One of the most anticipated films of the festival, at least among fans of the bizarre such as myself, The Men Who Stare at Goats looked set to become one of the most original and funny films of the year. So it was with great anticipated that I sat down to watch at this year's BFI London Film Festival...

 Please note, this is our short London Film Festival review - for the full theatrical version click HERE.

The Official Word: Inspired by Jon Ronson's non-fiction bestseller about the bizarre activities of a secret unit in the US military, this eye-opening comedy centres on reporter Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) who stumbles across the story of a lifetime when he meets Lyn Cassady (George Clooney), a Special Forces operator on a mind-boggling mission in Iraq. Cassady claims to be a former psychic soldier, part of a squad of 'warrior monks' trained in new age and paranormal techniques who were re-activated post-9/11. Their powers include the ability to read the enemy's thoughts, pass through solid walls, and kill goats just by staring at them.

Now the founder of the squad, Bill Django (Jeff Bridges) has gone missing, and Cassady's mission is to track him down. Intrigued by these far-fetched stories, Wilton decides to accompany him on his search. After various misadventures they find Django in a clandestine training camp run by renegade psychic Larry Hooper (Kevin Spacey), where a grudge match is taking place between Django's New Earth Army and Hooper's personal militia.

The Men Who Stare at Goats is the feature directing debut of actor-writer-producer Grant Heslov (Good Night and Good Luck), and is produced through Heslov and Clooney's Smokehouse Pictures. British screenwriter Peter Straughan has turned astonishing fact into entertaining fiction, providing some very funny characters along the way.

Our Verdict: More astonishing than the prevalence of George Clooney at this year's festival is the consistently high quality of his output. He has gone beyond Hollywood's charming Mr. Reliable and become one of the most entertaining and versatile actors around today. This is confirmed here where his role as Lyn Cassady sees him flow between offbeat, hilarious and emotionally engaging with remarkable fluidity. In a story as bizarre as this, that is a crucial quality.

Of course, it helps that Clooney is ably supported by Jeff Bridges (delivering a gleefully Dude-esque performance) and Kevin Spacey (showing a rare expression of comedic talent). Ewan McGregor is the only obvious weak link, and I was dreading his faux-American accent intruding on my enjoyment of the film. However, I'm pleased to report that McGregor handles the part well and even brings a little something to his lost reporter character as he bumbles across the Iraqi desert: not least a number of well-placed Jedi jokes.

Overall this is a film that not only conveys one of the most amusing elements of military history in action, but provides a number of engaging characters weaving their way through some hilarious moments. There's crazy martial arts techniques, attempts to run through walls, and frequent playful jabs at the military. What's not to like?


Rating: ****

Starring: George Clooney, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey, Ewan McGregor
Director: Grant Heslov
Run time: 90 mins
Certificate: US R
Release date: 6th November 2009


Review by Michael Edwards

For more London Film Festival Fun, check out our review of Fantastic Mr. Fox, or our look at Cormack McCarthy classic The Road.