Faith of My Fathers
"It's all about character," Jack McCain says to son John on his first day at Annapolis Naval Academy. Based on John McCain's autobiography, A&E;’sFaith of Our Fatherstraces the senator's character-building journey from pilot to POW to war hero. Shawn Hatosy (Soldier's Girl) is John and Scott Glenn (The Right Stuff) is his four-star admiral father. The story begins in 1967 when the younger man is shot down over North Vietnam, tortured, and hospitalized--only to be tortured again. Then it flashes back to 1953 as he takes his initial steps towards a military career and life with first wife Carol (Erin Cottrell). The made-for-TV movie continues to alternate between Annapolis and Vietnam's Hanoi Hilton. The story ends after McCain is released in 1973. Although his part often feels underwritten, Hatosy shines as a man who, like his father before him, would not betray his country at any cost.--Kathleen C. Fennessy