Faith of Our Fathers

What with all the films out there that are fraught with violence, sex, big-budget explosiveness, high adrenaline, many laced with a ton of four-letter words, it is refreshing to see an inspirational film that, not only tells a great story and has a meaningful message, but also has a tendency to keep us 'in check' in a humbling way. So for this offing, I give you "Faith of Our Fathers".

With the Vietnam War raging in 1969, two young fathers report for duty. A man of great faith, Steven George (Sean McGowan) and a doubtful cynic, Eddie Adams (Scott Whyte). A quarter century later in 1997, their sons, John Paul George and Wayne Adams (Kevin Downes and David A.R. White), meet as strangers. Guided by handwritten letters from their fathers from the battlefield, they embark on an unforgettable journey to The Wall--the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Along the way, in spite of the two son's inability to connect, they end up discovering the devastation of war cannot break the love a father has for his son. It all culminates later when Mansfield (Stephen Baldwin), the two father's sergeant in the war, meets both sons to 'clinch the deal' in these two seeing how important relationships really are.

Others to round out the cast are Candace Cameron Bure as Cynthia, John's fiancé, Rebecca St. James as Annie, Ryan Doom as Pvt. Shears, Chriss Anglin as Arresting Officer, David O'Donnell as Cowboy Ted, Peggy Lord Chilton as Julia, Michael Daley as Pvt. Goldstein, Brian F. Durkin as Rocky, Billoah Greene as Vietnam Soldier, Alex Huynh as NVA Captain.

This was delineated well by director Carey Scott ("Hidden Secrets" '06) plus a ton of acting. Considering he has only one other film to his directing credit, this guy knew how much emotion he was to get his actors to exude to get the importance of the message across. I'm sure he'll receive more work. It was credibly written by Harold Uhl, Kevin Downes and David A.R. White based on a story by Scott. Other than the script cranking up a bit slow, it finally redeemed itself and once it got going, it was a non-stop 'road trip/buddy movie' to beat none. Interesting connection here in that between the two fathers, as mentioned before, one had great faith and the other did not, and between the two sons, the same scenario occurs. So through their reading of their father's letters, they start to connect, albeit slowly, but this starts happening in sometimes over-the-top ways or by subtle means. And the connection here is as we connect with our fathers, it will get us to that place of connecting with God. The storyline can and does get a bit sentimental, but as the plot develops, this becomes apparently forgiving, because if we just put ourselves in the place of one of these fathers or sons, we can and probably would become as sentimental.

In the midst of all the summer hoopla with guns, bombs, sex, high adrenaline and violence in our multiplexes, it is reassuring that Hollywood hasn't forgotten about those out there that want to see something they can learn from all in a nifty story to sit back and get into.

Out of 4 Stars: 3.5                                     Rated: PG-13                                    105mins.