“The Men Who Stare at Goats,” while imperfect, is an entertainingly absurd movie with an interesting premise and quite a few laughs. Just don’t expect a lot of goats.The premise: struggling reporter Bob Wilson (Ewan McGregor) gets the scoop of a lifetime when he encounters Lyn Cassady (George Clooney), a shadowy figure claiming to be part of an experimental U.S. military unit known as the “New Earth Army.” According to Cassady, this legion of “Warrior Monks” has unparalleled psychic powers, which include passing through walls, mind reading and, yes, even killing a goat by simply staring at it.
The program’s founder Bill Django (Jeff Bridges) has gone missing, and it is his mission to find him. Wilson, whose wife has just run off with his editor, impulsively decides to tag along and try to unravel the mystery behind Cassady’s far-fetched stories shown through hilarious flashbacks.
When the twosome finally track Django to a clandestine training camp run by Django’s nemesis, Larry Hooper (Kevin Spacey), Wilson finds he must outwit Hooper’s band of psychic super soldiers in order to save the day.
The movie succeeds largely due to Clooney’s zany depiction of a rogue Jedi Warrior in a role that seems tailor-made for the actor. Clooney’s at his best when he has a straight man to bounce off of (as seen here with McGregor), and his adeptness for slapstick proves why he, time and time again, returns to these quirky buddy comedies.
Bridges has some of the richest, most bizarrely funny scenes in a role reminiscent of his portrayal of “The Dude” in “The Big Lebowski.” The flashbacks showcase his unique training techniques, as well as the many kernels of wisdom he imparts (i.e. “The U.S. Army has no alternative but to be wonderful”).
The problems of the movie stem mainly from a directorial standpoint. The plot starts to get bogged down about three quarters of the way through by the script’s many crosscurrents. The film wobbles as the director unnecessarily tries to give the film a deeper message that is totally incongruent with the film’s original path.
Bottom line: Depending on your sense of humor and your ability to check logic at the door, “The Men Who Stare at Goats” is a genuinely funny movie with a great cast, great concept and an overall satisfying execution you should thoroughly enjoy. However, if you require a movie to follow any rational train of thought or provide you with a deeper understanding of the universe, you should probably sit this one out.