Cut To the Chase: Clooney shines in this remarkable story, based on actual events.

Maybe a little too quirky to really appeal to the masses, this offbeat, but amusing production marks the directorial debut of George Clooney's producing cohort, Grant Heslov, who does a fine job of translating somewhat nonsensical yarn into a coherent and entertaining movie. For the first two thirds at least, this is an intriguing watch, introducing us to characters in a jovial manner that manages to come with a surprising amount of context through nicely-done flashbacks. It may lose its way towards the final hurdle, as the assembled talents struggle to find a suitable way of concluding a truly unbelievable story, but this is, at the very least, hugely interesting stuff.

The opening tagline to The Men Who Stare At Goats reads "you'd be surprised at how much of this is true", as it veers away from cliché, even in its opening credits. Ewan McGregor is a small time journalist, who has just been dumped by his wife for his one-armed editor. Desperate to prove himself as a man, he decides to head off to the Middle East, and report from amidst the fledging conflict in Iraq. There he meets Clooney's former CIA operative, who insists that he was part of a top secret team of physic spies developed to be super soldiers by Jeff Bridges Vietnam veteran - who had turned to spirituality after a traumatic experience in battle. They consider themselves Jedi's, and there's a strong possibility not all of it is bullshit.

This is the third time George Clooney has tackled conflict in the Middle East, after two brilliant efforts in Three Kings and Syriana; both of which caused his stock in Hollywood to rise significantly. Since Paul Newman has passed on, Clooney is now pretty much the sole barer of the 'classic movie star' tag, and once again, he injects a performance with a Coen Brothers level of quirky. His twitches, his more ponderous moments; you buy this character because it's Clooney, and he's exceptional here. McGregor does a solid job, and Bridges is excellent, but Spacey's spanner in the works is cruelly underwritten.

It's a testament to Heslov's ability as a filmmaker that he was able to make the flashbacks work without slowing down the core story of McGregor and Clooney in the desert; but come the last twenty five minutes, proceedings slow to a grinding halt, and the film then ends with a disappointing whimper. For the vast majority of its running time though, The Men Who Stare At Goats is original, funny and strangely informative.

Review by Mike Sheridan