Movie Review: The Men Who Stare at Goats

The Men Who Stare at Goats, which opened last Friday, stars Ewan McGregor as a semi-washed up reporter who meets Lyn Cassady (played by George Clooney), a psychic soldier who is a drifting reminisce of a government program whereby the soldiers were trained to fight psychically with their minds. Jeff Bridges plays his former commander, Bill Django, a hippy who experimented with blending hallucinogenic tripping into the US Army, and has one of the better performances and gags in the movie.

On the surface the film isn’t that bad. The concept, inspired by true events, is a good starting point for political and armed force satire. There are quite a few funny parts and a bit or two that are hilarious.

Unfortunately, it is not enough, and really the film does not have enough drive and substance to carry an entire film. Which is surprising to say, because based on the trailer the film looks original and exciting, but it isn’t. The pacing is a little off and the narrative is a little scraggily. There is also, probably, one of the worst voice over narrations in American cinema.

Voice over narrations (V.O.) are either both amazing and well done (Goodfellas, Casino, Adaptation) or they strangle the narrative (Paparazzi, or the original cut of Blade Runner) and are often only there because the film is poorly constructed and in post-production a V.O. was added in an attempt to better the film. In The Men Who Stare at Goat, the V.O. hurts the film considerably.

The film is a really a let down. From the trailer, the movie appears to be exciting and slightly original (the title certainly alludes to something crafty and original). However the film is more rote then originated, and in the end falls short, not just of expectation, but also of being a decent film.

Grade C -