comment #1

actionman says ...

a film in Antarctica!?!?! more details please!!

so annoying that Rescue Dawn has been delayed...yet again...

comment #2

bmcintire says ...

It's all about agreeing on a PG-13 cut. Saw this a few days ago (and still don't know if it was an R or PG-13 version). Brilliant.

comment #3

Nick29 says ...

I was hoping they'd put it out the last weekend in April and have it cling to one screen at the mega plexes all thru May, something to wash the bad taste out of my mouth after I give my money to flicks that I know aren't good for me but I just can't help it.

comment #4

drgogol says ...

Make of this what you will:

There was a one-off cast/crew-type screening of "Rescue Dawn" in Portland in late fall/early winter 2006 (as I recall, dimly, the explanation was that one of the producers had a local connection); the Oregonian was invited.

Then in February the film was included in the Portland International Film Festival and slated for a press screening. A few days prior, though, the press screening was scuttled, with the explanation that the film would be recut for commercial release and that was what they wanted us to see. *That* in-between cut (no idea if it was the same that had played here earlier) *did* play at least once to general audiences at the festival. We ran a mixed-to-positive review of it based on the prior screening, noting in the review that the film may have been re-cut since then; nobody at the distributor barked.

So......

Shawn Levy

comment #5

OddDuck says ...

Did anyone notice that Cobra Verde, which apparently never had an official theatrical release in the U.S., is premiering tomorrow in NY? A.O. Scott reviews it for tomorrow's paper (online now though). His last paragraph:
"Watching �Cobra Verde,� you feel at times that Mr. Herzog, like a figure out of Joseph Conrad, is in danger of losing his way, or even his mind. His eye, however, never deserts him, and the final third of this film contains sequences of horrifying sublimity and ethereal beauty, moments that have a clarity and power beyond the reach of reason."

comment #6

Ju-osh says ...

Is there any CG used in this film?

comment #7

JeffGP says ...

I saw whatever cut of RESCUE DAWN in Toronto last year. It would have been the best movie of the year, if it were released. This year, it, again, is likely to hold that torch (even with all of the awesomeness that has transpired, BLACK BOOK, WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY). Subtle, overwhelming emotional beauty. Akin to the experience of watching say, THE NEW WORLD.

comment #8

carla kolchak says ...

Well, JeffGP, I saw it in Toronto too, and I was deeply disappointed with it. I thought the tone was awkward, the script lame, and the performances were cringe-worthy. And I am a huuuuuge Herzog fan. What impressed you so much about it?

comment #9

JeffGP says ...

First and foremost the tone impressed me. Similarly to Black Book it presents the story first and tone comes from that. Rather than stating "THIS IS IMPORTANT" it is just allowed to be and carries a sense of discovery (hence the comparison to The New World). Bale's performance is remarkably soulful and Dieter carries the essence of the great things about humanity. His will and spirit are an inspiration in the most Herzog way possible. And it's true, it is the most mainstream least "Herzog" movie style-wise, but the themes are there and the ending unleashed a flood of emotion.

comment #10

erniesouchak says ...

One of the great things about Rescue Dawn, which I saw in December (not sure which cut that was), is the way Herzog sets up certain situations and/or conflicts and then totally confounds your expectations as to how they'll play out. I love him for it. For example, there's a guard in the POW camp who (we are told) is renowned for his sadism. Of course, you expect there to be some sort of showdown between him and Bale, a brutal torture scene, etc., but there is no such thing. Similarly, you think the escape attempt will unfold one way, but it unfolds in another. Some might say this is Herzog's most conventional film, but he still finds unconventional ways to go about it. Incidentally, I just came from the "Nosferatu" screening at the Aero, and during the Q&A Herzog said his Antartica film "has hardly any penguins." Then he went on to make baffling remarks about astronauts, time travel and the South Pole. Whatever -- I'm there. He also mentioned he has a role in Harmony Korine's next jerkoff (my word, not his, alas) -- he plays a fanatical missionary.

comment #11

The Movie Man says ...

You know guys 2007 is looking pretty damn good: Verhoeven has evidently made a comeback (can't wait), Coppola is returning, Herzog has at least one, maybe two films in the pipeline, Paul Thomas Anderson has returned, the Coen Bros. have something that sounds very promising. Hell frigging yeah!

comment #12

aussieanywhere says ...

the release of RESCUE DAWN was bumped out of late April in Australia quite recently. The local distributor intimated that this was being done as a result of some kind of presentation at Cannes. Given the premiere in Toronto back in September 2006 that seems unlikely to me, unless perhaps it's part of a Herzog tribute. But it could have also been a cover excuse for a recut (by MGM?)

for what it's worth i thought the first hour of the film was fairly awful, but it was redeemed by the climactic escape.

Jeff - see what MGM have to say about Cannes?

comment #13

carla kolchak says ...

Hmm. Remarkable how differently two people can see a film, eh, JeffGP? The tonal shifts felt awkward to me. And I thought the screenplay was utterly superficial, giving Bale little to work with when it came to developing his character. I certainly didn’t catch any sight of the soulfulness you refer to in his performance. Thus, I never really developed any empathy for him (in contrast to my reaction to Dengler in Herzog’s documentary—which is one of my favourite Herzog documentaries). And I cared even less for his prison-mates (and found Jeremy Davies’ performance one of the most annoying I’ve seen in a long time). After the screening, Herzog admonished us to not compare it to his documentary. I have always wondered if he didn’t want us to “compare” it to Little Dieter Needs To Fly because he knew it would fall short (for some of us, anyway!)…

comment #14

carla kolchak says ...

Sorry 'bout that. The special characters were not visible in the preview. :-S

comment #15

christian says ...

remember, this is the man who ate his shoe for les blank and made a disturbing film about amoral dwarves on a farm. consistency not his MO.

comment #16

TheJeff says ...

I saw Rescue Dawn at the U.S. premiere in Denver last year, and I have mixed feelings about it. I think that it is Herzog's most accessible narrative film. It's something of a crowd-pleaser, with all of the pros and cons that come with that label. Christian Bale's performance is bound to be recognized, and Steve Zahn is decidedly non-annoying and downright unZahnian. It has a crackerjack second act (ohmygod I'm Peter Travers) that takes place entirely in a Laotian P.O.W. camp. Herzog must be mellowing with age, as this is the most pro-America, pro-triumphofthehumanspirit film I've seen in a long time. The finale unspooled a bit too quickly for me with a series of events that strained credulity, and a final shot that would suit Norma Rae far better than Little Dieter.

The film is far from the disaster that had been predicted. It is beautifully shot and edited, even if the pacing doesn’t feel quite right at the end. I'm not sure where the bad early buzz was coming from. The film is nothing if not coherent, and should be Herzog's most popular with mainstream American audiences.