Rescue Dawn is a 2006 epic war drama film written and directed by Werner Herzog, based on the true story of Dieter Dengler (played by Christian Bale), a German-American pilot who was shot down and captured by villagers sympathetic to the Pathet Lao during an American military campaign in the Vietnam War. Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies, and Toby Huss have prominent supporting roles in the film.

In 1997, Herzog made a documentary film about Dengler titled Little Dieter Needs to Fly. Rescue Dawn, which focuses on Dengler's experiences as a prisoner of war, began shooting in Thailand in August 2005. It received critical acclaim, but was a box office failure.