The Men Who Stare at Goats is a 2009 film directed by Grant Heslov. It is a satirical comedy based on real events and inspired by a book by Jon Ronson. 

Plot

The story follows the adventures of Bob Wilton (played by Ewan McGregor), a disillusioned journalist who, after a romantic breakup, decides to travel to Iraq during the war. There, he encounters Lyn Cassady (played by George Clooney), a man who claims to have been trained as a psychic soldier as part of a secretive program known as "Operation Staring Goat."

According to Cassady, the program aimed to develop paranormal abilities in soldiers, such as telepathy and levitation, for military purposes. Bob decides to follow Cassady on an adventure that takes them through the Iraqi desert in search of a secret base where psychic experiments are suspected to be taking place.

During their journey, the two encounter strange obstacles and surreal situations that test their belief in psychic abilities. Meanwhile, the film also explores Cassady's past and the details of the "Operation Staring Goat" program.

The film is a satire on military culture and attempts to harness psychic abilities for military purposes, and it is inspired by real stories and legends surrounding psychic experiments conducted by the United States military.

Complete Cast:

• George Clooney as Lyn Cassady
• Ewan McGregor as Bob Wilton
• Jeff Bridges as Bill Django
• Kevin Spacey as Larry Hooper
• Robert Patrick as Todd Nixon
• Stephen Lang as Brigadier General Dean Hopgood
• Waleed Zuaiter as Mahmud Daash
• Stephen Root as Gus Lacey

Director: Grant Heslov

Producer: George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Paul Lister

Writer: Peter Straughan (based on the book by Jon Ronson)

Music by: Rolfe Kent

Cinematographer: Robert Elswit

Production Cost: Approximately $24 million.

Box Office: Approximately $68.7 million worldwide at the box office.

Awards: It did not receive any notable awards.

Critics' Reception: The Men Who Stare at Goats received mixed reviews. Some critics enjoyed the film's quirky humor and the performances of the cast, while others found the plot to be muddled and less sharp than its source material. The film is known for its satire of the Iraq War and American military endeavors.

My opinion. Despite the efforts of the production, this film does not take off. in fact, good actors, good cinematography, and expensive exteriors in New Mexico are not enough to make a good product.

The story is flimsy : a special unit of the US Army is trained to fight the enemy with the power of the mind.

All are good, but there are few laughs and the film slips into the ridiculous and boring.