A group of recreational cave divers assist with an operation to save a Thai soccer team stuck in a cave in The Rescue. In 2018, the arrival of monsoon rains trapped twelve boys and their soccer coach in a flooded cave in Northern Thailand. A huge operation begins to first locate and rescue the missing soccer team before returning monsoon rains make such a rescue impossible. With the Royal Thai Navy SEALs having difficulty navigating the vast underwater cave system, a team of experienced cave divers are brought in to help lead the team to safety.
The Rescue is a documentary by Academy Award-winning filmmakers E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (Free Solo) about the 2018 effort to rescue a trapped soccer team from one of the longest cave systems in Northern Thailand. The film is constructed using a combination of archival footage and reenactments to recreate the gripping two weeks saga of survival. At the centre of this story are the team of cave divers from around the world, including Rick Stanton, John Volanthen, and Dr. Richard “Harry” Harris, who set out to perform the impossible task of leading these dozen children through an underwater cave system more than 2 km long.
The test of a good documentary is whether you are still pulled into the story, even if the outcome is already known. This is indeed the cast with The Rescue, which like E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin's previous film Free Solo is about overcoming insurmountable odds. Indeed, from the outset, it seemed like this Thai soccer team was unlikely to make it out of the cave alive, particularly since it was initially unknown where within the vast cave system they were located. Even after the team is found, the cave divers have doubts about whether they would be safe to safely lead the children through the cave system, without inducing panic attacks.
Even though The Rescue makes heavy use of reenactments featuring the actual cave divers, they are seamlessly integrated with the archival footage to have the film presented as a single narrative. Even more impressive is the fact that much of The Rescue, including the talking head interviews with the participants, was produced remotely as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While probably not as viscerally affecting as Free Solo, I will still say that ultimately The Rescue is still a quite well-done documentary that will keep you at the edge of your seat until the bitter end.
The Rescue is now playing at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema
Related Links
- Free Solo
- The Cave of Forgotten Dreams
- One More Time with Feeling
- Hot Docs 2018: Won't You Be My Neighbor
Trailer for The Rescue
