The men who stare at goats, 2009

The men who stare at goats, 2009
Director: Grant Heslov
Cast:George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges



Men and goats in short: A reporter in Iraq might just have the story of a lifetime when he meets Lyn Cassady, a guy who claims to be a former member of the U.S. Army's New Earth Army, a unit that employs paranormal powers in their missions.


Stage: home cinema

Preps: It's currently running in cinema. I don't have a clue whatsoever about the movie. But the title is intriguing. I am curious what is behind men and what's the deal with the goats.

Reality: The movie is a parody - it is an antidose to currently popular the hurt locker. In my opinion it makes fun of war, soldiers and the system itself. The main actors are a part of the elite squad that are supposed to scare the enemy away with staring at them, seeding love and piece instead of guns and violence. They have long hair, look of a hippy from seventies and overall represent pure fun to the spectator.
The movie has some brilliant dialogues, however in my opinion, gets a bit boring somewhere in the middle. The idea of killing someone staring at him is somehow hillarious. The leaders of this year's oscars in fact stared at George Clooney at the show for about two minutes like he did to the goats at the movie- to make a point right out of the movie (or they wanted him dead? :)

The story about a journalist to come to Iraq just to prove to his wife (who already divorced him) is not only on the verge of believable, but also very pathetic. I don't really buy it. And it has also a non-existing (or very transparent) ending.

You will enjoy it if you like ironic views of some war movies you have seen (imagine Hot Shots and you will know what I am talking about). For me, decent fun, mostly in the aspect of mocking the system, but nothing more.


My personal rating: 5,5 (see it on a rainy day to make you smile a bit. And you will love the goats :)



The men and the goats on IMDB
Official site