Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997)

Directed by

Werner Herzog

Genre

documentary film, docudrama

Country

Germany, United Kingdom

Runtime

1h 20m

Rating

7.5 of 10 from 97 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary tells the true story of Dieter Dengler, a German-born American pilot who was shot down over Laos during the Vietnam War. It recounts his capture, his time in a prisoner of war camp, and his eventual escape and rescue through the jungle.

matter-of-facttenseresilientharrowingamazingpersonalmeasuredsurreal

What happens

Little Dieter Needs to Fly (German: Flucht aus Laos, lit. 'Escape from Laos') is a 1997 German-British-French documentary film written and directed by Werner Herzog, produced by Werner Herzog Filmproduktion, and premiered on German television. The film follows the life of Dieter Dengler, in particular being shot down during the Vietnam War and his capture, imprisonment, escape, and rescue. Herzog went on to direct a dramatized version of the story, Rescue Dawn, which stars Christian Bale as Dengler in 2006. Little Dieter Needs to Fly was released on DVD in 1998 by Anchor Bay, and on Blu-Ray in 2014 by Shout! Factory as a part of a larger collection of Herzog's films. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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