TIFF 2009 Day 1: Grant Heslov’s The Men Who Stare At Goats

I had this sense that The Men Who Stare at Goats was like a first time attempt at a meal from the pages of a recipe book. Grant Heslov works with some zany material here, which provides some giggles, some medium sized laughs and reminds the viewer how much you can get out of a long shot, but I felt there were undercooked portions. The compact 90 minute runtime serves the parody well, especially in moments where goofiness and episodic nature of the film don’t hit the mark. One thing is for sure – I think I’m getting tired of narration via McGregor.