Note: For a plot synopsis, see my review of Little Dieter Needs to Fly.
Werner Herzog is an obsessed man. We all know that. What is strange is that he seems to be obsessed with the story of Dieter Dengler, the subject of Rescue Dawn, who as Herzog protagonist goal, is among the most normal. His goal is pretty reasonable- to escape from the Vietnamese prison camp he's being held in. That's fairly reasonable in my book, and the fictionalized Dengler of Rescue Dawn seems even more normal than the real subject that we meant in Herzog's documentary Little Dieter Needs To Fly. Dengler has made such an impression on Herzog that he's become one of the very few major director to remake his own film.
When this happens, the inentivable question is "Which one is better?" Although both are three star movies, I think that Rescue Dawn slightly edges out the documentary because it's more immediate. Instead of the real Dengler tellings us what the experience was like, Herzog can show us, and I know from seeing the document that the new movie is mostly accurate.
Although we have seen a lot of the movie before in other Vietnam and POW movies, there are some scenes that are really disturbing. For me it was the absolutely inhuman way the prisoners are handcuffed together at night. The claustrophobia is overwhelming. There is also the scene where the soldiers are served larve for dinner, simply because there is no other food. Does this scene go for a cheap shot? No, I don't think so. It's disgusting, all right, but then again, living in that camp must have been disgusting.
Long time Herzog viewers may be surprised at the movie's pace- aside from a brief prologue, there is little of the long, contemplative shots of nature the director is famous for. Although there is some fine location photography in Thailand, the movie is not so much of a mood piece as opposed to an actual, semi-commercial war movie.
That's not bad, exactly, but the film's main drawback is that it is not as much of a character study as it needs to be. It is moving to watch the prisoners bond during their hellish torture, but it would have been even more moving if what could understand what they were thinking about, or their psychological motivation. We focus more on what happens as opposed who it happens to. The acting is not a problem. Although Christian Bale doesn't look much like Dengler, he obviously studied videos of the real subject and has captured his mannerisms and speech patterns- it's an impressive performance that few who haven't seen the documentary will probably appreciate. Steve Zahn is so good in his showy role as Dengler's best friend that he might get an Oscar nomination out of it.
So this, like its predecessor, is a good movie about an interesting subject, but I can't help but have the feeling that there was a great movie that should have been made from this material. A story of survival is impressive, yes, but I still want to know- how did Dieter adapt when he got out of the jungle?
Rescue Dawn (2006)