Moment of Truth the Other Mother

 ((Mon. (17), 9-11 p.m., NBC))

By JOHN P. MCCARTHY

Filmed in British Columbia by O'Hara Horowitz Prods. Executive producers, Lawrence Horowitz, Michael O'Hara; producer, Michelle MacLaren; co-producer, Kathryn McArdle; director, Bethany Rooney; writer, Steven Loring; based on the book by Carol Schaefer.
 
Cast:Frances Fisher, Deborah May, Corrie Clark, Cameron Bancroft, Gwynyth Walsh, Joy Coghill, Graham Beckel, Myles Ferguson, Greg Smith, Colleen Winton, Kevin McNulty, Kavan Smith, Michelle Goodyer, Malcolm Stewart, Lossen Chambers, Gabrielle Miller, Jennifer Copping, Gillian Barber, Sarah Sawatsky, Jan D'Arcy, Denalda Williams, Andrew Wheeler.
 

The heroine of this melodrama, presented under NBC's "Moment of Truth" franchise banner, has just gone through a divorce and is battling cancer. But never mind that -- her real problem is guilt over a son she gave up for adoption 18 years earlier. Despite its formula trappings, "The Other Mother" is affecting at times, pushing every button connected with the adoption issue.

Frances Fisher portrays Carol Schaefer, a middle-aged divorcee with two young sons who decides to find the boy she gave away after her high school beau got his way at the local make-out spot.

Her mother (Deborah May) stowed her in a home for unwed mothers run by nuns to avoid publicly shaming the family.

Carol, who doesn't go about her search diplomatically, meets with resistance. Her ex-husband thinks she's neglecting her two children. She responds -- quoting from some television movie manual -- that she can't give up on her first son again.

The serious tension is between Carol and her rigid mother, and feelings of self-recrimination and resentment are unearthed.

The flashbacks to her teenage ordeal are the best part of the piece. The transitions are unobtrusive, thanks to editor Leslie Dennis, and Bethany Rooney's sensitive direction makes for some vivid and understated moments. Everything comes off realistically.

Fisher acquits herself well enough, bringing a certain frazzled edge and sensuality to the part. The meeting between mother and long-lost son plays more like a lover's reunion. Supporting cast provides solid perfs -- especially Corrie Clark as the young Carol.

While the telepic reflects some progress in the Catholic church's position on premarital sex, it also takes easy shots; some may find it mildly anti-Catholic.

Steven Loring's script lacks a novel slant that would offer more than a superficial look at the issue. In particular, pic fails to address the question of whether it's too disruptive for a birth mother to seek out her child, or vice versa.

Camera, Laszlo George; editor, Leslie Dennis; production designer, Michael Nemirsky; sound, Frank Griffiths; music, Mark Snow.