The Men Who Stare at Goats
2009
Comedy, Drama
1h 34m
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 First Earth Battalion, a unit that employs paranormal powers in their missions.
Directed by:
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The Men Who Stare at Goats
2009
Comedy, Drama
1h 34m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 37.98% from 3732 total ratings
Ratings & Reviews
(3731)
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Rated 21 Jan 2010
74
59th
For the most part this movie is superbly funny in it's sheer absurdity. Having seen the documentary this is based on, Crazy Rulers of the World, I knew what was fiction and what wasn't (and you'll be suprised by how much isn't fake). However the film's narrative nose-dives during the final act and the final 5 minutes completely fall apart. Still it has some fantastic humour in it that is grounded in reality, believe it or not.
Rated 21 Jan 2010
Rated 14 Jan 2010
35
19th
With such a fine cast and a decent premise it botched completely. I was only mildly entertained in the Bridges' psi corps initiation sequence.
Rated 14 Jan 2010
Rated 03 Apr 2010
70
56th
It's relatively funny movie that's main plot was not as good as the flashback sub-plot. The cast is really good and in worse hands this film could really have been a stinker. To me it's a movie that I enjoyed but probably won't watch again unless I happen upon it on TV.
Rated 03 Apr 2010
Rated 05 Dec 2010
65
51st
Offbeat comedy that chronicles the history of a secret detachment of psychic super-soldiers during the 80s. Jeff Bridges and Clooney are both pretty good, but Kevin Spacey's character was woefully underwritten, he doesn't seem to have any reason for being such a dick. Lots of laughs (including, yes, a man staring at a goat), even if the preachy ending falls with a heavy handed, eye rolling thud. Bonus points to Ewen McGregor for not letting his accent slip once that I noticed.
Rated 05 Dec 2010
Rated 18 Nov 2009
60
29th
It's certainly not bad but its mainly funny in a I-see-what-you-did there way. Mainly I was laughing at people telling Ewan McGregor he could be a Jedi. He is! I sat through all three of those films dammit.
Rated 18 Nov 2009
Rated 07 Dec 2010
59
50th
Disappointing, but not unenjoyable. The whole movie, but in particular the charactors themselves feel very two-dimensional. This is a real shame when you consider what a weird, funny & intriguingly uneasy read Ronson's book is. This film drops, excludes or simply changes most of books finest elements, and to be honest most nearly every amendment feels a mistake. Even so, there are a few laughs here, & some good performances (Spacey, Clooney), but this is sadly underwhelming & lacking charisma.
Rated 07 Dec 2010
Rated 28 Aug 2010
45
0th
Had potential, but it ruined itself. Also, the trailer have the best scenes at all.
Rated 28 Aug 2010
Rated 31 Jan 2010
65
53rd
I expected quite much from this movie. I thought the title was awesome! Great cast too, but I was kinda dissapointed. Thought the directing was a bit messy, the story was confusing. I did laugh a few times though. It wasn't a bad movie, but not fantastic either
Rated 31 Jan 2010
Rated 12 Mar 2010
37
23rd
Starts off with a pretty funny concept, gets strangely dark, and then ends up being just strange. There are some pretty great moments, but a lot of the pieces don't really feel like they fit together.
Rated 12 Mar 2010
Rated 10 Apr 2010
80
37th
This movie's gonna be recognized as a hidden gem eventually, I could tell. The cast is absolutely brilliant. Clooney is phenomenal and Jeff Bridges is the man - The best part is he pretty much plays The Dude if the The Dude worked for the government. This is full of laughs and great lines (The Silence of the Goats). Maybe its only problem is the plot which kind of isn't there - it jumps around and switches up every 15 minutes but this is a comedy and I was definitely laughing.
Rated 10 Apr 2010
Rated 06 May 2010
22
2nd
Staring at goats would have been more interesting than this drivel.
Rated 06 May 2010
Rated 05 Dec 2009
64
43rd
The Men Who Stare At Goats is a bit of a misfire. The only thing I got out of this was the countless Star War references concerning Ewan McGregor.
