This is a movie which shows us a completely different side of being a prisoner (of war, in this case) and a side which explains a lot about humans in captivity.You know how every once in a while you come across a news story about how some dictator in a third world is torturing the whole country and you can't help but wonder "Why don't these people rebel?". Well, Rescue Dawn will give you a clue.Going into this, I expected a lot of torture and graphic violence but to my surprise there wasn't that much of it. Sure, prisoners are tortured but not to the extent you see in other films about being a POW. The main focus of the story is the six men's daily struggle with their own minds as they rot away in the prison camp.One of the best parts is how the title of the "bad guy" changes hands throughout the story - Fellow prisoners, United States armed forces, Viet Cong, the jungle - everything and everybody is a friend at one time and foe at other.Don't expect explosions and fast paced actions scenes but if you like war movies and prison movies this is a must see!

Part war movie, part prison film, and part jungle-survival tale, Rescue Dawn tells the true story of US Navy pilot Dieter Dengler (played here by Christian Bale), who after being shot down and captured during a mission over Laos, escaped from a Vietcong prison camp and trekked hundreds of miles through the jungle before being rescued by American Helicopters.The story proceeds very quickly at first. After some mission briefings and a visit to the quartermaster's office, Dieter flies his bombing run and is promptly shot down. His efforts to evade capture succeed only briefly, and soon he is an unwilling companion to a Vietcong patrol which delivers him to a remote prison camp. Here he meets his fellow prisoners; Gene, Duane, and three South Vietnamese, all of whom were pilots for Transamerica Airlines.These men have been here for over a year- two and a half in Gene's case- and the strain of their confinement clearly shows. Gene in particular has started to come unhinged. His ramblings and delusions provide a degree of comic relieve and generate sympathy, but at the same time his fractured mental state poses a threat to Dieter's plans of escape. In his mind, the fighting will end and they'll be released any day now, as long as they behave themselves and don't try anything stupid. The contest of wills provides one of the main conflicts in the middle section of the film. But it's in the movie's second half, beginning with the escape, that things really pick up. From here on out the good guys are alone and on the run deep in enemy territory. To be caught is almost certainly to be killed.The truly inspiring thing about this movie is how Dieter never allows himself to be broken, no matter what he goes through. Given the chance to receive better treatment by signing an anti-American proclamation, he refuses. Shackled to the floor of his hut by night and given insufficient food by jailers, he encourages the others, while holding on to his determination to escape. And no matter how tired he gets, or how many setbacks he suffers on his jungle trek, he finds a way to keep pressing on.Hertzog has done a good job with the casting. Bales' intensity and his willingness to take on physically and mentally challenging roles make him an excellent choice play the lead in this film. It's not every actor who will agree claw his way through dense jungle underbrush, float through rapids, or be covered in leeches. This being a Herzog film, there are no back lot sets or computer effects when actual locations and old fashioned stunt work will do. And as always, the director captures the beauty of his jungle surroundings, even when emphasizing their inhospitableness. When you think about it, Rescue Dawn has a much in common with a survival program on the Discovery Channel as with the average 'Nam movie.Hertzog is also wise to avoid going into the larger issues surrounding the Vietnam War, neither taking a stance for, or against American policy and actions in the conflict. Such questions are beyond the scope of this story, and would only strike a moralizing tone. Although far from his best work, Rescue Dawn is a highly engaging and inspiring story of one man's unbeatable will.

How bad do you want to live? It's interesting. I see some of the negative reviews on here and I get it. I understand that everyone has an opinion. And the last time I checked, we all have the right to express that. And that' fine. But I dare say that most of the people who have given this film a negative review have more than likely never had to fight for anything in this world...especially their lives. Rescue Dawn is a movie about just that...the fight for life. And regardless of what some have said about it, it is a powerful and moving triumph about the will to survive. Christian Bale gives a performance worthy of award recognition (and unless I'm mistaken, he didn't receive much of that, if any at all, for this role). As does Steve Zahn. You can't help but become engrossed in their characters interactions with each other, and with the environment they find themselves in. I can't imagine a more difficult place to try and survive than Vietnam in the 1960s. And the obstacles they faced were as daunting as they were deadly. But, as is the case with so many who have faced life and death circumstances, they did not let it get the best of them. Even when Zahn's character makes a very abrupt and surprising exit from the film, Bale's Dieter Dengler did not let that stop him from finally finding the rescue that he had desperately been seeking for a good portion of the film. Which, in the long run, leads to a conclusion that is powerfully emotional. Indeed, it's one of the best endings I've ever seen in a film. And the fact that it is based on true events makes the movie all the more compelling. I cannot believe that it didn't receive more award recognition. Especially when there are so many films out there that do get nominated and it boggles the mind. If you are interested in stories that are real, and that are filmed in an almost documentary style that makes you feel as if you're right there in the middle of the action, then Rescue Dawn is a movie that you should not miss. And as is always the case when one reviews a film...that's just my opinion.

This movie was based on the true story of a US Navy fighter pilots struggle for survival after being shot down and captured during a mission over Laos during the Vietnam war. And considering the source material this should have been an excellent movie. Somehow though it seemed a bit cheesy at times and wound up feeling more like an episode of Locked Up Abroad, with the bad re-enactments.Steve Zahn does a great job as a fellow POW as does Jeremy Davies but Christian Bale is terrible, with the best part of his acting job being the weight loss. I also found the sound of his voice annoying particularly when he's yelling, weird I know. The ending is also too much, with the kidnapping back to the ship (Rescue Dawn) and all the rah, rah once aboard, like he's a rock star or something. So bad, I can't believe this part really happened. In all honestly I never got the feel of the 60's here either, maybe the 80's. Disappointing as a whole. 7/5/14