Gene DeBruin was depicted as losing his sanity and disappearing into the jungle, but this portrayal was controversial and disputed by his family.
In the 2006 film “Rescue Dawn,” directed by Werner Herzog, Gene DeBruin is portrayed as a character who gradually loses his grip on sanity due to the harsh conditions of being a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. In the film, after a failed escape attempt, Gene is shown as becoming increasingly unstable and eventually runs off into the jungle, his fate left ambiguous.
However, this portrayal caused significant controversy, particularly among Gene DeBruin’s family and fellow POWs. They claimed that the film did not accurately represent Gene’s character or his actions during captivity. According to them, Gene was a source of strength and inspiration to other prisoners, and he played a crucial role in helping them to survive the ordeal. They also stated that Gene sacrificed an opportunity to escape in order to stay behind with prisoners who were too ill to attempt the escape.
Gene DeBruin was indeed a prisoner of war in Laos after his plane was shot down in 1963. He was held captive along with Dieter Dengler, the main focus of “Rescue Dawn,” and several other prisoners. In reality, after Dengler’s successful escape, Gene remained in captivity. According to reports from other prisoners who were later released, Gene died in captivity under circumstances that remain unclear, and his body was never recovered. The film’s depiction of his mental state and actions during captivity has been a point of contention and is not supported by the accounts of those who knew him during his time as a POW.
