Faith of My Fathers

I was feeling depressed about the future of the USA and took the afternoon off, using this movie as a break. It really inspired me. See my review of the book for all the detail that this movie fails to provide. Bottom line is that the movie does NOT do justice to McCain's captivity and honor in captivity, but for a DVD it is absolutely great and there is nothing about it that I really want to criticize. They probably could not get Henry Kissinger to dye his hair or wear a wig, the most significant thing left out of this film is that Kissinger was offered a chance to take McCain back with him, and turned it down, as he should have. Duty, Honor, Country is not just for Army officers, but for all of us. However, at this terrible time in our country's history, the movie also reminded me of the dishonor to their oaths to the Constitution that our senior generals displayed in failing to resign and protest publicly when their sound advice was ignored in the run up to the war on a web of lies from the White House, and a compliant Congress. The dishonor of the Pentagon and the White House put people like John McCain into captivity, and today the same dishonor is killing thousands of Iraqis as well as US troops who strive to "do their duty."

The bottom line is clear: if the public does not do ITS duty in protesting illegal wars and lies in place of intelligence, then we dishonor the Constitution and we dishonor the brave men and women who risk everything for their country. Shame on us, and God Bless the individuals in the Armed Forces.

On McCain, only he can come to terms with what I believe was his knowing abandonement of 1500 POWs known to be in Viet-Nam and being held for ransom. See the following three books for documented background:

Kiss the Boys Goodbye: How the United States Betrayed its Own POWs in Vietnam
An Enormous Crime: The Definitive Account of American POWs Abandoned in Southeast Asia
Is Anybody Listening?: A True Story About POW/MIAs In The Vietnam War

This movie was a very short made for cable movie, quick overview of what happened to John McCain during his tour in Vietnam. I am sure if the movie was longer it would have more details of John McCains experiences, this movie is more like an appetizer, makes you want to research more about the POW experience. The movie 'Hanoi Hilton' is much more detailed and shows the hardship these pilots had to endure.

When I heard that they were making a film adaptation of John McCain's excellent memoir "Faith of My Fathers", I was excited until I learned that it was a made for cable TV movie. Had it been an HBO or Showtime production, it might have been a whole lot better, but as is, its adequate for the job.

I'm a fan of bio-pics and think every important historical figure should have one (I'm still waiting on serious film versions of all our Founding Fathers). When I saw that this film was a rather skimpy 90 minutes, I knew that wouldn't do justice to Senator McCain's book. His lifestory is worth at least a two hour treatment. On the plus side, Sean Hatosy as John McCain was a great choice. Hatosy is fast becoming one of my favorite actors by his ability to emote perfectly with his facial expressions. Its easy to imagine a younger McCain as we watch Hatosy through the film.

Also on the plus side was the decision to not go the Mel Gibson route on the torture scenes. We get a taste of it without being made uncomfortable. However, while they spared us the details of those scenes, they also unfortunately skimped out on a lot of the Naval Academy segments that show the development of McCain's character. I wished that they would have given at least a half hour of scenes from his Naval Academy days instead of the brief few scenes we do wind up seeing. That's what made McCain the man he is, or at least part of the reason.

At any rate, its not a bad bio-pic on a great American hero. Of course, keep in mind that its not up to motion picture standards and reflects the budget of a cable TV channel. And if it leaves you wanting more, there's always John McCain's book to read and refer to for more details about his life. After I watched the film, I felt a tinge of sadness that he's not our president now. The world needs a man of his character to lead our nation in the troublesome twenty-first century.

I read the other review for this movie on this page, and I wonder if the author and I saw the same movie.

I agree that "Faith of My Fathers" did not show the full horror of what McCain went through. But it showed enough (McCain in agony from injuries that he suffered ejecting from his plane, McCain getting the hell beaten out of him by his captors, McCain getting brutally tortured). Remember, this was a made-for-TV movie, so there were limits on what could be shown (both for ratings and not to turn people's stomachs).

My quibbles are that at 90 minutes, the movie was indeed too short. There was no reference to McCain's narrow escape from a terrible fire onboard the aircraft carrier that he served on. McCain's life after his release from captivity is also missing (the movie could have been a miniseries).

"Faith of my Fathers" may not be as wrenching as "the Deer Hunter," but it's still a good movie and made me admire McCain all the more.

Arizona Senator John McCain enjoys his present day life as an influential member of the congress, leading debates on important issues and influencing legislation. He often gets into conflicts over some of his stands, but none of these can compare to the conflict McCain experienced back in the late 1960's and early 1970's. It was during this time that McCain spent several years as a Vietnam prisoner of war. This event is the subject of this movie, which is based on McCain's book of the same name.

In this film, McCain is portrayed briefly during his teenage years but the majority of the movie's time is spent either in Vietnam (inside the prison) or at McCain's military school, the U.S. Naval Academy. The movie begins by showing McCain (who is played by actor Shawn Hatosy) operating a fighter plane over Vietnam. He is shot down and has to parachute to safety; landing in water where some local Vietnamese come to his rescue and then promptly turn him over to the proper authorities. The film then alternates back and forth between scenes in the prison and flashbacks to scenes in the Naval Academy.

There is some violence in this film, but it is nothing compared to what was actually experienced. And herein lies the main problem I have with this film. The director made this movie in a very toned- down fashion so that it would be mild enough to get past the censors and be shown on television. In order to accomplish this, he had to eliminate scenes of brutal violence; profanity; and tough talk. Because of this, the movie seems very unrealistic. If you have read McCain's book by the same name, then you know that the conditions and the treatment McCain and others like him endured were horrifying. None of this comes through in this movie. It comes across as a little rough and unpleasant, but nowhere near the awful, inhumane experience that it really was.

Another problem I have with this film (which stems from the first problem) is the attitude of actor Shawn Hatosy and others who play the POW's. Hatosy's McCain character seems very bland, and rarely does he voice any concern over the nightmare he is living through. You can tell he and the others are not happy, but about the only dialogue you get is when McCain and another prisoner talk through the walls, between cells, by placing a cup to the wall. There is no intelligent dialogue, discussion of escape, feelings about the war or the captors, or anything else. This, again, makes the film seem a little unrealistic.

This movie is 90 minutes in length and it needed to be another half hour (or more) longer to give the McCain story the attention and respect it deserves. McCain's story, as told in his book, would make for a great, dramatic, and powerful Hollywood motion picture about the atrocities of war. But the way it is presented in this film, his experience seems more like a bad day on the job than the horrifying experience that it really was.

McCain, and the viewing public, deserved better.