" Tune in, Turn on, Drop out and may the Force be with you "

Rating: 6/10 (28 March 2010)

The U.S. Military seems to be composed of two different types of men. The first are incredibly courageous to whom our nation owes its gratitude. The second are those who believe our enemies are always experimenting with foolish and outlandish ideas. Thus our country needs to create an equally ridiculous force to counter it. In this film, we have Bob Wilton, a newspaper reporter (Ewan McGregor) who's lost at the game of love and now seeks his destiny in the middle East conflict of Iraq. Along the way he meets Lyn Cassady (George Clooney) a mysterious new age American soldier who convinces Wilton, he is part of a secretive unit composed of mental Psychics who plan on changing the armies of the world with their mental powers. Jeff Bridges plays Bill Django, the leader of the group. Kevin Spacey is Larry Hooper, who seeks to gain control of the project for his own agenda. Stephen Lang is convincing as Brigadier General Dean Hopgood. Robert Patrick plays Todd Nixon who is believable as a traveling salesman out to tap into the lucrative Iraqi market. The use of mind bending drugs and alternative mental training is one of the many paths attempted by the military. The unusual premise does make good theater but its' questionable as the audience is unsure whether this is serious comedy or only silly drama. With such star power as herein contained, it should produce an Academy award. However, try as it may, the movie becomes rather tedious and lacks adherence to one or the other. In the end, the great ensemble is wasted on a project which should have hired the members from Staturday night live. A sincere but interesting film. ***