Staring at goats more fun than it sounds
July 29th, 2010Staring at goats more fun than it sounds
0 Comments | Chattanooga Times Free Press, Nov 11, 2009
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CASEY PHILLIPS: There’s a disclaimer at the beginning of “The Men Who Stare At Goats” that reads: “More of this is true than you might think.” Considering the plot involves a secret government program to train psychic soldiers who can kill barnyard animals with their minds, I think that’s a serious understatement. If even a sliver of this crazy plot is true, it’s more than I believed possible.
What the film lacks in plausibility, it more than makes up in laugh-out-loud absurdity and brilliant performances.
Ewan McGregor plays Bob Wilton, a journalist who stumbles across a retired graduate of the army’s secret First Earth Battalion (George Clooney), who may or may not have the ability to “burst clouds.” McGregor’s innocent naivety plays well off Clooney’s self-assured deadpan as he recounts the tale of the program’s inception and dissolution through a series of flashbacks while the two drive through the Iraqi desert on what may or may not be a secret mission.
HOLLY LEBER: This is the kind of movie I want to see George Clooney in. As a suave leading man or a romantic Casanova, he’s tiresome and irritating. In quirky, offbeat roles such as this one, or his stint in “Burn After Reading,” Clooney shines.
Watching “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” all I could think was “who comes up with this stuff?” Apparently, however, writer Jon Ronson wrote his book upon which the movie is based about actual ideas put forth by Lt. Col. Jim Channon, an American soldier who served in Vietnam and subsequently pushed the idea of incorporating New Age practices into the U.S. Army training. That being said, I’m still pretty incredulous.
CASEY: But with a cast like this, it’s easy to overlook the “out-there” factor. Supporting actors Kevin Spacey, a jealous psychic wannabe, and Jeff Bridges, the program’s lovable founder, are pitch-perfect foils. Spacey’s performance stood out to me, since his ruthless power mongering (and use of the forbidden quivering-palm technique) is in such wonderful contrast to the other peace-loving members of the First Earth Battalion.
HOLLY: I loved Ewan McGregor’s befuddled journalist. It’s always fun to see journalists portrayed on film; and any moment that translates “I want so much to tell you you’re insane, but I can’t because I need you to keep talking” is so wonderfully familiar. He does a great job in the role
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