DVD Reviews
Rescue Dawn
Posted by Kevin Carr (kevin@filmschoolrejects.com) on November 23, 2007
A film like Rescue Dawn is an unfortunate casualty of the Hollywood marketing process. Sadly, it fell through the cracks this year – not big enough to become a bona fide hit, and not released late enough for full award consideration. However, just because it has been largely forgotten by critics and audiences this year doesn’t mean it should be forgotten.
Rescue Dawn tells the true story of Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale), a pilot during Vietnam who was shot down behind enemy lines. He spent a significant amount of time in a prison camp and eventually makes an escape to freedom.
Directed by Werner Herzog, who brings plenty of credibility to the project, the biggest flaw in this film is its adherence to the original story. Unlike a traditional Hollywood movie, Rescue Dawn follows the pacing and irony of real life. It is far from predictable and far from formulaic. Rather, Herzog presents the film almost as a filmed documentary, which adds to the realism.
Still, this is commendable, especially in the overdone Hollywood playing field. Rescue Dawn is quite possibly one of the most honest movies you’ll see this year, and judging from the passion I saw from the director and actors in the special features, they don’t give a damn whether this movie makes bank or wins awards. Dieter’s story is told in a rare, honest fashion.
The DVD comes with several featurettes that chronicle the making of the film. Through the interviews, we see the commitment of the stars and its director, which gave me a newfound respect for the movie.
Grade: B
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Release Date: November 20, 2007 Rated: PG-13 Running Time: 125 minutes Number of Discs: 2 Cast: Christian Bale, Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies Director: Werner Herzog Studio: MGM Home Entertainment |
Read more articles by Kevin Carr
2 Comments
November 23rd, 2007 at 3:42 pm
“It is far from predictable”
Since it’s based on a true story, which Herzog already turned into a documentary, the events are absolutely predictable. There was no if but when he was going to escape the prison, no if but when he was going to be rescued. Some films do a great job of creating suspense when the outcome is known. This film failed in that aspect.
November 27th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
I disagree. If you’ve seen “Little Dieter”–Herzog’s documentary–then yes you know the outcome and yes you know what happens. But how many people have actually seen that film? This isn’t like knowing the Titanic will sink or that Pearl Harbor will get bombed, this is a story about the relationship between prisoners of war. It’s a character story much more than a war flick, and I don’t think Kevin means predictable as far as the events of the story but predictable in the sense that Hollywood is very conventional with its story-telling and plot development.
I can’t believe I’m sticking up for Kevin Carr here.