The Men Who Stare at Goats

"No goats. No glory."

2009 1h 34m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 2,491

ComedyWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

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 New Earth Army, a unit that employs paranormal powers in their missions.

“No goats. No glory.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

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

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Grant Heslov
Writers: Peter Straughan
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: United Kingdom, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Grant Heslov, shot by Robert Elswit. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Rolfe Kent. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tatiana S. Riegel shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

George Clooney and Ewan McGregor and Jeff Bridges carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "No goats. No glory.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1234548 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Grant Heslov directs. Robert Elswit behind the camera. Rolfe Kent scores. Tatiana S. Riegel cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United Kingdom, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 17 years ago.
2International production across 2 countries: United Kingdom, United States of America.
3Directed by Grant Heslov, shot by Robert Elswit. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Rolfe Kent. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Tatiana S. Riegel shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6George Clooney and Ewan McGregor and Jeff Bridges carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "No goats. No glory.".
8IMDB entry: tt1234548 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Released under 17 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Robert Elswit
Original score: Rolfe Kent
Editing: Tatiana S. Riegel
Production design: Sharon Seymour
Costume design: Louise Frogley
Makeup / hair: Jay Wejebe
VFX supervisor: Thomas J. Smith
Sound: Matthew Iadarola
Stunt coordinator: Jeffrey Lee Gibson
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $24,000,000
Box office: $68,729,358
Return: 286% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009)

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Grant Heslov

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Peter McGinn2020-04-05
★ 7/10
Considering the star power here (Clooney, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey) I can understand why people might feel somewhat disappointed when they watch it. I mean, the description even mentions the Coen brothers as a basis for comparison. With Jeff Bridges' role, it was difficult not to think of The Big Lebowski, but this film isn't of that caliber. Still, I thought it was entertaining most of the time. There were slow interludes that could have been removed to improve the pacing without harming the story. But if you understand that they aren't going for laugh out loud gags or one-liners, but rather they work for their punch lines or leave you to figure out where the joke is, maybe you can appreciate it more. I will say that the plot seemed a bit disjointed to me. The flashbacks weren't confusing, but in a slower paced film like this one, I think they were sometimes more of a distraction than plot-enhancers. The ending also had an air of an anticlimax to it, like - oh, okay. I guess it fit the laid back mood of the rest of the movie, but they might have done more with it. Still, I liked it. Enough said.

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