The Freak's Rating: C- : Wasted potential is on display in The Men Who Stare At Goats and in perhaps the saddest form we've seen it in a few years. Why studios elect to give a chance to a virtually unknown director with a cast of this caliber I will never understand. Grant Heslov, an actor in nearly a hundred films, has attempted to make the jump to director and does so very poorly here.
Jeff Bridges continues to be at the top of my list for underappreciated actors. For those who haven't seen The Big Lebowski, stop reading this review immediately and go purchase a copy. Purchase? Trust me, you'll watch it a few times. Bridges is regenerated here in a virtually identical role to The Dude and nearly pitch perfect with his dialogue at times. Clooney is annoyingly dry as the film's lead, Lyn Cassidy, and Ewan McGregor is semi-tolerable in his role. Kevin Spacey is wasted in a throwaway role as a sabateur and the remainder of the cast seems like they could have been SO much more.
Had the Coen brothers snatched up the helm of this one, we could have been looking at the best comedy of the year. Instead, despite an interesting story and an amazing cast, the film is sluggish to conclude in the final act and barely makes you chuckle with its final gasp. The first third is quite amusing, despite being a complete redo of previous comedies with edge. Sad, just sad that all this has to go to waste.
