The Near Midnight Meanderings On A Movie With A Microwave Meal Part 21: Rescue Dawn (2006)

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Rescue Dawn then. A film set during the Vietnam war that begins with the bombing by the American air force on Laos to classical music. You think "well that's odd". Then the credits reveal that the director is Werner Herzog to which your mind then goes "Ah right..."

It stars Christian Bale an actor I  like but nonetheless has always the look of a man about to poison a few street cats having read a bedtime story to his kids.

So the Vietnam war and Christian Bale. You know it won't be a comedy.

Bale plays Dieter Dengler, a navy pilot  shot down and captured in Laos in 1966. It's as they say "based on a true story" and whilst some aspects I learn later have been questioned for the person watching it with a microwave meal after having done the afternoon/evening shift at work (two thumbs pointing at this guy) that doesn't really matter.

I should remark that for a man who has been just shot down and crashes with the plane Bale gets out remarkably quickly and unscathed

The Herzog influence on this movie? Well whilst there is a film score it's used sparingly and with good effect. For a lot of the film all you hear is the sound of the Laoian jungle.  Also once Bale is captured it does appear that the director is very mobile and swift as to where to suddenly go the camera swiftly moves from one part of the scene to another.. As if at a wedding and the bride suddenly starts to appear and the video swings to show their arrival after being distracted.

It's disorientating at these moments but you get it. He has been captured. Suddenly everything is not what it was. Everything is different now.

Eventually Bale gets sent to a Prisoner of War camp. Not that it has that many people in it. Of course the life there is no holiday. The life there is obviously no holiday camp. The lack of food, the behaviour of your captors and that mentally you're not all there either.

There is a further plot twist which I won't go into. But for those who don't know the story or seen the film it does make it interesting. However whittled down in terms of storyline only this does seem to be a very odd choice of film for Herzog to make based on his other work. In other words plot wise it really is just a glorified made for TV movie.

But it is glorified.

The direction is impressive. You feel both agoraphobic and claustrophobic as the events unfold. Equally there is full use of the scenery. It is literally a jungle out there. Also I will never claim to be an expert on Laotian jungles in a state of war in the nineteen seventies but it certainly gave the impression of being realistic.

But ultimately though he has able assistance from the rest of the cast  (notably Steve Zahn) this film is above the pack because Christian Bale does what Christian Bale always does which is to carry a film should he need to. In every respect you believe he has changed from the smug navy pilot at the start of the movie to a Prisoner of War living off meagre rations.

He is the one whose focus you turn to.

He is the one who makes this film ultimately worth watching.

Until the next time.