Werner Herzog's fictional re-enactment of Dieter Dengler's experience in the Vietnam war (See: Little Deiter Needs to Fly review).
From watching Herzog's documentary on Dengler Rescue Dawn felt very faithful, despite missing out several events such as the fact that Dengler was held captive twice and not just once as shown in the film and the incident concerning his wedding ring which he retells in the documentary. There has also been debate to the accuracy concerning Herzogs depiction of Eugene. However my only complaint, if any, is the simple fact that Dengler (played by Christian Bale) is lacking a German accent. Dengler was born in Germany and left for America at the age of 19 and retained an accent after nearly 40 years. In Rescue Dawn, Bale has a straight forward American accent which may imply that he came to America much sooner.
What is fascinating about the film is what has been pulled from the original documentary, the anecdotes and tidbits of information that pop up such as how the Vietcong's made fire which Dengler demonstrated himself.
Even despite want is going on the locations look stunningly beautiful. At times the camera would be used hand held, following characters much like in Herzogs documentaries giving the film what seems like an added dimension.
Overall I enjoyed the film a lot and feel that watching Little Dieter... first gives off a much better understanding even if it takes away any surprises (which is besides the point). Compared to other war films I have appraoched this one different, it has felt more like a worthwhile education then entertainment.
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