• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
        • Sports News
        • Official Clergy Assignments
        • Schools News
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Question Corner
          • George Weigel
          • Elizabeth Scalia
          • Michael R. Heinlein
          • Effie Caldarola
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Mark Viviano
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie & Television Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
        • Recipes
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • CR Media platforms
        • Electronic Edition
  • Advertising
  • Shop
        • Purchase Photos
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • Magazine Subscriptions
        • Archdiocesan Directory
  • CR Radio
        • CR Radio
        • Protagonistas de Fe
  • News Tips
  • Subscribe
Devotion 1: Jonathan Majors, left, as Jessie Brown and Glen Powell as Tom Hudner in “Devotion.” (Courtesy of Sony Pictures)

Movie Review: ‘Devotion’

December 7, 2022
By John Mulderig
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Feature, Movie & Television Reviews

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

NEW YORK – In 1948, President Harry Truman issued an executive order ending segregation in the armed forces. It was, obviously, a salutary advance. Yet, by the time the conflict in Korea broke out two years later, racial animus had hardly disappeared from the American military.

That was the difficult milieu within which Jesse L. Brown grappled his way to a singular achievement, becoming the U.S. Navy’s first African American fighter pilot. Jonathan Majors portrays Brown in the war epic “Devotion” (Sony), a film that chronicles both the travails the flyer faced and his partnership with fellow aviator Tom Hudner (Glen Powell).

As depicted in director J. D. Dillard’s adaptation of Adam Makos’ 2015 book – written for the screen by Jake Crane and Jonathan A. H. Stewart – Brown is a complex figure. Having developed a thick skin, he’s wary of laidback Hudner’s ostensible friendliness. But at home with his fun-loving wife Daisy (Christina Jackson) and their young daughter, Brown is a dedicated husband and contented family man.

The script devotes too much time to low-key exposition, though this is paced by scenes in the sky that are, by turns, lyrical and dizzying. As Brown comes to grips with the many challenges he faces, moreover, Majors’ performance has moments of great intensity. And the heroic payoff, when it comes, is stirring.

The movie’s educational value in recounting an important epoch in the long struggle to overcome racism offsets the salty sailor’s talk that sometimes crops up in the dialogue. So, parents of older teens interested in Brown’s story may feel comfortable giving them the nod.

Look for: Prejudice-vanquishing friendship and altruism.

Look out for: Stylized but harsh combat violence, a few instances each of profanity and milder swearing, occasional crude and crass language and an obscene gesture.

The Catholic Moviegoer’s guidance is M – suitable for mature viewers. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG-13 – parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Read More Movie & Television Reviews

Movie Review: ‘Another Simple Favor’

Movie Review: The Legend of Ochi

Conclaves on screen

Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on horizon

Pope Francis on Film

Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on horizon

Copyright © 2022 Catholic Review Media

Print Print

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

Primary Sidebar

John Mulderig

Formerly a staff member for Catholic News Service, John Mulderig has been reviewing visual media from a Catholic perspective for 15 years. His column is syndicated by Catholic Review Media. Follow his reviews on Twitter @CatholicMovie.

View all posts from this author

For the latest news delivered twice a week via email or text message, sign up to receive our free enewsletter.

| MOST POPULAR |

  • Chicago native Cardinal Prevost elected pope, takes name Leo XIV

  • Who was Pope Leo XIII, the father of social doctrine?

  • Full text of first public homily of Pope Leo XIV

  • Advocates of abuse victims are rooting for a Filipino pope — and it’s not Cardinal Tagle

  • Archbishop Lori surprised, heartened by selection of American pope

| CURRENT EDITION |

| Remembering Pope Francis |

Radio Interview: Meet the Mount St. Mary’s graduate who served as a lector at papal funeral

Georgetown’s final ‘Francis Factor’ panel remembers late pope’s legacy

Francis’ final gift to Gaza: Popemobile will be transformed into mobile clinic for children

Final preparations, discussions underway before conclave begins

Over 12 years, Pope Francis made a significant impact on the church’s liturgical life

| Vatican News |

Angelicum rector: Pope’s election ‘greatest mercy God has ever shown on Catholic Church in America’

Pope pledges strengthened dialogue with Jews

‘He’s always been a brother to us’: Villanova Augustinian prior reflects on future Pope Leo XIV

Who is St. Augustine, the father of Pope Leo XIV’s order?

Who are the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV’s order?

| Catholic Review Radio |

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

| Movie & Television Reviews |

Movie Review: ‘Another Simple Favor’

Movie Review: The Legend of Ochi

Conclaves on screen

Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on horizon

Pope Francis on Film

| En español |

El cardenal Prevost, misionero de EEUU, es elegido Papa y toma el nombre de León XIV

Invocando al Espíritu Santo y la intercesión de todos los santos, los cardenales inician el cónclave

Rev. Cristóbal Fones, SJ: “Los jóvenes tienen un mensaje y un bien que dar a la sociedad”

Los pobres y los poderosos rezan por el eterno descanso de un Papa ‘con un corazón abierto’

Pastor mundial: De palabra y obra, el Papa predicó la misericordia y la solidaridad

Footer

Our Vision

Real Life. Real Faith. 

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • Angelicum rector: Pope’s election ‘greatest mercy God has ever shown on Catholic Church in America’
  • Planned Parenthood annual report shows abortions, public funding up after Dobbs
  • Pope pledges strengthened dialogue with Jews
  • ‘He’s always been a brother to us’: Villanova Augustinian prior reflects on future Pope Leo XIV
  • Who is St. Augustine, the father of Pope Leo XIV’s order?
  • Report: Catholic Church’s economic benefit to Minnesota is more than $5 billion annually
  • Catholic Charities tasked with Afrikaner refugees as Trump administration keeps others in limbo
  • Trump signs executive order demanding drug manufacturers lower U.S. prices
  • Who are the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV’s order?

Search

Membership

Catholic Media Assocation

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2025 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED