Digger
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
Starring: Tom Cruise, Riz Ahmed, John Goodman
Genre: Triump
Digger is all or nothing depending upon your political and environmental perspective and your impression of Tom Cruise. Reviews have also been scathing or embracing.
Part of the criticism is thinking that Cruise took on this film because it acknowledges massive potential negative impacts of climate change and (probably) Donald Trump, in order to win an Academy Award, something Cruise has never done. However, while the Oscars are mostly historically left-wing, and the movie is very left-wing, it will be interesting if a film of very mixed opinion is deserving of an Academy Award.
Irrespective of that, Digger is a curiously and intensely scripted, produced and acted movie. That’s another reason why I really liked it but why a large proportion of regular movie viewers and reviewers won’t fully appreciate or understand what was happening or why.
Of great interest is the core story concept of the actors, including well-known actors such as Tom Cruise and John Goodman, acting as actors in a movie and stage play. This reminded me of a great and obscure 2026 Sydney Film Festival from Tajikistan and UAE film, Black Rabbit, White Rabbit, where the actors played actors who were portraying actors acting! Unfortunately it won’t get a general release in Australia.
So, irrespective of whether you’re a Tom Cruise fan and like or dislike lots of his films, I recommend you watch Digger. It’s interesting, curious and odd, and whether you like it or not, that is a good thing as the vast majority of big-budget mainstream films are conservative, safe, simple and repetitive. Digger isn’t.
Rating: Five cruises
