, and these truly exceptional performances. Suffice to say that this film isn’t exactly a “pick me up” per se, but it’s totally worth the price of admission to catch it on Amazon, as you don’t want to miss this perfectly crafted independent film, even on your smaller screen at home!
MATINEE CHAT with Kathy Kaiser 