Rated 05 Dec 2009
Rated 12 Mar 2010
60
60th
LYN: "Every night I would dream about that goat, it's mouth opening and closing but without making a sound..." BOB: "The silence of the goats." Funny at some parts.
Rated 12 Mar 2010
Rated 14 Nov 2009
77
62nd
amazing potential ruined by the unproven claims of cassady, it could have been a genre-less masterpiece, but instead is riddled with dead weight. bridges, clooney, and mcgregor do a great job, but the script could have used a great workover.
Rated 14 Nov 2009
Rated 16 Nov 2009
30
3rd
Very funny in places, but overall lacking in direction. Very forgettable.
Rated 16 Nov 2009
Rated 28 Jan 2010
73
36th
Reasonably fun but it seems to be alternating between 2nd and 3rd gear, never getting into a groove. At times it feels aimless and disorganized but there are enough funny moments to make it worthwhile.
Rated 28 Jan 2010
Rated 25 Feb 2010
69
47th
Ewan McGregor makes another great movie. The film doesn't quite live up to my higher expectations for it, but it gets close enough. George Clooney is great, and it's hard to say something bad about Jeff Bridges.
Rated 25 Feb 2010
Rated 12 Apr 2010
68
35th
Can be better. Scratch that. MUST be better!
Rated 12 Apr 2010
Rated 01 Jun 2011
74
44th
Silly, shallow, and stupid at times. Still a fun ride if you don't try to think about it.
Rated 01 Jun 2011
Rated 07 Mar 2010
60
33rd
It started as a nice little story but then turned out to be rather silly (in a quite uninteresting way).
Rated 07 Mar 2010
Rated 12 Jun 2011
53
11th
Sadly disappointing. There were some enjoyable moments when I first saw this, but trying to watch it a second time I just couldn't find it in myself to care and turned it off. The script lacks splendor and there's so much more that could have been done with the idea.
Rated 12 Jun 2011
Rated 16 Apr 2016
47
21st
Some promising stuff in this, but you know, at some point, I wish studios would just go "You know, if there was ever an interesting point to this movie, we lost it about five rewrites ago. Let's just cut our losses and go home." If this is what passes for mainstream subversive satire we're all very very screwed.
Rated 16 Apr 2016
Rated 11 Nov 2009
60
28th
Totally preposterous premise which kept me saying could the Army really be that stupid: yes, no, no, yes, yes, no, yes--and of course we don't really know which because we were told at the beginning that some of it is true, so it sort of ended up being like this run on sentence, a lot of statements jammed up against each other to the point of loosing any point they might have originally intended, but in the end no one really cares because the "silence of the goats" was the only joke that hadn't
Rated 11 Nov 2009
Rated 29 Mar 2010
50
12th
Unexpectedly boring, nothing more then the trailer.. Waste of all that talent is really sad..
Rated 29 Mar 2010
Rated 15 Mar 2010
66
46th
For a movie with such an amazing cast, the final result sure felt a bit underwhelming. One of those movies where essentially nothing of consequence happens. Normally, that doesn't have to be a problem, but apart from some individually entertaining scenes there just isn't any meaty content to chew on.
Rated 15 Mar 2010
Rated 10 Mar 2010
68
27th
A whole bunch of stars aren't a garantie for a good movie. "The Men who stare at goats" is another proof for this. There are some really funny moments, but the whole story is too abstruse, so I was missing a real plot. But if there's one reason to watch this movie, it's Jeff Bridges as weird love&peace drill instructor. Apart from this nothing special at all.
Rated 10 Mar 2010
Rated 27 Aug 2011
79
64th
This was a very bizarre movie and different than I expected. Enjoyable but definitely particular to personal taste.
