Faye Dunaway a commercial failure. In 1969, Dunaway appeared in "The Arrangement", a drama directed by Elia Kazan, based upon his novel of the same title, opposite Kirk Douglas. The film did poorly at the box office, receiving mostly negative reviews, although Dunaway was praised, with Roger Ebert writing that her acting "is not only the equal of in "Bonnie and Clyde", but is, indeed, the only good acting she has done since". Vincent Canby of "The New York Times" wrote that she was "looking so cool and elegant that the sight of her almost pinches the optic nerves". Also in 1969,
Faye Dunaway Cumming, her son Liam Dunaway O'Neill and lyric soprano Danielle de Niese (the latter two as opera students). As film roles became more difficult to find, Dunaway bought the rights to the play after the 1997 tour and announced her intention of writing, directing and starring in the film. The production however was a disaster and financing the project has been one of the many obstacles. "I want to do it my way. I'm not going to sell it out to a studio. You have to raise money. You have to get private investors and it takes a long time