Little Dieter Needs to Fly

Director: Werner Herzog

IMDB: In 1966, Dieter Dengler was shot down over Laos, captured, and, down to 85 pounds, escaped. Barefoot, surviving monsoons, leeches, and machete-wielding villagers, he was rescued. Now, near 60, living on Mt. Tamalpais, Dengler tells his story: a German lad surviving Allied bombings in World War II, postwar poverty, apprenticed to a smith, beaten regularly. At 18, he emigrates and peels potatoes in the U.S. Air Force. He leaves for California and college, then enlistment in the Navy to learn to fly. A quiet man of sorrows tells his story: war, capture, harrowing conditions, escape, and miraculous rescue. Where did he find the strength; how does he now live with his memories?

BBC synopsis: Documentaries from around the world. Werner Herzog's film recreates the torture ordeal and escape of fighter pilot Dieter Dengler, shot down in Laos.

Released: 02 Oct 1998 First broadcast: 14 Nov 2007

– IMDB: 8.1
– Rotten Tomates: 93%
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