Rated 27 Aug 2011
Rated 31 May 2010
65
42nd
Pretty entertaining acting all around but it seems too immersed in the comedy and new age esoteric aspect to do any real justice on the subject matter. The fact is the U.S. govt really did conduct drug (MKULTRA) and psychic experiments which caused an untold number of deaths. The film delves into this but more as light satire without the controversy. The last half of the film flounders around and falls flat with its attempts to be quirky. Would have been a good dark comedy in the right hands.
Rated 31 May 2010
Rated 16 Nov 2009
74
59th
Without a doubt, a hilarious film, mostly because of George Clooney's stellar comedy, and a fairly interesting human commentary. Yet the plot really doesn't have anywhere to go storywise, and is more or less crippled by a cliched third act.
Rated 16 Nov 2009
Rated 29 Mar 2010
75
65th
Clooney's great.
Rated 29 Mar 2010
Rated 12 May 2017
50
12th
Yes, casting director, we get it. THE PREQUEL TRILOGY EXISTS.
Rated 12 May 2017
Rated 28 Mar 2010
34
12th
Disappointing because this fantastic pool of actors deserved a script with a sharper wit and focused message. We only get a vague sense of how this psi-op stuff is supposed to work and what is really true. It goes about its silliness in the worst way possible as it jumps from one (ultimately) meaningless aside to another. Like others are saying, there are some mildly amusing scenes (esp. from Bridges), but there's only so much I can take of "this actor was in Star Wars lol". Baaaaad.
Rated 28 Mar 2010
Rated 10 Aug 2010
74
56th
Pretty funny at times. Looses some steam in the middle and isn't all that memorable, but it's okay.
Rated 10 Aug 2010
Rated 24 Jan 2010
5
20th
You'll find a mildly amusing story in there somewhere, yet I found it very boring and just occasionally funny. It's an effort to sit through, which is why I took some 5 minute naps during the film; A writer's lazyness can have quite an effect on me.
Rated 24 Jan 2010
Rated 24 Dec 2010
1
0th
It's smugness -- unleavened by wit -- that makes Goats so offensive.
Rated 24 Dec 2010
Rated 12 Feb 2011
70
50th
This is a film that doesn't know what it wants to be when it grows up ... A satire, a political documentary, a comedy, a humerous insight. Its a shame, because I enjoyed it, but was left wondering what it was for; what it was trying to say. With clearer direction it would have been fantastic. Great performances all round, expecially from the goat, and in truth, I could watch Bridges, Clooney and Spacey all day and not really worry whether I was truly understanding the point of the movie
Rated 12 Feb 2011
Rated 27 Dec 2012
50
37th
Just reminded me I could be watching a good movie instead
Rated 27 Dec 2012
Rated 09 Mar 2010
70
57th
This movie has an amazing cast, which probably increased my expectation from this movie and disappointed me. This isnt a unique movie in anyway. It has its funny moments, but doesnt make you end up rolling on the floor with laughter either. It really isnt bad nor is it great.
Rated 09 Mar 2010
Rated 01 Jun 2013
49
29th
A huge misfire. Pretty much wastes all of its potential, of which it had plenty of.
Rated 01 Jun 2013
Rated 27 Mar 2010
50
37th
The second half drags down a promising first half and what could be an interesting story.
Rated 27 Mar 2010
Rated 08 May 2010
63
58th
there are a lot of genuinely funny moments in this one, and the ensemble cast couldn't be better. Bridges is especially worth mentioning, with his dead on portrayal of the new age guru. The premise of the movie is solid, but the story takes a left turn (literally) somewhere and isn't concluded well, lacking the long waited denouement.
Rated 08 May 2010
Rated 20 Sep 2012
58
61st
Proof that when planets align, nothing really happens. Astrologists, go home.
Rated 20 Sep 2012
Rated 25 Mar 2010
65
33rd
there are some good scenes in this movie.
Rated 25 Mar 2010
Rated 12 Jan 2011
30
13th
The trouble with this film is that the non-fiction book on which it's based is so hilariously absurd in the first place that any attempt to make a dramatisation seems almost redundant from the off. When the truth is much stranger than fiction, why bother making stuff up? The fictionalised part (the road-trip through Iraq) is the weak link - just flimsy padding on which to rest the flashbacks. The film has a great cast, and is occasionally funny, but most of it just seems inconsequential.
