Substance once again gets short shrift in Alejandro Iñárritu's stylish mess Digger

Tom Cruise, the veteran star of action films, appears to have lost his spark in recent years. His roles in movies such as the Mission Impossible series and his previous efforts, Top Gun and Days Of Thunder, have seemed like repetitive performances. This trend was evident in Alejandro González Iñárritu's latest film, Digger, which struggled to captivate audiences. Despite Cruise's strong presence, Iñárritu's ambitious vision seemed to overpower the substance of the story.

Cruise played the role of Digger Rockwell, a wealthy Texas oilman whose business operations have expanded globally. On a typical morning, Digger starts his day by caring for his aging cat, which has outlived its usefulness due to Digger's habit of getting his way at any cost. The film begins with Digger learning of a catastrophic event in Greenland, where his equipment caused a glacier shelf to collapse and destroy continental Europe, resulting in massive loss of life.

Summoned to a war room with the President (John Goodman) and a team of scientists led by Ganesh (Riz Ahmed), Digger faces the daunting task of presenting an alternative narrative as the world grapples with the consequences of global warming. Unlike many of Cruise's other roles, Iñárritu chose to cast him in a complex and nuanced character, providing him with a substantial role for the first time in years.

While Iñárritu's Digger explores themes of environmental destruction and the destructive nature of human ego, it unfortunately falls short in delivering a compelling message. The film's environmental theme is reminiscent of Don't Look Up, but with a slightly different set of villains, namely a pompous oilman rather than a goofy tech guru. However, the film fails to provide any new insight or depth to its message, ultimately relying on the same blunt force to hammer home its point.

Cruise's performance is the film's only redeeming factor, as he delivers a fiery and eccentric portrayal of Digger, reminiscent of his role in Tropic Thunder. Iñárritu's cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki, and the film's visual effects also contributed to the movie's garishly colorless aesthetic, which detracted from the overall impact of the story. Despite the film's ambitious intentions, it ultimately falls flat, leaving the audience with the same sense of despair and lack of progress.