A war movie titled The Men Who Stare at Goats may lead some to the theaters searching for an allegory about our modern day military occupancy in the Middle East. Others are likely to just say “What the hell?” and expect 90 minutes of something at least a little strange. Neither of these groups is likely to leave the theater entirely disappointed, but there may be an air of unfulfilled dreams around them. Grant Heslov (writer, Good Night and Good Luck) seems to want to blend the two together, but falls short on delivering something lasting.

In this film we follow the exploits of Bob Wilton, played by the flat, yet ever charming, Ewan McGregor. He’s an American journalist who heads to Kuwait to prove to his ex-wife that he’s more man than she may believe, despite her utter lack of interest in it all. Along the way he meets Lyn Cassidy, a retired soldier. This is the kind of role George Clooney shines in and he took and ran with it as far as he could go. It’s an excellent performance of a soldier who’s both beautifully insane and inspiring.

Not long into the film, it’s exposed that he was once part of a military psychic operation unit known as “The New Earth Army.” It’s based on the real-life project known as “The First Earth Battalion.” Bill Django, played by the scene-stealing Jeff Bridges, runs the group of rag-tag young men and turns them all into “super” soldiers who dance around like they’re at Woodstock. He’s the hippie soldier who teaches peace, love, and the way of the Jedi. And, yes, this film is based on true events.

That being said, the director obviously has something to say about the many insane ideas and the almost adolescent desire of the United States Army to the best of the best. “The U.S. Army has no alternative but to be wonderful,” is one of Bridges many quirky one-liners in the film, and history has shown us that this idea has led to some pretty insane projects. The psychic operations programs are just one example.

While this is a fairly profound concept, the film simply doesn’t give off the vibe it’s going for. There is too much going on for the director to handle.  But, luckily it doesn’t fall apart. The film is funny and there isn’t really a scene that disappoints completely. However, the characters aren’t given the amount of flesh and history that’s going to take over the audience. There aren’t any moments of really wanting to know what’s going to happen next.

If you’re looking for a funny film that’s going to try its best to make you think a bit, The Men Who Stare at Goats is for you. With a great cast of guys that includes Kevin Spacey in a role that was far too small, there’s plenty of charismatic faces moving around on screen to keep most people happy. Could it be funnier? Yes. Could it be smarter. Absolutely. Does it deliver what you would expect? Well, there are certainly goats and they do get stared at, so when it comes down to it, it does. This is definitely worth the price of admission, but don’t expect to go back for seconds.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 8:20 pm and is filed under 3, Film Reviews, Matt Balmaseda. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.