Alejandro Iñárritu has always had a knack for the twisty route into a narrative. Babel’s interwoven tale transcends clean linear chronology and geography alike. Birdman follows a fictionalized Michael Keaton as his inner turmoil–and the surreal legacy of his superhero alter-ego, Birdman–haunt him during his attempt to pivot into theater. Bardo centers on a journalist having an existential crisis while plagued with visions. Digger, his latest surreal tour of character psyches and odd worlds, is another mind-bending outing. It’s a funny, surprisingly angry turn anchored in surrealism and absurdism. It doesn’t always work and is far from his most accessible film, but Tom Cruise is exceptional, its lessons are timely, and the aspects that work land well.
In the film, Tom Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, an oil tycoon of the ‘ignore environmental impacts and never let anyone tell you what to do’ variety. His neglect causes a crack in a major ice shelf that finally breaks, sending a massive mountain of ice drifting toward Europe. President Compson (John Goodman) puts Digger in charge of addressing the disaster he caused, with scientist Ganesh (Riz Ahmed) in tow, but Digger’s ego and money lust are in the way. I won’t spoil what happens, but there’s also a meta aspect that creates very relevant changes in the tale… you’ll have to see those for yourself.
Tom Cruise, Riz Ahmed, and Jesse Plemons Shine
Nearly every character in Digger is larger than life, but its best character work ironically comes from both its most maximalist character and its most relatable. As the greedy pile of old bravado that is Digger himself, Cruise is exceptional. It’s his best character work in years, thoroughly transforming into the old, eccentric world destroyer with full commitment backed by his ample charisma. That charisma is perfect and well utilized here… Digger is worthy of animus, but it’s hard not to watch.
He plays well off Riz Ahmed’s frequently flabbergasted scientist, often a voice of reason and the audience stand-in, reacting to irrational decisions by powerful men with disgust. Ahmed becomes more unhinged as their harms mount. Ahmed lands some of the film’s best dialogue in a fantastic performance that gets more entertaining as things progress. Sandra Hüller is characteristically solid as Digger’s sibling and business partner, Emma, though she’s relevantly underutilized.
The absurdist comedic elements are occasionally good for a proper laugh, and they do make more sense when the film’s meta-fictional specifics are revealed, but they’re off-putting before audiences are in the know.
The often great John Goodman puts his whole heart into Compson, but the oddness of the portrayal makes for a tough watch, especially combined with the eccentric angles he’s often captured with. Some of the film’s stranger choices make more sense in the context of its meta-aspects, which are hard to discuss in depth without spoilers, but it’s sometimes grating even in that larger view. I also wish I could say more about Jesse Plemons’ Kenny, but he lands one of the film’s best monologues and frequently steals scenes with his flawlessly delivered dry comedy.
A Surreal, Angry Journey With Too Many Layers
Digger’s surrealism lands it closer to Birdman than The Revenant, but it contains a greater degree of absurdism than Birdman does. Both films use metafictional elements to blur the reality of the film’s world, but there’s a greater degree of comedy in Digger, which is punctuated regularly by comically unbelievable situations and dialogue. While some of that dialogue is genuinely funny, the level of absurdity makes the overall surrealism less successful and palatable as Birdman.
It takes a relevant amount of time to adjust the viewer to the film, between characters who don’t read ‘real’, odd camera angles, and situations that feel contrived or logically incomplete in their presentation… It’s easy to feel that we’re missing something important, and even accounting for the meta-fictional aspects I can’t discuss, it doesn’t always work. While I appreciated the film more as it rolled along, the first 30 minutes were tedious and mostly inaccessible.
Outside some comedic moments that work well, a few great monologues, and committed performances that (at their best) are engaging, Digger’s undercurrent of anger is additionally refreshing. Birdman left considerable room to empathize with Keaton’s Riggan despite a litany of flaws and failings, but it lays bare Digger’s moral depravity and the near sociopathy of the U.S. political and business elite. It squarely takes on their greedy willingness to decimate the Earth and doom us all for a dollar, and calling attention to that villainy (while heavily implying its connection to our real world) is transparent. Digger delivers thinly-veiled rage with surrealistic flair, and when it hits those notes, it’s electric.
Digger Is a Complex Mixed Bag With Brilliant Moments
Regrettably, while that’s an excellent element of a complex film, not everything works in the film’s narrative approach. The absurdist comedic elements are occasionally good for a proper laugh, and they do make more sense when the film’s meta-fictional specifics are revealed, but they’re off-putting before audiences are in the know. Certain aspects of specific performances are grating and ‘odd,’ and there’s an inaccessibility to the film that undercuts the important things it has to say. It’s a clever set of plot devices, sure, but often too clever if Iñárritu hopes to find traction beyond committed fans of strange cinema. Digger is full of the kind of huge, full-body swings that hit home runs when the attempt works, but it’s a hefty stumble when it doesn’t work.
As a whole, Digger is bold and inventive. It’s full of funny moments and boasts a timely purpose, almost destined to generate discussion. Cruise is electric throughout–it’s easily his best and most transformed performance since 2004’s Collateral, and both Riz Ahmed and Jesse Plemons have flawless presence and delivery in their respective roles. All that said, it’s far from accessible and fairly grating in some of its most experimental moments. Because of the oddity of these moments, otherwise amazing performers give mere caricatures here. It’s great that Iñárritu continues to take risks and make bold films, but it’s also frustrating that a film with important things to say houses them in an uncompromising package they sometimes get lost in. It’s a good film with moments of greatness, but they require considerable excavation.
Digger heads to theaters October 2nd, 2026.
For more Reviews, make sure to check back to That Hollywood Show.
Reviews