Sorry I haven't been posting too much lately (imagine that) but this is one built on a promise...one I made to a gentleman interested in getting the word out on a recent (20 November) release of a Vietnam-era war film. It's a promise I've partially broken--I said I'd do it on the release date but, well, I didn't. My bad. Seriously.
Rescue Dawn is about Dieter Dengler...a German-American who served in the Navy in Vietnam and was shot down over Laos and captured, brutally treated and nearly killed but eventually regaining his freedom in a daring escape/evasion.
Full disclosure: I haven't seen the film yet.
That said, from the brief outtakes I've been sent, it doesn't appear to hew to today's Hollywood standard portrayal of America's fighting men. Unless I'm mistaken, Redacted, it is most certainly not.
Moreover, if it is a positive portrayal, I think it deserves the exposure it should get in the milblog world. If nothing else, we need a counterweight to the overwhelming crush of anti-American/anti-military/anti-anti-Islamofascist drivel that's been oozing out of Kollyfornia these days.
Notice I didn't use the term "anti-war" since that's not really what the Brian DePalmas represent...they don't mind wars where we lose...they just HATE it when they see us successfully engage the real-world version of Tolkein's Orcs. Why that is would take too long to go into.
So, if this is one of the exceptions; if it truly does "speak truth to power" against the creepy, self-loathing nihilists that seem to dominate the industry these days, I'll urge you to support it...go see it, buy the DVD, tell your friends and family and send a message, "Make crap that slimes the Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine, or he country they serve and you will bomb. Make a movie that gives a fair portrayal of what the VAST majority of American servicemen and women have done since 9/11 and you'll be living on royalties for the rest of your life. Granted, you'll guarantee that your work will be ignored by the Academy but who needs Oscar when you have Oscar's gold?"
A couple of thoughts on this film's subject:
1) Getting shot down over Laos was a Really. Bad. Thing. Only a handful of pilots ever made it out. If Vietnamese were Apaches, Laotions were Comanches in that war.
2) Surviving a crash is, well, hard. Any landing you can walk away from is by definition a good one but it depends on what you mean by "walk." Dengler was injured, in shock, in utterly inhospitable terrain and being chased by folks who may or may not have killed you before they ate you. This is a slight exaggeration, but only slight (they almost always killed before eating).
3) To not only survive, but to prevail, is a story worth telling and one worth hearing. We don't do nearly enough of that, IMHO.
4) If you're a former or current combat pilot, a story like this touches, if only the most superficial way, the depth of feeling about what we think or thought about every second we were/are preparing for and flying a mission. In other words, for someone like me, it's personal.
5) Dieter wasn't the only one who did something like this. Alas, he didn't make it, but he inspired generations of young Airmen...I hope someone makes a movie about him someday.
In any event, standby for my take on this film. I hope I can report a thumbs up. Gimme time, though...business has me in Oakland today, Anchorage tomorrow and Memphis the next day but I'll fire something off as soon as I can. If John and Bill beat me to it (should they so choose) so much the better.
Instapilot sends-
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