---
title: "Digger: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/digger/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/digger"
critics_score: 47
critics_reviews: 33
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Digger (2026): what the critics said

Critics' score 47 from 33 reviews: 9 positive, 8 mixed, 16 negative.

The reviews lean negative, and even those who recommend the film describe it as divisive. Most critics agree it is ambitious: an abrasive, farcical climate satire built around a Tom Cruise transformation. The praise clusters on the craft and the star. Cruise’s uninhibited, committed performance is admired across the spread, even by critics who dislike the film, and Riz Ahmed is repeatedly named the supporting standout. The production design and Emmanuel Lubezki’s long-take cinematography draw consistent credit.

The reservations cluster on the satire itself. A large group finds it toothless, didactic and short on laughs, with hectoring monologues and incessant shouting in place of wit. The spread is wide, from five stars at the Evening Standard to half a star at Slant. The trade and entertainment press are warmest; the British broadsheets are harshest. A few, including Screen Daily and The i Paper, break from the consensus on Cruise, arguing he never convinces as a Texas oilman.

## Evening Standard — Nick Howells

Rating 5/5. 29 September 2026. 

Howells finds the film audacious, risky and terrific fun, while praising Cruise’s grandstanding performance. He also singles out the film’s climate-change warning as it builds toward a heartbreaking conclusion.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/digger-film-review-tom-cruise-john-goodman-b1298722.html)

## The New Yorker — Justin Chang

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2026. 

Chang finds the film a daring, meticulously realized, proudly unlikable comedy of errors that is ultimately more invigorating than depressing. He especially praises the production design and the playful visual craft, which he says transcend gimmickry.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/10/12/digger-movie-review)

## Radio Times — Rosie Fletcher

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 1 October 2026. 

Fletcher describes the film as brilliant but sometimes overwhelming. The farcical satire’s dense richness is singled out as both a strength and a drawback.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/digger-tom-cruise-review/)

## The New York Times

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 1 October 2026. 

The page is identifiable as a review, but its text is inaccessible. Its verdict and any specifically praised or criticized element cannot be determined.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/01/movies/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-inarritu.html)

## Time Out

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 

The accessible page identifies this as a review of the supplied film, but exposes no critical verdict. No specific element of praise or complaint is available in the page text.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/digger-2026)

## IndieWire — David Ehrlich

Rating C+. 29 September 2026. 

Ehrlich calls the film a surreal misfire, though a nobler and more rewarding failure than Iñárritu’s earlier films. He praises its darkly funny final shot while faulting its clumsy comedy and overextended satire.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/digger-movie-review-tom-cruise-1235219051/)

## Los Angeles Times — Amy Nicholson

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Nicholson finds the film a strange, bleak satire that she does not entirely love, but is glad it exists. She praises Cruise’s energetic performance and the film’s audacious excess, while faulting its weak play-within-the-film and limp subplot.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-09-29/digger-review-tom-cruise-john-goodman-riz-ahmed-sandra-huller-jesse-plemons-alejandro-gonzales-innaritu)

## The AV Club — Monica Castillo

Rating C-. 29 September 2026. 

Castillo finds the film a stylish but shallow misfire, with its environmental critique obvious and its spectacle outweighing emotional depth. She praises Cruise’s entertaining, uninhibited performance, which she says helps keep the film from collapsing completely.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-inarritu-all-style-no-substance)

## Little White Lies — Hannah Strong

Rating 3/2/3. 29 September 2026. 

Strong finds the satire toothless and overstuffed, with little meaningful target. She singles out the elaborate production design and unsettling cinematography as the film’s greatest assets.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/digger)

## The Independent — Clarisse Loughrey

Rating 2/5. 30 September 2026. 

Loughrey finds the satire frustrating and insufficiently sharp, despite admiring Iñárritu’s boldness. She praises the cast’s high-farce performances, especially Riz Ahmed’s comedic timing.

[Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/digger-tom-cruise-alejandro-inarritu-review-b3058708.html)

## Sight and Sound

Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 2 October 2026. 

The critic finds the satire frequently unwieldy and unfunny, though still compulsively watchable. They praise Cruise’s charismatic performance and the film’s imaginative production design and striking cinematography.

[Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/digger-unwieldy-compulsively-watchable-satire)

## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri

Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Ebiri finds the film torturous and often self-defeating, though its underlying environmental despair ultimately gives it weight. He praises the sadness and horror beneath the grandstanding while faulting the noisy style and structural gambit.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/review-digger-is-a-brazen-act-of-self-sabotage.html)

## Empire — Olly Richards

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Richards finds the film visually impressive but ultimately disappointing and lacking depth. He praises Cruise’s committed performance and the cinematography and production design, while faulting the characters and hectoring monologues.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/digger/)

## Variety — Owen Gleiberman

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Gleiberman finds the satire overbearing and self-important, with its climate-disaster warning delivered too didactically to be funny. He praises Cruise’s fiery performance in a speech that briefly gives the film’s argument real force.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2026/film/reviews/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-g-inarritu-1236872535/)

## Screen Daily — Tim Grierson

Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Grierson finds the film an ambitious but shallow misfire. He singles out Tom Cruise’s failure to convince as a bullish Texas oilman.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/digger-review-tom-cruise-fails-to-convince-as-a-bullish-texas-oilman-in-alejandro-g-inarritus-ambitious-misfire/5220616.article)

## The i Paper — Francesca Steele

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Steele argues that Cruise’s performance fails to convince, despite the film’s ambitious transformation and farcical premise. She singles out his self-conscious, overly grand approach to acting as the reason the mirror scene and the character do not land.

[Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/tom-cruise-forgotten-act-4788554)

## The Observer — Wendy Ide

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2026. 

Ide finds the film aggravating, overblown and ultimately empty despite its timely subject. She praises Riz Ahmed’s performance, while criticizing the film’s excess and self-importance.

[Read the review](https://observer.co.uk/culture/film/article/digger-is-a-brash-self-indulgent-eco-satire-with-nothing-to-say)

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Bradshaw judges the film a disappointing, shallow, laborious satire. He praises its dreamlike, disturbing imagery, while finding the performances and storytelling weak.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/sep/29/digger-review-tom-cruise-satire-alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu)

## Slant Magazine — Keith Uhlich

Rating 0.5/4. 29 September 2026. 

Uhlich dismisses the film as a toothless satire that becomes an ego stroke for Tom Cruise. He singles out the incessant shouting and distorted cinematography as especially grating.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/)

## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney

Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Rooney finds the film an exhausting, self-indulgent failure with little meaningful insight. He particularly criticizes its witless writing and farcical plotting, while noting Riz Ahmed’s performance as a rare source of nuance.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-g-inarritu-1236713730/)

## Collider — Victoria Luxford

Rating 9/10. 29 September 2026. 

The critic calls the film an audacious, powerful swing that may divide audiences. She praises Tom Cruise’s daring performance and singles out Riz Ahmed as the supporting cast’s standout.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/tom-cruise-digger-review/)

## Consequence — Liz Shannon Miller

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

The critic says the film’s nihilistic anger pays off brilliantly and calls it a bold, politically pointed cautionary tale. She especially praises Tom Cruise’s commanding, ego-free performance, highlighting a dizzying sequence before European leaders.

[Read the review](https://consequence.net/2026/09/digger-review-movie-tom-cruise/)

## Deadline — Pete Hammond

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Hammond finds the film an ambitious, divisive satire that ultimately moves and entertains while urging audiences to confront humanity’s destructive choices. He especially praises Tom Cruise’s startling transformation and powerful performance, including a standout monologue.

[Read the review](https://deadline.com/2026/09/digger-review-tom-cruise-movie-1237115519/)

## The Playlist — Rodrigo Perez

Rating B+. 29 September 2026. 

Perez finds the film divisive but unusually thoughtful, with its audacious shift in perspective making it more layered than its abrasive opening suggests. He praises the visual energy of Emmanuel Lubezki’s long takes, while noting that the film’s relentless intensity and self-consciousness can become exhausting.

[Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-g-inarritu-20260929/)

## HeyUGuys

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 

The review finds the film ambitious and rewarding despite occasional narrative disjointedness and overworked comedy. It especially praises Tom Cruise’s committed, unconventional performance.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/digger-review/)

## /Film — Bill Bria

Rating 7/10. 29 September 2026. 

The review finds the film an abrasive, uneven satire that ultimately becomes engaging and admirable. It singles out Tom Cruise’s fearless performance for giving the story emotional depth and scope.

[Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/2271749/digger-review-tom-cruise/)

## Polygon — Jake Kleinman

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

The critic finds Digger an ambitious, often funny but bleakly unsettling apocalypse comedy, though its twists sometimes undercut its message. Tom Cruise’s commanding performance and the film’s uncanny production design stand out for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.polygon.com/digger-review-tom-cruise/)

## Digital Spy — Ian Sandwell

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

Sandwell finds Digger ambitious and often entertaining, but ultimately flawed and short on substance. He praises Tom Cruise’s captivating performance and the striking production design, while faulting the script for lacking depth.

[Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a73924133/digger-review-tom-cruise/)

## Den of Geek — David Crow

Rating 2.5/5. 29 September 2026. 

Crow finds the film audacious and watchable but ultimately undone by its uneven, self-important satire. He praises Cruise’s hypnotic, unhinged performance, while faulting the film for failing to be funny.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/digger-review-tom-cruise/)

## The Ringer — Adam Nayman

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 5 October 2026. 

Nayman finds the film overbearing and largely unsuccessful, despite its provocative ideas. He praises the fascination of watching Iñárritu dismantle his own elaborate filmmaking contraptions, while faulting the relentless way the film presses its arguments.

[Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2026/10/05/movies/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-inarritu)

## NME

Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 

The critic finds the film visually striking but ultimately messy and disappointing. They praise the vivid cinematography and production design, while faulting the over-clever structure and lack of laughs.

[Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/digger-review-tom-cruise-alejandro-inarritu-john-goodman-3971615)

## Film Stories — Ryan Lambie

Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2026. 

Lambie finds the satire shrill and emotionally empty, despite its ambitious ideas. He praises the visual ingenuity and captivating practical effects and set design, but says they cannot give the film anything to cling to.

[Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/digger-review-no-no-dig-up-stupid/)

## The Wrap

Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2026. 

The critic pans the film as shallow, self-congratulatory satire that pulls its punches. They single out the production design and Tom Cruise’s performance as its strengths.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/reviews/digger-review-tom-cruise/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/digger.md