DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog: RESCUE DAWN

Tuesday, 22 July 2008

RESCUE DAWN


Rescue Dawn (2006) dir. Werner Herzog
Starring: Christian Bale, Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies

***1/2

“Rescue Dawn” is old-fashioned traditional filmmaking which wouldn't turn heads if it wasn't written and directed by one of cinema's most iconoclastic filmmakers - Werner Herzog. Mr. Herzog has never been one to do things the easy way. His track record is filled with wild adventures on location in some of the most remote and uncompromising places on earth. Each endeavour of his is like a different “Apocalypse Now”. He must drive his crew berserk, but the legacy of work has lasted longer than the hardships it took to create them. “Rescue Dawn” is such a film.

Herzog first filmed this story as a documentary in 1997 called “Little Dieter Needs to Fly”. This dramatic version starts out in 1965 before Vietnam was considered a full-fledged war. During this time it was a ‘Black Ops’ objective. Christian Bale plays Dieter Dangler, a pilot who is shot down flying over Laos, and taken prisoner in a POW camp. As Dieter first enters the prison, he’s surprisingly calm, perhaps expecting civil Geneva-code-approved treatment. He meets a group of other prisoners, among them, two Americans Duane (Steve Zahn) and Gene (Jeremy Davies). When he learns that they have been in the camp for over two years, Dieter quickly formulates a plan of escape.

Using his resourcefulness he devises ways to release themselves from handcuffs, hide their food and plot their escape under the noses of the guards. Ironically the major roadblock in his plan is Duane, who has delusions of being rescued miraculously and continually tries thwart Dieter’s escape. But the gang eventually does escape, which only puts them into an even more hostile environment – the Laotian jungle.

Christian Bale, as expected, delivers a great method performance. And Herzog makes things even easier for himself by casting the two great character actors, Steve Zahn and Jeremy Davies who match up perfectly as Dieter’s mentally exhausted compatriots. Davies contributes another wonderfully spacey and neurotic performance and Steve Zahn's easy-going affability provides genuine warmth and sympathy.

Knowing Werner Herzog’s track record, the biggest surprise is the film’s conventionality. After over 35 years of filmmaking "Rescue Dawn" was his first Hollywood-ish film. The plotting of events fits nicely into the grand old tradition of prison-escape films. Herzog even gives us a triumphant climax with a 1980’s freeze frame to punctuate his thoroughly satisfying and straightforward ending.

The success of “Rescue Dawn” reinforces my desire to see more avant guard filmmakers make straightforward films. I’ve always thought, at will, David Lynch could make the scariest genre horror ever made. “Rescue Dawn” proves Herzog’s innate talent for storytelling can transfer to any genre or any medium. Enjoy.



2 comments :

Big Mike Mendez said...

I actually only saw the movie recently. I really liked and was saddened by the fact that Deiter is German born, thus robbing America of the chance to elect a President who escaped a POW camp instead of rotting away in one.

I also read online about a big brouhaha concerning Gene's family and their outrage at the inaccuracies of the story and characters, but Bale and Zahn make the movie for me and you're just hoping they get rescued in time.

sexy said...

情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣,情趣,情趣,情趣,情趣,情趣,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣,情趣,A片,A片,情色,A片,A片,情色,A片,A片,情趣用品,A片,情趣用品,A片,情趣用品,a片,情趣用品

A片,A片,AV女優,色情,成人,做愛,情色,AIO,視訊聊天室,SEX,聊天室,自拍,AV,情色,成人,情色,aio,sex,成人,情色

免費A片,美女視訊,情色交友,免費AV,色情網站,辣妹視訊,美女交友,色情影片,成人影片,成人網站,H漫,18成人,成人圖片,成人漫畫,情色網,日本A片,免費A片下載,性愛

情色文學,色情A片,A片下載,色情遊戲,色情影片,色情聊天室,情色電影,免費視訊,免費視訊聊天,免費視訊聊天室,一葉情貼圖片區,情色視訊,免費成人影片,視訊交友,視訊聊天,言情小說,愛情小說,AV片,A漫,AVDVD,情色論壇,視訊美女,AV成人網,成人交友,成人電影,成人貼圖,成人小說,成人文章,成人圖片區,成人遊戲,愛情公寓,情色貼圖,色情小說,情色小說,成人論壇


情色貼圖,色情聊天室,情色視訊,情色文學,色情小說,情色小說,臺灣情色網,色情,情色電影,色情遊戲,嘟嘟情人色網,麗的色遊戲,情色論壇,色情網站,一葉情貼圖片區,做愛,性愛,美女視訊,辣妹視訊,視訊聊天室,視訊交友網,免費視訊聊天,美女交友,做愛影片

A片,A片,A片下載,做愛,成人電影,.18成人,日本A片,情色小說,情色電影,成人影城,自拍,情色論壇,成人論壇,情色貼圖,情色,免費A片,成人,成人網站,成人圖片,AV女優,成人光碟,色情,色情影片,免費A片下載,SEX,AV,色情網站,本土自拍,性愛,成人影片,情色文學,成人文章,成人圖片區,成人貼圖