Boone on "Dawn"

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"I went to a screening of Werner Herzog's Rescue Dawn fighting off one of those desperately lonely, uncertain states we all find ourselves in at times. Two hours later, I came out of the theater flying, simply too in love with life to fret over some ground-level personal nonsense. Herzog's film about torture and starvation is the feel-good movie of the summer." --from Steven Boone's review on Matt Zoller Seitz's "House Next Door" site.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on June 23, 2007 at 9:22 AM

comment #1

BurmaShave says ...

This is my most anticipated film, but I can't help but be suspicious they're going to pull the rug out from under me again. This thing has had more release dates thatn Chinest Democracy.

Wouldn't it be weird if our Best Actor (Bale) and Best Actress (Jolie) had emerged by the end of July?

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 9:47 AM

comment #2

bagelfilm says ...

The Munich Film Festival has began last night. It has what is called the most complete retrospective of his work with some 50 films, including rare shorts from the early 1960s untill Rescue Dawn. Herzog was attending the opening gala, but he was very rude and unfriendly to everyone who dared to approach him. I am very curious.

Posted by bagelfilm at June 23, 2007 10:19 AM

comment #3

BurmaShave says ...

I mean this with respect and affection, but just how rude does someone have to be to be considered rude and unfriendly in Germany?

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 10:39 AM

comment #4

JD says ...

Last summer, Jeff posted an item claiming this film was unreleasable (whoever gave you that tip should be severely chastised, Jeff). With my expectations lowered, I was completely blown away when I finally saw Rescue Dawn at the Toronto Film Festival. With the exception of an unforgivably awful finale, this may be Herzog's best film to date.

Posted by JD at June 23, 2007 11:02 AM

comment #5

erniesouchak says ...

This is one of the best I've seen in a long while. "Fill what is empty. Empty what is full."

Posted by erniesouchak at June 23, 2007 1:09 PM

comment #6

James Leer says ...

Seriously. That last scene. So bad.

Posted by James Leer at June 23, 2007 1:42 PM

comment #7

BurmaShave says ...

Is it like L.A. CONFIDENTIAL finale bad, as in a minor letdown, or actually bad?

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 1:46 PM

comment #8

erniesouchak says ...

I didn't think it was bad at all, actually. Maybe it's me....

Posted by erniesouchak at June 23, 2007 2:07 PM

comment #9

JD says ...

It's really bad. You think the character has undergone a harrowing, life-altering experience, only to find that nothing has changed and the events in the movie have had no impact on his psyche. It makes everything that came before less meaningful and sucks the thematic weight out of the film. Then again, I've heard that this ending was forced on Herzog and it may have changed since last year due to the mix of favorable reviews for the film and negative reviews for the ending.

Posted by JD at June 23, 2007 3:07 PM

comment #10

bmcintire says ...

I don't know what version was shown last year, but I saw what was finally decided on as an acceptable PG-13 cut (thus the many, many delays), and I didn't feel at all suckered by the ending. THAT is Dieter. And as I've said before, as a non flag-waving audience member, I was left with serious lump in my throat at the end. Surprising for Herzog, but not if you've seen LITTLE DIETER NEEDS TO FLY.

Posted by bmcintire at June 23, 2007 3:17 PM

comment #11

erniesouchak says ...

Yes, Dengler struck me (in "Little Dieter" and "Rescue Dawn") as one of those weird cock-eyed optimists. It's not someone I can relate to, but there are people like that out there, and maybe only someone like that could have survived what he survived.

Posted by erniesouchak at June 23, 2007 3:26 PM

comment #12

JD says ...

It's not a question of him being patriotic or optimistic. I have no problem with that, but that's not what the rest of the movie's about. It's about survival, friendship, bravery, poverty, hardship, etc. and then it just abruptly abandons all of that. At the very least, his big speech could have hinted at his sense of loss, even if he is ultimately upbeat. It just seems puzzling -- and dramatically wrong -- that a guy could go through all that and come out with such a shallow, empty response. It makes the film feel shallow and empty, as a result. Not the feeling I had coming away from Little Dieter at all.

Posted by JD at June 23, 2007 3:48 PM

comment #13

bagelfilm says ...

@ burmashave:

very funny. Herzog was quoted in a paper as having said: "I do not know those people. I do not want to know them. I do not care." He was refering to audience members trying to speak to him.

btw: next time an obsese American tourist asks me for the direction to Hofbrauhaus I will take revenge on him, courtesy of burmashave.

Posted by bagelfilm at June 23, 2007 10:58 PM

comment #14