Digger is going to go down in history as a fantastic film that suffered from a concoction of all the worst things happening to it. It’s going to be a cult favorite in the future, it’s going to be hailed as one of Tom Cruise’s best performances, it’s going to be known as one of John Goodman’s best performances. I wouldn’t be surprised if they taught Digger in film school. I wouldn’t be surprised if they taught Digger in marketing school.
Looking Good
Let’s talk about the film itself, ignoring how much money it made and didn’t make for now. The movie, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, isn’t necessarily one of Iñárritu’s best works if you consider his filmography. He did a good job, no doubt, and his fingerprints are all over the film. But it’s not all him. A ton of the credit for the way this film looks goes to its cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki, who’s worked with Iñárritu before, and boasts a quietly incredible body of work. Digger is, of the Lubezki films I’ve seen, is probably the most incredible thing he’s done. There isn’t a single inch of a single frame from this movie that didn’t feel incredibly detailed, intentional, and meticulously constructed.
As an aside, I’ve recently been spoiled by a slew of films that looked amazing. At this moment, the reviews aren’t published (or even written (shut up, I’m only falling behind because I’m busy (read: lazy))), but Digger is the latest in the line. Consider Primetime, All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (yes, seriously), The Lighthouse (Pattinson double feature review anyone?), and “Wuthering Heights” (the new Margot Robbie one). I mean. It’s been a stacked set of gorgeous movies.
What I have learned from this series of films is that Digger and Lubezki both deserved a lot more attention. I cannot explain to you why and how. I mean, you tell me. How do you describe a painting. A sculpture. Describe a poem using a song. Use charcoal to express a song. I cannot do it justice.
No, I shall not be ranking which movie had the ‘best’ cinematography, so shut up.
Acting Good
Cruise is going to get the brunt of the praise for his performance- and yes, I know that there are some rumblings of critics panning this movie, and I am sure that they cited Cruise’s performance as a negative factor in this film. Truthfully, though, I don’t know that he can be blamed. Cruise understood the assignment, and the assignment was not an easy one. He’s not just playing a character. Cruise was assigned to play an actor who performs as a character in a play who depicts a less-than-accurate portrayal of a fictional figure: Digger Rockwell.
Man, does Cruise come through. A lot of the weebs on Reddit love to dickride Cruise’s role in Tropic Thunder. They’re not wrong. Yeah, it was good. But enough, ok? Stop karma farming. This isn’t that. Yes, Cruise channels a bit of that over-the-top energy for the eccentric Digger Rockwell, but there is a serious depth and nuance to Cruise’s effort. A lot of people will cite his monologue during the ‘bombing’ scene when it’s fully revealed that the framing of the film is a stageplay. I think people missed the bigger acting moment, which happens at the end of the film.
At the end of the play, and right before the end of the film, Cruise, as Rockwell, suffers a breakdown and delivers a short monologue, but a truly powerhouse performance. That, paired with visuals dripping with irony, and then topped off with his last few lines as Rockwell, was fucking mesmerizing. Absolutely engrossing. A statement to the fact that Cruise, as a performer, has starved the world of his abilities. After leaving us with a series of Mission Impossible movies and the weird Mummy movie, and whatever other blockbuster crap he did, we’ve forgotten what Cruise has always been truly capable of. Fucking entertainment, man.
Another point that I think the discourse will miss is John Goodman’s performance, overshadowed by Cruise and all the other noise. Goodman, playing a strange, unlikely, cartoonishly stupid, and offensively inept president, was a goddamn force in every goddamn scene he was in. Every fucking time he opened his mouth, he was spitting pure fucking gold. God damn was I thoroughly impressed. The man has always had a certain gravitas to him, but it feels like this role, and this movie, was his magnum opus. I mean idk bro I could be wrong. But Goodman was, in my view, the best actor on the screen the entire time.
Miscellaneous Goods and Sads
I also want to take a moment to note the humor in this film, and how every joke hit. From dark humor to slapstick to really deep and character-defining one-liners. It all just hit, man.
It’s a bit weird for me to talk about a movie that’s bombed at the box office and the big headline is about how much money it lost. I did it before, and we’ve even had a parallel film that made a ton of money that I got super into depth about. But this time around it’s a damn shame, truth be told. Digger deserved better.
Finally, I want to warn anyone considering this film. I walked out of the theater feeling markedly heavier. The air felt stiff, my body felt wrong. Every little thing I do and did and wanted and accomplished felt so useless. It’s not news to most people that most movies are supposed to be an escape from reality. Some, like documentaries, are supposed to be more truthful. Horror films give us a chance to reflect on our fears and failures. But movies like Digger? Fuck, man.
I’m thirty years old. I grew up in a world where, while our teachers taught us about water conservation and recycling, my parents wondered if ‘global warming’ was real. A world where I let the Ang Lee Hulk buffer for four hours so I could watch thirty minutes of it in 360p. A world where my mother pulled me out of school in September of 2001. Where I watched people sacrifice their liberties in the name of safety. Where my textbooks had been used and reused until, by the time they got to me, they were flaking apart at the seams. Where the money went to missiles and guns, leading to kids sitting on the floor of classrooms because we couldn’t afford teachers and school buses. I remember switching off my cell phone the night of November 5th, 2024 as I saw the red and blue bars inch towards the center of the graphic.
I didn’t need this shit. I know what’s happening. Anyone who isn’t aggressively apathetic about critically observing the world knows what’s happening. I didn’t need this shit. I know that we’re unraveling because they let the rich guy bribe a bunch of people in swing states and now we’re helpless to stop the series of catastrophes. I know that the playbook is to slam us on a weekly, if not daily, basis, with the most inane, depressing, aggressively callous decisions that hurt and shock as many people as possible, as fast as possible. I don’t need this shit.
If Don’t Look Up scared and depressed you, Digger is going to do exactly that. Again. I didn’t need this shit.
Steel yourself. Hold your loved ones. Go see Digger or you’re not a real cinefile. I rated Digger
GOOD
I actually don’t care if you go see it in the theater or not. I’m not gonna lose any sleep over the newly formed Skydance losing money.
Leave a Reply