(**1/2)
What the ….?
It’s likely moviegoers will be perplexed by the opening scenes of this bombastic, cautionary satire. The initial, deceptively idyllic visuals throw you off track: A picture window frames a placid scene. Heavenly light pours from a chandelier fit for Versailles. A palatial, 18th-century-looking bedroom reeks of elegance—a boudoir only a billionaire could afford.
Digger Rockwell (Tom Cruise), an eccentric Texas oil baron, is worried about his sickly, scrawny white cat. But he has bigger issues on his plate than the ailing feline. Underlings warn him that a disaster involving a Greenland glacier could destroy his company and endanger vast numbers of people, especially those living in coastal areas.
That’s the bare-bones premise of the overwrought, excessively talky screenplay by writer-director Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Alexander Dinelaris, Nicolás Giacobone and Sabina Berman, based on a story by Berman, Iñárritu and Jez Butterworth. The apparent goal is to warn the world about the catastrophic consequences of environmental negligence—disasters that can start locally and spread globally. That’s the gist. But before viewers reach that conclusion, they have to endure two hours of screaming, arguing and chaos.
Why the hell would anyone sit through this attack on the senses by a chorus of blustery men? In addition, the central character, a narcissistic rich guy, is so damn repulsive. Overconfident like Musk. Insensitive like Bezos. Self-absorbed and self-promotional. He’s surrounded by sycophants unable to stand up to him: “You profit off my company like parasites.” And of course, he thinks he’s smarter than the rest: “Oil is mother nature’s milk.” In his mind, he’ll be the hero who saves the day. But he’s saving the world from a problem he caused.
Though nominated for three acting Oscars, Cruise has never won a competitive one. His performances in Rain Man and The Color of Money shared the screen with Oscar-winning portrayals by Dustin Hoffman and Paul Newman, respectively. Cuba Gooding Jr. won Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire, another Cruise-led film. For his co-stars, he seems to have the Midas touch. For him, he’s always the best man and never the groom.
It’s easy to imagine Iñárritu pitching this project to Cruise. Easy to imagine Cruise seeing the opportunity to work with the director of Birdman and The Revenant on a challenging character while sizing up the awards-season possibilities.
The 64-year-old veteran actor is in most scenes. This production lives or dies on his interpretation of an unlikable, abrasive character. And in typical Cruise fashion, he’s all in. His portrayal is consistent in tone and deliberately obnoxious: a bully with a savior complex. On paper, the character should be repulsive. On screen, the Oscar-starved actor plays to the rafters and gets away with it. He’s fun to watch, even when the film isn’t. And the film isn’t—most of the time.
The technical craftsmanship is meticulous and often striking. In one crucial town-hall scene, costume designer Jacqueline West dresses the cast in neutral colors, giving the scene a detached feel. Makeup and hair designer Alessandro Bertolazzi gives Cruise a pasty, washed-out, corpse-like complexion that’s hauntingly weird. From that bafflingly beautiful opening scene, production designers Dennis Gassner and Richard Johnson create a world that feels suspiciously theatrical rather than cinematic, reinforcing the film’s artificiality.
Nothing looks real. It’s almost like you’re looking at a coffee-table picture book, an artificial mirage co-created by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki. Did prosthetic makeup designer Kazu Hiro give Cruise that grandad belly, or did he eat his way into it? Either way, his floating tummy should get second billing. Composer Cosmo Sheldrake’s score is overbearing for much of the film, then varies nicely to accommodate what’s on screen.
Two-thirds of the way through, the shifting music becomes especially helpful as the frenetic footage subsides. There’s a tonal shift. Realities change. The messaging becomes clear. It’s abrupt, but not a bad transition. What came before—a stagy, artificial, increasingly abrasive hybrid of satire and farce—suddenly makes more sense. It’s like looking at a picture within a picture, with editors Stephen Mirrione and Conor O’Neill providing an obvious but seamless transition. It’s almost like you now understand why you had to sit through the worst to get to the good part. The end. That’s when real clarity emerges.
Hard to believe that the same director who created the intimacy of Amores Perros, gritty themes of 21 Grams, international intrigue of Babel, innovation of Birdman and earthy danger of The Revenant did this. His gift for assembling a stellar behind-the-camera team is still intact. His ability to coordinate, stage and choreograph challenging films is still strong. However, questions remain: Is it worth it? Was this the right strategy? It’s like he’s telling an inside joke that’s bombing and not letting the audience in on it. Until it’s way too late.
Cruise chews up the scenery like it’s his last meal. His Digger character is manic, but not in an intriguing way. That forces the actor to work overtime to put scenes across. John Goodman, as the buffoonish U.S. president prone to napping at the wrong times, is unhinged but not in a humorous way. Sandra Hüller, as Rockwell’s sister, seems wasted. She deserved more screen time, as did Sophie Wilde. In fact, the testosterone-heavy atmosphere becomes increasingly toxic. Riz Ahmed, as Ganesh, Digger’s chief advisor and an environmental scientist, is adequate but largely reactive. It’s a role that needed an in-your-face actor like Samuel L. Jackson—someone who could set the screen on fire and make you chuckle.
Expect divided reactions. That’s what happens when a movie feels distant and rarely compelling. Easy to revere the theme. Easier to dislike the rest. It’s like getting a vaccination shot. You know that in the end it’s good for you. But that doesn’t make the needle any less painful—especially if the doctor keeps missing the vein.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=job8V254NAE
Visit Film Critic Dwight Brown at DwightBrownInk.com.