Review: Iñárritu’s ‘Digger’ Is an Empty Trick With Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise and Riz Ahmed star in “Digger,” a new Warner Bros. Pictures release directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu. The film, which marks Iñárritu’s eighth feature, has been met with harsh criticism for prioritizing technical spectacle over narrative substance. Reviewers describe the movie as a “drab-looking gewgaw” that desperately clings to profundity but ultimately delivers empty-headed trickery.

Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, a Texas oil tycoon whose performance is obscured beneath heavy cookie-dough prosthetics. In the opening scenes, Rockwell attempts to save his long-haired cat, which appears to be an animatronic prop rather than a living animal. Despite the artificial nature of the creature, Cruise delivers an intense performance that reviewers found difficult to read, describing his attachment as pathetic rather than touching. The cat serves little more than as a minor plot device and is eventually forgotten.

The film is visually dominated by gray tones, a aesthetic choice made by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki that encompasses interiors, skies, and character skin. The narrative functions as an environmental parable, following Rockwell after he receives advance warning of a cataclysmic event caused by his oil operations. Though he possesses insider knowledge, he takes no action to prevent the disaster. Riz Ahmed appears as Rockwell’s nervous environmental adviser, who struggles to manage the fallout of his boss’s guilt.

A central scene involves Rockwell addressing a tribunal of world leaders. His speech, which argues that oil is synonymous with freedom and that American consumers are complicit in the sins of big oil, was intended to be a powerful moment. However, critics found the monologue to be a scolding rant that beat the audience down rather than energizing them. The film also reveals that Rockwell is actually a character in a play, with Cruise portraying the actor within the production. This meta-narrative device draws comparisons to Iñárritu’s previous work, such as the one-shot illusion in “Birdman” and the grueling conditions endured by actors in “The Revenant.” Critics argue that these approaches insult professionals by prioritizing directorial gimmicks over genuine storytelling.

“Digger” was cowritten by Iñárritu, Sabina Berman, Alexander Dinelaris Jr., and Nicolás Giacobone, with the story credited to Iñárritu, Berman, and Jez Butterworth. The ensemble cast includes John Goodman as the U.S. president, Jesse Plemons as an audience member, and Sandra Hüller in a fleeting role. Reviewers noted that these talented performers were wasted on grotesque close-ups and minimal material. Ultimately, the film is characterized as an aggressively unfunny farce where Cruise’s performance feels like an advertisement for his own acting prowess rather than a genuine dramatic effort. The movie is described as reverse-engineered awards bait that insists on its own genius while failing to dig for any real truth.