By now you’ve almost certainly heard about DIGGER, starring Tom Cruise and directed by master filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu (BIRDMAN, THE REVENANT). It’s a definite departure for Cruise, who many are used to seeing in big budget action movies, and here he’s in heavy old age make-up, masterfully done by Oscar-winning makeup and hair designer Alessandro Bertolazzi. As he often does, Cruise disappears into the character, who as first is a wild and weird archetype of an oil tycoon later in life, faced with a global catastrophe that he may well be responsible for.

When Digger Rockwell is informed by his arctic research team that there’s been a major crack in the ice, he soon realizes his drilling may have created a gigantic ice flow that has broken off and is heading toward Europe, undoubtedly leading to a major death count unless it can be stopped. His sister Emma (Sandra Hüller) is less concerned about his problems and more how this will affect her, and Digger is simultaneously concerned about keeping his nearly dead cat from expiring. He meets with one of his staff advisors (the lead played by Riz Ahmed), and they eventually meet with President Compson (John Goodman) and his staff, including the timid Vice President (Michael Stuhlbarg) to form a plan, but clearly none of them know what to do to solve this major issue, and things are likely to get worse before they get better. That’s about all I can tell you with the plot, as there’s a big reveal that happens not long into the film that will likely make audiences wonder what this is really about, and once you find out, you may be quite confused. Iñárritu directed the film from a screenplay by himself and Oscar-winners Alexander Dinelaris & Nicolás Giacobone, and Sabina Berman. That’s an impressive crew for sure, but don’t get too excited until you see what they delivered.

You can tell just by watching the trailers for DIGGER that this is going to be a weird and quirky film, not a typical Hollywood narrative, but the end result feels a bit too ambitious for its own good. There are some major twists that happen here, and it will likely have most audiences either mildly confused or flat out frustrated. It’s similar (surprisingly) in some ways to BIRDMAN, but where that film excelled for its ambition, this one falters more often than not. The jokes often don’t land, and the performances, while strong and at times powerful, just don’t elevate the overly-bizarre script. This movie feels like Iñárritu was trying to make something across between DR. STRANGLOVE, a dash of Wes Anderson, and a heavy dose of The Coen Brothers… but without the charm and effective humor the Coens do so well. It is visually impressive, but the screenplay never feels as clever as I’d guess they hoped it would be.

Tom Cruise is quite good in the lead, and when he’s fully into the “Digger” character, it’s rather entertaining and engaging. The role gives him a chance to have fun and ham it up, while also playing things mysterious or ambiguous, keeping the audience guessing. But sadly, when the first twist is unveiled (yes, there are multiple odd twists and reveals here), it takes away a lot of what was working in his performance, and feels like a gut punch to the audience, never fully recovering either. John Goodman is also having fun playing the very exaggerated President Compson, a man who knows he’s nearing the end, and doesn’t want to go out on a b bad note, but also foolishly puts his trust in people like Digger or his psychotic military advisors to solve a global problem without thinking it through. In many ways, he seems like a not-so-exaggerated mirror to our current administration and some of the questionable decisions being made right now – that’s not me “getting political”, watch the movie and see if you don’t agree. Riz Ahmed has a few good scenes as Digger’s staff advisor, who can’t seem to keep quiet about the dangerous decisions being made, and Sandra Hüller is an inspired choice playing Digger’s concerned sister, though she isn’t given much to do other than yell at him. Other notable cast members include Michael Stuhlbarg as the nervous Vice President, and Jesse Plemons in a role I can’t reveal without giving away a major spoiler – both are good with what they’re given, but none of these folks can save this complicated production.

DIGGER is an interesting experimental film, and deals a lot with concepts of global warming / fossil fuel abuse, abuse of power, coping with tragedy, and ultimately a father’s love and concern for their child, but it’s all mixed up in a story that falls apart on itself more than it clicks. I can appreciate the effort made with it, and it’s a beautiful-looking movie, but I can’t imagine ever wanting to sit through it again. Tom Cruise took a big chance making this movie, and I admire the risks involved, but I doubt it will be more than an experimental footnote in his otherwise impressive career.

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