Farrah Fawcett was one of the sex symbols of 1970s but, like many celebrities that became famous on the account of good looks, had to struggle in order to be taken seriously as an actress. Those efforts paid off a decade later when she starred in The Burning Bed, 1984 television film directed by Robert Greenwald, resulting in the most celebrated performance of her entire career.
The plot is based on the eponymous book by Faith McNulty, which had depicted the real life case of housewife Francine Hughes (played by Fawcett). Film begins on the night of March 9th 1977 when Francine puts her three children ub the car before going back to house and pouring gasoline around the bed where her drunken husband Mickey (played by Paul Le Mat) sleeps. She lights match and drives to the nearest police station where she would confess her act. She is tried for murder and public defender Aryon Greydanus (played by Richard Masur) is assigned to represent her. At first he struggles how to find proper defence strategy but it all changes when Francine starts talking about her marriage. Through the flashbacks plot depicts how teenage Francine was seduced by charming “wild man” Mickey and soon afterwards ended being married to him. The marital bliss is short-lived because Mickey soon starts to show violent temper and begins to physically abuse her. Those incidents, additionally fuelled by Mickey’s chronic unemployment and alcoholism, escalate and after few years she divorces him. However, when Mickey suffers an accident she is talked into returning to him. Although Mickey promises that he would change his behaviour, his violent and possessive nature returns, especially after Francine decides to start going to school in order to get job and become independent.
In last decades of 20th Century network television was the most influential medium in America and television producers, writers and directors (many of whom, like Greenwald, were liberals or leftists) saw it as an excellent opportunity to shift public opinion and point to some serious issues that used to be ignored. In case of The Burning Bed the issue was domestic abuse, unpleasant and embarrassing fact often hidden behind the facade of traditional family life. This film brought that issue to tens of millions of homes by having popular television icon reduced to unglamorous, pathetic wreck forced to wear cheap clothes, suffer endless humiliation often with visible signs of terrible beatings on her face. Fawcett played this part magnificently, convincingly portraying a teenager whose fairytale romance ends as a nightmare of abusive marriage. Her character displays emotional traits that would later become textbook example of Battered Woman Syndrome and The Burning Bed played major part in popularising the concept. The script by Rose Leiman Goldemberg depicts all-too-familiar pattern of violence, short-lived reconciliation and victim’s unsuccessful attempts to escape it, which are often hampered by family, both her own and abusers’, the latter best embodied in creepy mother-in-law played by Grace Zabriskie. The Burning Bed also puts blame on the inefficient state, embodied by police and bureaucrats that fail to protect Francine ultimately leading her to see her murderous act as the only alternative.
The Burning Bed had huge impact after its premiere and some of it, at least based on reports by US media, included copycat murders between spouses and partners allegedly inspired by Francine’s act. Seen today, it doesn’t seem that impactful and it very much looks like 1980s television film, with all of its limitations. While Greenwald as director manages to make his way around modest budget and compress decade of plot into hour and half, he is less fortunate with the choice of music that often sounds at odds what is happening on screen. Due to censorship standards, some of the most horrific examples of abuse – including those that ultimately triggered Francine’s act - aren’t shown but are narrated by Francine. Character of Francine’s friend, played by Penelope Milford, that tries to talk her into doing the right thing looks like an obvious composite or screenwriting invention for the purpose of giving some sort of “normal” perspective to the events in the film. For Fawcett, who would, ironically, later in her private life suffer some of the same abuse as Francine, this was nevertheless a triumph and those who watch this film might agree that it was well deserved.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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