Rated 12 Jan 2011
Rated 01 Feb 2010
25
17th
The plot relies entirely on arbitrary events, coincidence and chance and has no flow whatsoever, and the characters are soulless empty shells who even when genuinely weeded up are about as funny as a wet sponge. The dialog is irrelevant, the themes are wishy-washy, and the only thing it manages to say about anything at all is along the lines of "so, listen, war is bad, mmkay". Given the potential it's a shame that this is what it is: a complete phone-in.
Rated 01 Feb 2010
Rated 17 Nov 2011
93
94th
Well, if the real armies were like this, we would be in a much more interesting world, but alas... (I don't know how much safer though). It is kinda like Hot Shots in the 2000s, but I really enjoyed it because it is based on the sad truth of the wars around us. If you can talk about psyche ops and criticize contract security companies at the same time, you are alright in my book. 4 finest horsemen of acting and a goat, what else could you want?
Rated 17 Nov 2011
Rated 12 Apr 2014
50
7th
Quite bad, the title had me interested, but I was disappointed in nearly every way. I didn't think it was funny and I felt there was no point at all. By the end I felt I would have been better off not having watched this film.
Rated 12 Apr 2014
Rated 31 Aug 2010
15
23rd
man that was a waste of watching time i really should have stopped it but apparently that's "improper" you can't rate things unless you watch them that's bullshit i knew it was garbage i wasn't wrong i'm never wrong about that kind of thing
Rated 31 Aug 2010
Rated 04 Mar 2012
60
31st
Neither zany & funny enough, nor serious enough to really be anything in the end.
Rated 04 Mar 2012
Rated 06 Jul 2010
66
44th
On its own, this is a peculiarly funny but ultimately frivolous exercise in intertextual casting references (Ewan's Star Wars and Bridges' Lebowski jokes are golden) and general absurdity. I would give it a higher score if the last shot were different - it contradicts the rest of it pretty badly.
Rated 06 Jul 2010
Rated 11 Apr 2020
40
34th
Could've been a lot better were it not for Heslov, Clooney and McGregor (and I really like Clooney and McGregor normally).
Rated 11 Apr 2020
Rated 16 Jan 2010
45
31st
I wanted to like this movie, but simply not good as I expected. It has great actors, and the acting is not bad. But just never can be really funny.
Rated 16 Jan 2010
Rated 21 Jan 2011
57
66th
the concept is so weird that it doesn't really know where to go, and consequently the third act is pretty unfulfilling. the movie doesn't successfully walk the line between satirizing and glorifying its subject, it just unevenly flip-flops, leaving the audience not really believing either side. but there are some pretty hilarious things in it, mostly due to some great comic acting by bridges.
Rated 21 Jan 2011
Rated 31 May 2011
3
22nd
Retains an amusement factor throughout, with a brand of wit and sometimes Black Comedy that reminds me of the Coen Bros (in fact, this could easily be mistaken for one of their 'lost" lessor films). The narrative is fairly consistent, and it moves along at a good clip, but unfortunately the ending falls flat on its face. A shame really, otherwise an enjoyable look at the world in terms of fact and fiction through the means of a war satire.
Rated 31 May 2011
Rated 29 May 2010
80
67th
I don't now what everybody has. The ending is not more mad than the rwhole film is. But on the whole, it is rather entertaining and funny.
Rated 29 May 2010
Rated 17 Jan 2010
70
71st
Other than McGregor, it's consistently entertaining across the board in pretty much every way.
Rated 17 Jan 2010
Rated 07 Apr 2010
53
45th
ger; [Männer, die auf Ziegen starren]; ein reporter gerät durch zufall an einen menschen der in einer eliteeinheit für paranormale aktivitäten war, von diesem lässt er sich mitreissen.
