TV tip of the day: Men who stare at goats - The Men Who Stare at Goats

Today at 23:15 runs on SRF2 the film “Men Who Stare at Goats” is based on a 2004 book by Welsh author John Ronson. It was about army research into how New Age concepts could be used in conjunction with paranormal abilities, to create a new kind of super soldier. In 2009, this film was made, which comes across as a laconic, funny military satire with a star cast.

What came first in the world: madness or the military? Anyone who has become curious because of the brilliant title can look forward to great actors, especially Jeff Bridges and George Clooney, and a wonderfully bizarre introduction. The screenwriter wrote a lot of self-irony into the text of the character played by Ewan McGregor, but unfortunately Kevin Spacey remains a bit pale in his portrayal of his supporting role. Director Grant Heslov bases his satire on a factual report. The US Army is said to have founded a special commando during the Vietnam War that trained “super-warriors” using transcendental meditation. The most experienced were said to have the ability to walk through walls using willpower and kill goats simply by staring at them. The plot is neither fish nor bird, for a (bizarre) military satire the absurdities are not consistent enough throughout the entire duration of the film, for a "serious" satire or military criticism the film is too weird and at the same time the plot is not clearly recognizable enough. But certain similarities to classics of the genre such as Robert Altman's “MASH” or Mike Nichols' “Catch-22” can also be seen. So if you like bizarre comedy you should watch the film, it will definitely give you a lot of smiles...

Reporter Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) finds out how far the military is willing to go when it comes to nonsense when he comes across washed-up ex-soldier Lyn Cassady (George Clooney) in Iraq while looking for a scoop. He claims to have trained as a paranormal US super soldier in the 1980s - and is absolutely convinced of his "Jedi powers" - so convinced that he, Bob in tow, goes on a private mission across Iraq. His former trainer, Bill Django (Jeff Bridges), is missing. On a journey across crazy Kurdistan, Lyn reveals to him the history of the "New Earth Army", a US special unit for paranormal warfare. This in turn is primarily the story of Bill Django, who becomes enlightened during a mission in Vietnam. Since then, with the support of the US Army, he has been working to revolutionize warfare using new age techniques. Spiritual naked experiences in the whirlpool are just the beginning. Later he wrote the manifesto for a New Earth Army and now - the 80s have now arrived - he is really serious. A select few, including Lyn Cassady, are trained to become “super soldiers” who, once they have achieved Jedi Knight status, will eventually be able to look like a tree when sitting in a tree, or hamsters and goats to kill just by concentrating on staring.

Men who stare at goats - Trailer German [HD]