Hideo Kojima, the visionary behind the Metal Gear Solid series, has drawn a direct line between Alejandro G. Iñárritu's polarizing film "Digger" and his own seminal work, Metal Gear Solid 2. Kojima praised "Digger" for its prescient examination of contemporary issues, particularly the rampant spread of misinformation and the anxieties of living in a digitally fragmented world.
Kojima shared his thoughts in an interview with Iñárritu for Gizmodo Japan, noting that "Digger" resonates with him because it tackles real-world issues rather than relying on science fiction tropes like alien invasions or falling meteorites. He described the film as a terrifying yet comedic satire, capable of forcing audiences to confront the current state of global affairs. "It feels like a film whose structure combines both cinema and theater, and in the end becomes a play presented not as something set in the future but as a part of our history," Kojima remarked.
He specifically highlighted the film's thematic similarities to Metal Gear Solid 2, explaining that his 2001 game explored a world where social media, an entity that had not yet fully bloomed at the time of its creation, began to exert significant influence. "That’s a bit like what’s happening in "Digger" too, isn’t it?" Kojima asked Iñárritu. "On social media sites misinformation spreads quickly, and there's a fear over how this has an impact on politics and our daily lives." Kojima elaborated that this narrative structure created a sense of being driven by unseen forces, a feeling he believes is mirrored in the film and in our current reality, where distinguishing truth from falsehood in the digital realm is increasingly challenging.
Iñárritu concurred with Kojima's assessment, expressing concern that society is losing a shared sense of reality, instead retreating into "fragmented truths within our smartphones." He observed that conversations surrounding "Digger" often focus more on the surrounding narratives than the film itself, with strong opinions forming even among those who have not seen it. This phenomenon, he suggested, reflects a broader tendency to hold firm convictions about subjects unexperienced.
Kojima related this back to his own work, citing Death Stranding. "I made a game called Death Stranding where you go around making deliveries, but people who hadn’t even played it were saying it was ‘just a walking simulator’ as though they’d actually played it!" he recounted. He fears this tendency, amplified by AI's role in curating online experiences, leads to echo chambers where individuals are only exposed to information that confirms their existing beliefs. "As AI becomes more prominent, becoming almost like a concierge, we might end up in a situation where we only eat the foods we like or only meet people who share our views," Kojima posited. "It’s like we’re being manipulated by someone, like the people in "Digger". We don’t know who or what’s behind it. That's what's so terrifying, and it's why I want you to see this movie."