Rated 07 Apr 2010
Rated 20 Sep 2010
65
45th
There are some laughs in this bizarre film, but it comes off as weird for the sake of weird at times. I had to laugh at some of the ha ha look at us Jedi and Lebowski jokes.
Rated 20 Sep 2010
Rated 24 Mar 2011
55
25th
An entertaining little yarn that utterly ruins the source material in the name of 'improving' on an excellent story. So many tonal errors get made that most of the better scenes get eclipsed by the frankly bizarre last twenty minutes.
Rated 24 Mar 2011
Rated 16 Nov 2009
70
42nd
Epic casting and Star Wars jokes kind of save this for me. I'm not going to say it was bad, because it wasn't, and I can't bring myself to hate on Clooney or Obi-Wan, but there were too many "in-between" times (in between moments of action, comedy, etc.) that were just average. I felt frustrated by much of the flick, trying to figure it out and over-analyze. But, I give the flick some credit, because I believe that it is trying to make the audience think what McGregor's character mostly thinks.
Rated 16 Nov 2009
Rated 11 May 2010
40
25th
A somewhat entertaining farce about the US army, but loses it's focus pretty quickly. Could've used a better director. Clooney is magnificent and Bridges suitably lebowskian.
Rated 11 May 2010
Rated 17 Nov 2009
75
54th
Funny sometimes, but it didn't really do much for me otherwise.
Rated 17 Nov 2009
Rated 14 Jan 2010
8
55th
A film so full of goofy charm that the whole thing comes off rather endearing.
Rated 14 Jan 2010
Rated 15 Nov 2011
54
20th
funny, but no substance.
Rated 15 Nov 2011
Rated 13 Nov 2009
65
45th
Enjoyable, offbeat story, and the performances were pretty decent. Not very memorable or stand out, but if you have the hours to kill, why not?
Rated 13 Nov 2009
Rated 12 Apr 2010
77
22nd
cute story, but in the end it falls short
Rated 12 Apr 2010
Rated 23 May 2011
57
20th
With such a great concept, I wish this film had achieved what it could have. Instead, it fell flat and I became pretty bored half-way through. Zaney enough, at times, and just dumb at others with a very disjointed narrative. The best part of the film is its title.
Rated 23 May 2011
Rated 15 Apr 2016
62
41st
Consistently amusing but rarely funny. I was entertained for the 90 minutes running time, but overall the film felt like it fell short of what it could have been with the strong cast and intriguing premise.
Rated 15 Apr 2016
Rated 18 Jan 2010
3
64th
Remains interesting for the better part of its running time, despite the overall lack of direction in the storytelling. Bridges, Spacey & Clooney do great jobs, as expected.
Rated 18 Jan 2010
Rated 10 Mar 2010
80
48th
Fantastic! And what a cast: Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges and a cameo for Robert T2000 Patrick :)
Rated 10 Mar 2010
Rated 24 Jun 2010
38
54th
The film was quite humorous not a laugh all the way though kind of film, but I enjoyed it and wonder how much of the plot is based on true events.
Rated 24 Jun 2010
Rated 25 Sep 2010
87
42nd
Hilarious! Great performances by a great cast. Meanders somewhat. Good for lightening an already light mood.
Rated 25 Sep 2010
Rated 29 Dec 2009
40
7th
lacking comedy and compelling story. should have been much better.
Rated 29 Dec 2009
Rated 03 Jan 2010
80
46th
This would be a lot better if it had even one female character - I'm not even sure if Mader has lines.
Rated 03 Jan 2010
Rated 28 Mar 2012
65
23rd
Expected more from this release. Overrated in my view although does make a great statement on the absurdity of war.
Rated 28 Mar 2012
Rated 01 Apr 2010
88
90th
I laughed and laughed.. one of the best comedies I watched for years..
Rated 01 Apr 2010
Rated 15 Mar 2010
60
14th
Well shot and acted. But was left with a feeling of utter pointlesness. Why would I want to watch this again?
