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The Men Who Stare at Goats
Ewan McGregor plays a small time journalist who encounters George Clooney's military officer, one of a group of so-called 'psychic spies' who were trained to develop super powers. Adapted from the book by Jon Ronson
With just the little-seen golfing comedy Par 6 (2002) to his name, Grant Heslov has minimal experience in the director's chair. But his second film, The Men Who Stare At Goats, is an impressive, thought-provoking comedy. Of course, it helps that Heslov's lead is George Clooney - his friend, partner in production company Smoke House and co-writer on Good Night, And Good Luck. As was the case with Clooney and Steven Soderbergh before, here they hint at what a fruitful partnership could evolve in years to come. Officially, the film is loosely inspired by British journalist Jon Ronson's book, which accompanied Channel 4's 2004 three-part documentary 'Crazy Rulers Of The World', which followed up some of the US military's more out-there ways of going about their business. But while the film begins with the caption, "More of this is true than you would believe", it's fair to say that screenwriter Peter Straughan has taken more than a pinch of dramatic licence here. Straughan, as it turns out, in an inspired choice, having already adapted Toby Young's factual memoir How To Lose Friends And Alienate People for the screen. Replacing Ronson as the eyes of the audience is Ewan McGregor's local Michigan-based journalist, Bob Wilton, who decides after splitting from his unfaithful partner to hot-foot it to Iraq and find a story. Arriving in 2003 in Kuwait City, he bumps into Clooney, who initially claims to be Skip, an Arkansas trashcan salesman. It soon emerges, however, that he is Lyn Cassady - a former star pupil in a US military special outfit who has been reactivated for a secret mission to Iraq. As flashbacks begin to unveil his backstory, we learn that Cassady was one of a group of 'psychic spies' in what was called the New Earth Army, the brainchild of a Vietnam veteran-turned-hippie called Bill Django (Jeff Bridges). Formed 20 years ago, after Django wrote the unit's LSD-fuelled manual, the idea behind it is to recruit men to develop actual super powers to combat the enemy. Cue some pretty amusing scenes, which also explain the film's title (as one of Cassady's more notorious tricks was to be able to stare at a goat until its heart stopped). An open-mouthed Wilton learns much of this along the way, after petitioning Cassady to let him come along on his mission. And with Heslov cutting in past events, we accompany Cassady and Wilton as they get lost in the desert, attacked by terrorists and eventually head back towards the mission. In truth, these scenes feel a little pedestrian, certainly compared to the wacky humour that plays out in the flashbacks. Perhaps it's no surprise. With the addition of Kevin Spacey as a scheming NEA member who attempts to disrupt the harmony of the group, it's little wonder that McGregor and Clooney's desert bonding session holds little interest. It doesn't help that McGregor, in spite of numerous roles where he plays an American, just doesn't convince with his accent. That aside, The Men Who Stare At Goats is still a fun ride - from the opening scene, where one NEA type tries to use his powers to run through a solid brick wall to the climactic LSD sequence which puts a new meaning on the phrase 'as high as a kite'. Yet while it would love to be compared to other US military satires, the film never quite has the darkness of a Dr. Strangelove or the political edge of a Three Kings (though in truth it comes close to the outright nuttiness of Catch-22). Rather, you get the impression that it's not quite as clever as it thinks it is. Still, with Clooney on amusing form (just see his freeform dancing in one scene), Bridges channelling The Big Lebowski's Dude and Spacey offering an acerbic edge to proceedings, there's enough here to merit your attention. What with its cast, and with the veteran cinematographer Robert Elswit behind the camera, Heslov certainly finds himself in safe hands - which is probably why he manages to steer this ship so effortlessly. As a result, the pace is swift and the laughs frequent, even if the gags don't always hit the target. Verdict An assured and amusing tale, The Men Who Stare At Goats marks a competent, polished outing for Heslov and his cast. But despite its undoubted qualities, its slightly smug attitude means it never quite matches the bite of earlier military satires. |
