Little Dieter Needs to Fly

The story of Dieter Dengler, a German born Navy pilot who was shot down by the Viet Cong, captured, tortured, and made a daring, grueling escape. In Little Dieter Needs to Fly, Werner Herzog documents a remarkable man who relays his harrowing story, part of the time in amazing, vivid recreations that are hard hitting and take on bizarre Herzogian elements. With an eccentric, venturesome countryman it is clear to see why the director was drawn to this material (he would tell the story again with Christian Bale in Rescue Dawn) and it is further evident that he would do whatever it takes to avoid cliched, staid filmmaking, a trapping this wonderful doc could easily have fallen into.
**** out of ****