the Rice Thresher

Issue date: 11/13/09 Section: Entertainment

I don't care where you are, what you're doing, or what you're wearing. Go see The Men Who Stare At Goats. After studying all week, you deserve it. This movie incorporates every element that is necessary to make an entertaining film - a great plot, colorful characters, and George Clooney's chiseled jaw - making it worth every penny.

Rising director Grant Heslov (True Lies) has taken on a job that even better-established directors known for taking on ambitious films would have had second thoughts about. The outcome is a purely magical and comedic masterpiece.

One of the most successful accomplishments of this film rests in the production of the trailer. Most comedy films are unable to sell their movies without revealing the funniest parts of the movie in the trailer. Luckily for The Men Who Stare At Goats, the trailer doesn't give away all the good punch lines. Not even close.

Before you slough off those textbooks, though, be sure you're heading to the theater with an open mind. The plot focuses on journalist Bob Wilton, played by Moulin Rouge! 's Ewan McGregor, who happens to be researching a secret branch of the United States military focusing on "psy-warfare." What he learns from Lyn Cassady (Burn After Reading's Clooney) was that the United States began to fear that the Russians were developing psychic techniques after World War II, so they created the top secret "First Earth Battalion," led by military leader Bill Django (Iron Man's Jeff Bridges). Django spent seven years "researching" different strategies to create soldiers with superpowers. While obviously far-fetched, the movie still manages to present the story in a way to make it grounded in a type of off-kilter reality, with more than enough humor to justify the strange tweaks the movie brings about.

Kevin Spacey (L.A. Confidential) plays Larry Hooper, a talented psychic soldier who is jealous of Cassidy's superior talents. Hooper causes as many problems as he solves while in the First Earth Battalion, all out of his persistent desire to appeal to Django. In the end, Spacey turns Hooper into a sleazy wannabe that is perfect at causing mischief, and mixes nicely into the plot.

It is incredibly difficult to pull off a movie based on a psychic military group without letting the comedy and blatant ridiculousness of the whole situation take over. Thankfully, Heslov has managed to balance this in a way that keeps the audience wishing for more, even if the film borders on being a bit too quirky at times. When most films made today are too long, the tight narrative of Goats keeps its viewers on the edge of their seat and waiting for the crazy cast's next adventure.

The Men Who Stare at Goats successfully lives up to its hype in a way that few films can claim. Without a doubt it will be an addition to the collections of movie lovers and film buffs alike. It gives the audience a chance to explore their own grown-up imaginations, plus enjoy a few memorable scenes with unsuspecting goats. The film claims to be based on true events - that will be for you to decide. But there is one decision that should already be made, and that is plopping yourself in the seats to take this fantastic film in.

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