"More of this is true than you would believe."
With those words we are introduced to the potentially real world of psychic spies who possess and hone skills that allow them to see the other side of the world, walk through walls, get into the heads of their enemies, and kill goats by just staring at them (this could take hours). The Men Who Stare at Goats chronicles the real adventures of journalist Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) who was simply looking to make a name for himself in the early days of the war.
Bob Wilton is a reporter for a daily newspaper in Ann Arbor. He is assigned to interview a local man who claims to have been a member of a special arm of the military that focused on psychic abilities. He tells him of a man named Lyn Cassady, the top agent in their unit, and shows him video of a hamster being killed with the powers of the mind.
Wilton writes him off as a loony and soon heads to Afghanistan in the hopes of furthering his career. However, he is unable to get into Iraq where all of the action is. This is when fate steps in to take him on an adventure he will not likely forget.
He bumps into Cassady (George Clooney), purely by chance, in Afghanistan. Together, the two journey into war-torn Iraq in search of Bill Django (Jeff Bridges), the founder of the psychic soldiers. Together, they find themselves in all manner of scrapes where Lyn uses his "abilities" to rescue them, while Wilton tries to keep himself alive, all the while learning about Django through flashback. We get a front row seat to the ponytailed, Lebowski-esque Django as he leads his men as part of the New World Army, dancing, meditating, taking hallucinogens, and passing it all off as serious military work.
When it comes right down to it, The Men Who Stare at Goats is a road movie with McGregor playing the straight man to everyone else. It is amusing to watch as Clooney's Cassady tells of his Jedi ways to McGregor, who has played a Jedi in three films. What does it all mean? That is for you to decide. Frankly, I am not so sure it really means anything. Would it surprise me to find out that everything is true and the government was/is trying to train paranormal soldiers? No, not really. I would not put any craziness past what those in power are willing to try.
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Article comments
1 - Winston
Waste of my money.
2 - kaitie
Loved this movie! if you walked out of this movie feeling like you were on drugs & wondering what you just saw, good that's how you were suppose to feel. We were suppose to feel how Wilton was feeling the whole time. I loved this movie check it out.
3 - Matt Paprocki
Agree with Chris. Left feeling like "meh, won't watch it again." Had moments, loved the Jedi references too, but just flat overall.
Oh, and the whole crowd reacted when the LSD-induced naked soldier began shooting at the military base. Really BAD timing for that scene to be released.
4 - Cindy
I liked this film. I didn't think I would. But is some weird way it gave me some hope.
Oh, and the whole crowd reacted when the LSD-induced naked soldier began shooting at the military base. Really BAD timing for that scene to be released.
Sounds pretty close to what happens to a whole lot of vets. Oh right, they don't talk about those. One third of homeless people have been veterans. Now the armies is killing people through brain shock. Go find out for yourself what that means. They've known about it for years.
Wake-up. You want to keep your children alive and intact? Stop buying into military propaganda. People who are glorifying military are also glorify killing and they send their children to learn to be killers. You think that is without danger? That's what you want your children to be doing?
5 - Larry
Has every one missed the point of this movie? Pure recruitment. I love it.
6 - Cindy
Why do you think so, Larry? It didn't strike me as being appealing to the military-minded.
7 - essay
the fact that people buy the "gentleness is strength" crap says it all.
pure commie propaganda, and no i'm not going to bother explaining why. seems fairly obvious honestly.
i'll take MY side's propaganda over this garbage any day.
8 - A Geek Girl
I just saw this in the theater. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. And I wasn't alone. The whole audience was cracking up. Loved it. Whatever you do, don't eat the eggs--and don't drink the water. Hilarious.