I was thinking for a minute about how to caption this movie, and as you can see, I went with 'interesting', that wonderful word you can use when you really don't know what to make of something but want to be polite. I'm not just being polite though, it really was interesting. The movie was advertised as a comedy, and the basic premise clearly sets it up in this manner. Yet despite its often quirky, sometimes hilarious moments, the movie seems conflicted as to what it sets out to be. There are some allusions to controversial practices of the US military such as those seen in Abu Ghraib which had me trying to interpret the movie as a satirical depiction of military transgressions. Such critique is not pointed enough to amount to a real persiflage, however. The result was not so much a thought-provoking comedy, perhaps the intended effect, but rather a movie where the viewer is tempted to over-intellectualize about its purpose while watching it - not a good sign.
As to the performances, the acting was satisfactory, but nobody really shone. Then again, I didn't find any of the characters to be complex enough to inspire or require above-average acting. Even though he is an accomplished actor easily up to the task, I kept wondering whether Ewan McGregor was cast simply because he was Obi-Wan Kenobi in the new Star Wars movies, or whether that was just an added bonus for the director to play with. Either way, I'm afraid they overdid the Jedi references, which were funny at most the first two or three times.
These flaws notwithstanding, the movie is interesting because it really makes you want to jump on Wikipedia and check out what is known about the actual US Army Psy-Ops project (which I'm going to do after writing this review, I know I've heard that the staring at goats actually happened). I definitely did not regret watching this movie, though I do not know whether I would have gone to see it in the theater if I'd known what it was like. I recommend catching it on pay-per-view or renting it at blockbuster.
As to the performances, the acting was satisfactory, but nobody really shone. Then again, I didn't find any of the characters to be complex enough to inspire or require above-average acting. Even though he is an accomplished actor easily up to the task, I kept wondering whether Ewan McGregor was cast simply because he was Obi-Wan Kenobi in the new Star Wars movies, or whether that was just an added bonus for the director to play with. Either way, I'm afraid they overdid the Jedi references, which were funny at most the first two or three times.
These flaws notwithstanding, the movie is interesting because it really makes you want to jump on Wikipedia and check out what is known about the actual US Army Psy-Ops project (which I'm going to do after writing this review, I know I've heard that the staring at goats actually happened). I definitely did not regret watching this movie, though I do not know whether I would have gone to see it in the theater if I'd known what it was like. I recommend catching it on pay-per-view or renting it at blockbuster.