Looking for a scapegoat of political satire, witty humor? Look no further

“The Men Who Stare at Goats” is “The Big Lebowski” of war in Iraq-based films. A lot of people (including myself) love the pointless Coen brothers’ comedy for the simple fact that it has no point whatsoever, and anyone looking for a scape-goat of political satire and witty humor shall look no further. Grant Heslov comes off a little shaky in his debut as a director, but his Oscar-caliber reputation as a screenwriter clearly elevates him to a level of appeal that should help redeem any rookie mistakes made along the way.

The plot of the film is centered on a reporter named Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) who has just been through a rough divorce and is now hoping to get back on his feet by covering stories for the Iraq War. It’s never quite clear what he’s out to prove to his ex-wife or to himself, but all sense of logic goes completely out the door when he meets Lyn Cassady (George Clooney), a Special Forces operator who claims to be part of an experimental unit of the military.

“Experimental” is really a colorful term for Lyn’s character, but it also goes a long way in the process as he shares the psychiatric details of this “New Earth Army” he so proudly represents. Apparently there is a mind-boggling mission in the works, and the leader of NEA (Jeff Bridges) has been kidnapped. It is now up to Wilton and his new found idiot of a friend to embark on a dangerous journey that will lead them to another psychotic super soldier (Kevin Spacey) who has plans of his own for this new form of combat where fighters can literally read the minds of enemy militia, pass through walls and kill goats by simply looking them in the eye.

The film never fully clarifies just what exactly goats have to do with anything, but as I said earlier, this is not a movie about politics, or foreign affairs for that matter. This is a classic example of a film that takes full advantage of a stellar cast, and then executes the vast range of talent in a way that somehow pays off when nothing else will.

Heslov and Clooney have worked together on numerous projects in recent years, and given the arrangement of occupations here, it would appear as though “Men Who Stare at Goats” is Clooney’s way of returning the favor for Heslov’s brilliant screenplay in “Good Night and Good Luck.” Heslov knows how to pen his words on all the right notes, but his focus gets a bit shady when the humorous narrative hits an occasional dry spot. It’s not so much a pause of boredom as Heslov keeps a tight grip on the 90-minute run time, but it’s rarely a pause for the cause as we await the next good scene.

When it comes to dark comedy and satire, the payoff of any film usually rests on how the main performances are handled. Using four big-name thespians who have all either won or been nominated for gold in the past, Heslov gets plenty of help from his fame-and-fortune leads.

The problem however, is that while he puts a lot of comedic emphasis on each of the supporting characters, all the developmental expectations we have for the main protagonist are practically kicked to the curb. In the opening narration, McGregor assumes his role just enough to convince us that Wilton is a real reporter with a serious problem, but as soon as the dimwitted Cassady is introduced, Wilton becomes nothing more than the “brains” of an operation led by an otherwise far more engaging buffoon.

The bigger story though, is the drop dead hilarious performance of Bridges. It’s been a long time since “The Dude” had me going like this, but it’s always a pleasure when you see a fat-bellied guy with long hair try to be serious when no one else will take him seriously. And the funniest part is, this time, he didn’t need a bowling ball or a urine-stained rug to make us believe he is the real deal.

As I drove home from the screening, I said to myself at one point, “that movie was good, but wouldn’t it have been better under the wing of the Coens?” I still can’t answer that observation and probably won’t be able to until I get the public reaction. Some critics may argue that underneath all the sporadic satire and goofiness, there is still a message to be heard in Heslov’s debut film. But in all honesty, the only message I garnered was: “keep making all these wasteful political films, and you just might do one like this … without realizing it has an IQ less than that of the animal in its title.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Nov 6 2009. Filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry