The Men Who Stare at Goats

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.

Critics landed in a roughly even split on this George Clooney-led military satire, finding it intermittently amusing but too toothless to land its stranger-than-fiction premise with any real bite. The dark comedy never quite commits to its own absurdity, leaving the film feeling like it coasts on charm rather than earns its laughs — though Clooney's performance stood out as a consistent bright spot even for detractors.