The second day of the seven-day series of "The Digger" started with Tom Cruise's challenge to the most difficult role in his acting career. Today we continue to dig deeper. The protagonist is director Aliandro González Inarritu. The reason why this film presents such an unclassifiable appearance actually lies behind his 10-year creative obsession. What really took him the most time was not writing a story, but finding "how to say it."
Director Iñárritu revealed that as early as after completing "Ghost Hunter", the character "Dig" (Digger) had already appeared in his mind, but it was not even a movie at the time. "It was not a script at the time, not a movie, it was just an obsession that continued and followed me."
Iñárritu described that he didn’t know what the final film would look like at the time, but he knew very well who the man he described was, “I know who he is. I know how he talks, how he survives, and how he seduces reality and makes it agree with his ideas.” Therefore, the really long work of these 10 years was to find an expression that best suits this character. “I’m not looking for a story, I’m looking for a way to tell it correctly.”
This has also become an important clue to understand "The Diggers". On the surface, the movie has a rather absurd setting: The world's richest man, Dee Glockwell, causes an ecological disaster that may destroy the world due to his own business, but in turn tries to prove that he is the one to save mankind.
This story could be made into a political satire, a disaster movie, or even a black comedy, but Iñárritu does not lock it into any one genre, but allows drama, humor, absurdity, politics, environmental crisis and personal emotion to coexist, creating a tone that is difficult to define with a single label.
Iñárritu’s requirement for “accuracy” is especially evident in a large-scale long shot in the film. This scene brought together Tom Cruise, the main actors, and about 300 extras. The crew spent several months preparing. Everything from lines and movements to everyone's position had to be accurately controlled, and the camera had to move on a crane. Therefore, Iñárritu described "every second is important" and even said: "If there is one mistake, one word, one hesitation, one stutter, it's over!"
Before the official filming, Iñárritu gave Tom Cruise 7 instructions at once. After hearing this, Tom Cruise only replied: "Okay, I understand." The director was still uneasy and asked again: "Are you sure?" He still only replied: "I understand." Then the camera started shooting, and Cruise really completed all the requirements.
Looking back on this scene, Iñárritu still wonders: "How did he do it? How could he understand the movements of the body, the space, the silence, the shouting, the aggression, the vulnerability, the rhythm of dancing with the camera, and know every detail?"
Iñárritu even described Tom Cruise as the "sun" in this scene: "Tom drives the whole dance. If he fails, everything will collapse. He is the sun of these satellites." In this huge scene, all actors have their own positions, but everyone's rhythm must ultimately revolve around Tom. This also explains why Iñárritu needs such a long time to prepare. He does not simply ask the actors to perform the play well, but to make hundreds of elements collide accurately at the same moment.
Interestingly, this creative method of constantly revising, polishing, and re-searching for the best answer also gives the title "Diggers" another layer of meaning. In the film, Digger keeps digging, trying to dig out the answers he needs from the world; and Iñárritu has actually been digging, from the characters to the form and language of the film.
This question may hit the core of Inarritu's creation. From a character who could not be forgotten 10 years ago, to the moment he finally appears on the screen, he has never stopped asking "can we go a little deeper?"
After him, actors continued to explore the characters, and photography, editing, art, costumes, and sound worked together to explore the world. From this point of view, the "digger" may not only be the oil tycoon in the film who tries to control the world, but also the attitude adopted by a group of creators when facing their works, constantly digging until they find the most accurate answer.
"Diggers" will be released in Taiwan on October 2. The 2D, IMAX, Dolby Cinema and Dolby Vision Atmos versions will be released simultaneously. A limited word-of-mouth screening will be launched on October 1.
