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Little Dieter Needs to Fly
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8.5
/10
2,088 Ratings

LITTLE DIETER NEEDS TO FLY

Directed by Werner Herzog
United Kingdom, France, 1997
Documentary
  • 7777 minutes

Synopsis

This is the unbelievable true story of Dieter Dengler, who fulfilled his life dream of becoming a fighter pilot—a dream which was shattered only a few days into his first tour of duty in the Vietnam War, when he was shot down over Laos…

Synopsis

This is the unbelievable true story of Dieter Dengler, who fulfilled his life dream of becoming a fighter pilot—a dream which was shattered only a few days into his first tour of duty in the Vietnam War, when he was shot down over Laos…

Our take

In both his docs and his features, Herzog is a director drawn to obsession, to the way madness and ecstasy can run so close together. This incredible tale of a prisoner of war is one of his finest films. And it exemplifies Herzog’s documentary M.O.: to relate life by turning it into art.