Rated 15 Mar 2010
Rated 02 Feb 2012
75
71st
This movie is really friggin weird, but also pretty funny, in that darkly comic sort of way. My only really significant complaint is that there are far too many flashbacks (and in one case, a flashback within a flashback) and some go on for so long that you can forget what was going on in the "present".
Rated 02 Feb 2012
Rated 15 Jun 2012
74
38th
Great cast, lopsided writing
Rated 15 Jun 2012
Rated 08 Dec 2009
83
33rd
has it's share of laughs.....
Rated 08 Dec 2009
Rated 09 May 2010
35
20th
An almost great movie that seemed incomplete and directionless in the last act, rendering the rest of the film wasted time. The only compelling parts of The Men Who Stare at Goats come from flashbacks while the main story is more of an absurdest road trip through occupied Iraq, where the more they struggle for satirical relevance the less sense the whole film makes. In short, great actors wasted on a half finished script and director more interested in contemporary relevance than cohesion.
Rated 09 May 2010
Rated 24 Dec 2010
50
43rd
Negative criticism about military. For diffent version please check "Starship Tropper I and 3"
Rated 24 Dec 2010
Rated 06 Jul 2010
70
20th
One of those films that repeatedly jumps the fence between outrageous comedy and realistic drama. Not as funny as its meant to be.
Rated 06 Jul 2010
Rated 03 May 2010
45
14th
Outside of George Clooney hamming it up, the film is an awkward collection of scenes that have little room to unfold, and each scene feels disconnected from the whole. Something truly hilarious could have come from this, as it has its moments, especially with McGregor taking shots at 'Star Wars' and Clooney dead-on serious amidst total stupidity, but "Goats" never comes together, and instead feels much more dull than inspired.
Rated 03 May 2010
Rated 31 May 2010
67
33rd
A great cast having fun. There are some good laughs but the script is weak.
Rated 31 May 2010
Rated 21 May 2011
74
66th
Although sometimes you don't know what the hell is going on, the absurdness of this film really makes it a hilarious piece of fun. Especially towards the end with (SPOILER) U.S. Army on LSD i couldn't keep from laughing out loud (No I won't type LOL).
Rated 21 May 2011
Rated 16 Nov 2009
73
48th
It does feel like The Informant in some ways, like someone else said but I liked this a lot more. Maybe it's because I understood the jokes more, and I understood what they were talking about more often. I love the cast here and without them this would be worse. The problem is that it goes for pretty long stretches without a laugh (but has some great ones) and this movie isn't the most emotional thing ever so you're left with a few too many parts where you feel nothing. Still, a good flick.
Rated 16 Nov 2009
Rated 02 Aug 2010
100
98th
This film taps into concepts that are larger than they seem. Those who ranked the movie low are probably unaware of the secret connections that lie just below the surface. If they were, they would have appreciated the witty references to the larger truths. Open your minds, be all that you can be!
Rated 02 Aug 2010
Rated 20 Oct 2010
50
28th
Although the mixing of military and tree-hugging-hippie philosophy provides some excellent laughs (Stephen Langs character), the story lacks pacing and there's too much of McGregor and Clooney not knowing what the mission is about yet.
Rated 20 Oct 2010
Rated 17 Jan 2011
50
28th
- worth experiencing
Rated 17 Jan 2011
Rated 21 Jan 2010
29
9th
Not that interesting as I thought it would be. Not as funny too. It has a message, but at some moments you really have to overanalyze it, which takes the fluency, which is already not that great, away.
Rated 21 Jan 2010
Rated 17 Feb 2011
35
19th
The filmmakers failed to find an adequate way of adapting the source material to the screen, despite the impressive cast. The rather clunky effort contains too few genuinely amusing moments, and the rudimentary narrative is incapable of really maintaining interest.
Rated 17 Feb 2011
Rated 07 Mar 2011
65
48th
nice satire, some parts were hilarious, but it lost it's direction towards the end and became a little boring and predictable
Rated 07 Mar 2011
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