The American Experience Blogathon – Faith of My Fathers (2005)

This review is part of the The American Experience Blogathon being run by Debbie over at Moon in Gemini

Tnx for letting me take part!

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“Home is the sailor. Home from the sea, and the hunter home from the hill. ” – John McCain

Number of Times Seen – 1 (19 May 2021)

Brief Synopsis – After Naval flyer John McCain is shot down over Vietnam, he must endure torture by his captors while trying to stay alive in inhumane conditions.

My Take on it – Great story that unfortunately isn;t presented better.

The story of Joh McCain’s yeras as a POW in Vietnam is actually a fascinating one and he remained a model for so many for decades afterwards because of the way he turned that into something greater.

The film is presented in a far too simplistic way and that doesn’t allow for the story to feel much more powerful like it should.

The casting of Shawn Hatosy as McCain is fine, but his character isn’t the one that shines here enough.

Scott Glenn plays McCain’s father, Jack McCain and steals every scene that he appears in because of the presence that he gives his character everywhere he goes and with everyone with whom he speaks.

The film does depict the horrors of war and the attempts at diplomacy along the way.

It also shows how someone being brought up in a military family deals with making decisions for his future.

The story also allows the viewer to get a better understanding of how important family can be in these kind of situations because the memories of love can help sustain someone while going through tortures that are unfathomable to just about everyone.

They definitely are able to get across the heroism that McCain and other POW’s showed while in captivity and that helps to show the patriotism that they wore on their sleeves.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Jack McCain is played by Scott Glenn. In the film Game Change (2012), John McCain is played by Ed Harris. Glenn and Harris appeared together in The Right Stuff (1983), and have both played Sheriff Alan Pangborn in Castle Rock (2018) and Needful Things (1993). (From IMDB)

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (5/10)

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