Alejandro G. Iñárritu has spent his career pushing cinema toward the operatic - shattered timelines, impossible landscapes, characters dangling over the edge of the abyss. So when word broke that his next film would be a comedy-drama starring Tom Cruise as a billionaire trying to outrun a catastrophe he caused himself, eyebrows went up. Six weeks after its September 28 release, those eyebrows have settled into something closer to admiration. Digger isn't just a curiosity at your local theater - it's the reason to leave the couch.
The premise is pure Iñárritu mischief. Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, billed in the official synopsis as "the most powerful man in the world," who launches a frantic campaign to convince humanity he's its savior before the disaster he personally unleashed swallows everything. That's a lot of pressure for one man, and Cruise - working with a filmmaker famous for wringing raw desperation out of his leads - gets to play the panic behind the power. It's a role that lets him sprint, scheme, and spiral, often in the same scene.
What's striking is the ensemble around him. Riz Ahmed plays Dr. Nirav Ganesh, presumably the voice of reason - or at least the voice of scientific doom - while John Goodman steps in as President Compson, a casting choice that practically guarantees some uncomfortable Oval Office comedy. Sandra Hüller, riding high on the international acclaim she's built over the past few years, appears as Emma Rockwell, and Michael Stuhlbarg brings his signature coiled energy to Vice President Eddie. Add Jesse Plemons as Kenny, Robert John Burke as General Fitzgerald, and Emma D'Arcy as Lina, and you've got one of the more stacked call sheets of the fall season.
At 129 minutes, the film asks for a full evening's commitment - but critics and early audiences seem to think it's earned. TMDb currently shows a 7.485 out of 10, a solid score for a genre hybrid that could easily have slipped into tonal chaos. Comedy and drama are uneasy bedfellows under the best of circumstances, and Iñárritu isn't exactly known for light touches. Yet the numbers suggest viewers are connecting with whatever alchemy he and Cruise have cooked up.
There's also something to be said for the sheer novelty of the pairing. Cruise has spent the last decade-plus as Hollywood's most reliable action engine, strapping himself to jets and motorcycles in the name of entertainment. Here, he's exercising different muscles - the ones that require him to talk, plead, and scheme rather than sprint across a rooftop. For moviegoers who've watched him dangle from aircraft and wondered what else he had in the tank, Digger offers an answer.
And let's talk about the title itself. In a release slate crowded with sequels, reboots, and superhero retreads, a movie called Digger - with an original premise, an auteur director, and a genuine movie star swinging for something strange - feels like the kind of gamble that used to define Hollywood's fall calendar. The film is an English-language Hollywood production through and through, but it carries the eccentric, director-driven energy that used to be the norm rather than the exception. That alone makes it worth a ticket.
None of this is to say Digger is guaranteed to work for everyone. Iñárritu films tend to provoke as much as they please, and a comedy-drama about a self-styled savior wielding unchecked power will inevitably read differently to different audiences. Some will find the satire too broad; others will wish it cut deeper. But the conversation is the point. This is a movie that wants to be argued about, not just consumed. The 7.485 rating suggests more people are leaning toward the "in on the joke" camp than the alternative.
What's clear is that Digger deserves the multiplex slot it's occupying this fall. It's got a director with an unmistakable vision, a star testing new waters, a supporting cast that reads like a wish list, and a premise that's impossible to shrug off. If you've been waiting for a reason to head back to the theater for something that isn't a franchise installment, this is it. October's release calendar is full of safe bets - Digger is the one that actually swings.
Check your local showtimes. Fitting for a character trying to outrun his own apocalypse, this one's worth catching before it disappears.
Source: WSJ
