Released in late 2006-2007, "Rescue Dawn" is based on the true story of German-American Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale) who was shot down in February, 1966, during a Vietnam bombing mission. He was held in a Laotian prison camp with several other prisoners, including Duane Martin and Gene DeBruin (Steve Zahn and Jeremy Davies), before attempting to escape the following Summer.
Directed by the famous German auteur, Werner Herzog, known for cult hits like 1972's "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" and 1982's "Fitzcarraldo," "Rescue Dawn" has a somewhat artsy air compared to more conventional Vietnam War flicks, like 1986' "Platoon" and 1989's "Casualties of War," which isn't to say it's a better viewing experience than "Platoon," but it's about as good as the other one. In any case, it lacked the mega-budget of those blockbusters. It was shot in the jungles of Thailand in 44 days and things got ugly when the producer couldn't pay the crew for lack of funds.
I'll be honest with you, during the first hour I was taken aback by what struck me as bad acting on Bale's part, like his smiling and comedic words at the absolute wrong time. It just didn't ring true, but then I saw that it was intentional, particularly after watching the "Making Of" featurettes on the DVD, which show that Dieter was a weirdly obsessed guy who absolutely refused to give up. It was his naïve-yet-unshakable optimism and iron-will that got him out of his jungle hell. The director would know more about the real Dengler since he made a documentary of his POW travails in 1997, "Little Dieter Needs to Fly." After watching clips from that film you'll realize that Bale's performance isn't far from the truth. Dieter always had this perpetual smile and weird sense of humor that either annoyed people or endeared them. So the performance is SUPPOSED to be eccentric. Besides, there's more than a hint of black comedy in the movie because the situation for American POWs was nigh surrealistically absurd.
The movie has been severely criticized by members of the families of Gene DeBruin and Phisit Intharathat, the latter being the only other survivor of the group, a Thai. Herzog acknowledged that DeBruin acted heroically during his imprisonment, refusing to leave while some sick prisoners remained, but claimed to be unaware of this until after the film had been completed. He said that this angle would've probably been included in the story had he learned it earlier. However, the DeBruin family said that Herzog was not interested in speaking with them prior to the film being completed. For me personally, I didn't think Debruin was portrayed THAT badly. The way he's depicted is simply the result of his being incarcerated in a primitive jungle prison for two years BEFORE Dengler arrived. The latter was "only" there for five months before attempting to escape.
A critic referred to "Rescue Dawn" as "One Flew Over the Bamboo Hut" on the grounds that it's essentially a war version of 1975's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Like that movie, "Rescue Dawn" depicts a group of average men who were a little off BEFORE undergoing involuntary imprisonment. While Dieter (Bale) refuses to be locked down and is constantly trying to keep his mental skills sharp through humor and plotting, some of the other POWs are increasingly becoming lost in their own minds, which then sets up its own impenetrable walls. The fact that "Rescue Dawn" is based on a true story where the ending is known doesn't prevent it from being a quality jungle survival drama. Please take note because this isn't a war action film, although there's some of that; it's a survival drama. In any case, unlike "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" where the protagonist flew over the cuckoo's nest and disappeared forever, this movie offers hope. One flew over the bamboo hut, fell in for a while, but makes it out!
The film runs 120 minutes.
GRADE: B
Directed by the famous German auteur, Werner Herzog, known for cult hits like 1972's "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" and 1982's "Fitzcarraldo," "Rescue Dawn" has a somewhat artsy air compared to more conventional Vietnam War flicks, like 1986' "Platoon" and 1989's "Casualties of War," which isn't to say it's a better viewing experience than "Platoon," but it's about as good as the other one. In any case, it lacked the mega-budget of those blockbusters. It was shot in the jungles of Thailand in 44 days and things got ugly when the producer couldn't pay the crew for lack of funds.
I'll be honest with you, during the first hour I was taken aback by what struck me as bad acting on Bale's part, like his smiling and comedic words at the absolute wrong time. It just didn't ring true, but then I saw that it was intentional, particularly after watching the "Making Of" featurettes on the DVD, which show that Dieter was a weirdly obsessed guy who absolutely refused to give up. It was his naïve-yet-unshakable optimism and iron-will that got him out of his jungle hell. The director would know more about the real Dengler since he made a documentary of his POW travails in 1997, "Little Dieter Needs to Fly." After watching clips from that film you'll realize that Bale's performance isn't far from the truth. Dieter always had this perpetual smile and weird sense of humor that either annoyed people or endeared them. So the performance is SUPPOSED to be eccentric. Besides, there's more than a hint of black comedy in the movie because the situation for American POWs was nigh surrealistically absurd.
The movie has been severely criticized by members of the families of Gene DeBruin and Phisit Intharathat, the latter being the only other survivor of the group, a Thai. Herzog acknowledged that DeBruin acted heroically during his imprisonment, refusing to leave while some sick prisoners remained, but claimed to be unaware of this until after the film had been completed. He said that this angle would've probably been included in the story had he learned it earlier. However, the DeBruin family said that Herzog was not interested in speaking with them prior to the film being completed. For me personally, I didn't think Debruin was portrayed THAT badly. The way he's depicted is simply the result of his being incarcerated in a primitive jungle prison for two years BEFORE Dengler arrived. The latter was "only" there for five months before attempting to escape.
A critic referred to "Rescue Dawn" as "One Flew Over the Bamboo Hut" on the grounds that it's essentially a war version of 1975's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Like that movie, "Rescue Dawn" depicts a group of average men who were a little off BEFORE undergoing involuntary imprisonment. While Dieter (Bale) refuses to be locked down and is constantly trying to keep his mental skills sharp through humor and plotting, some of the other POWs are increasingly becoming lost in their own minds, which then sets up its own impenetrable walls. The fact that "Rescue Dawn" is based on a true story where the ending is known doesn't prevent it from being a quality jungle survival drama. Please take note because this isn't a war action film, although there's some of that; it's a survival drama. In any case, unlike "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" where the protagonist flew over the cuckoo's nest and disappeared forever, this movie offers hope. One flew over the bamboo hut, fell in for a while, but makes it out!
The film runs 120 minutes.
GRADE: B