Disclosure Day review!
If there’s anyone that can get me into a theater seat on opening night for science fiction, it’s Steven Spielberg. First, there was Close Encounters of the Third Kind (which was actually not his first scifi movie) that I was too young to really appreciate, and then there was E.T., an instant classic that had me and everyone else on the planet. I have watched E. T. at least 50 times on my own and another 20 times with my son, and it doesn’t stop there. The OG Jurassic Park in 1993, A. I., Minority Report, and Ready Player One… these were all landmark films, and I could write 10,000 word essays on my appreciation for each of these. Of course, like anything else in life, he hasn’t set my screens on fire with everything he has ever made, but for me, it’s safe to say, when Spielberg makes something new, it matters enough for me to see it on opening night. As usual, with Disclosure Day, Spielberg does not disappoint. 
***Spoiler Alert, but not really***
This was a date night movie for my lady and I after a particularly challenging week for both of us, and we were excited for this one.
We begin amidst Earth on the brink of World War III, with hacker-turned-cybersecurity government employee Daniel Kellner (played by Josh O’Connor) who has pinched extraterrestrial technology and related files showing classified footage of human-alien contact, from his employer, the Wardex Corporation, a division of the U.S. government. The Wardex boss sends the black SUVs after Daniel, and he’s on the run with his girlfriend, Jane Blankenship, who had previously considered devoting her life to a convent. This juxtaposes religion into the existential questions humanity faces when pondering the possibility of life beyond Earth, and the potential impacts of conclusive proof that it exists. I appreciated how Spielberg blended this conundrum into the film, and how careful he was to make this religion substitutable for any religion, when asking these types of questions. The story continues to unfold with another character in another setting, meteorologist Margaret Fairchild (played by Emily Blunt) who unexpectedly diverts into an extraterrestrial monologue in the middle of a live broadcast. Wardex catches wind of this, and now she’s on the run too, dragging along a dopey boyfriend that was so entertaining in his unwillingness to try and understand anything that the audience was laughing out loud. The story is further complicated, on purpose, by a shadowy group of X-Wardex whistleblowers who are aiding both the thief and the weather lady, as they barely escape the black SUVs, enroute a mysterious rendezvous. Spielberg does a masterful job at keeping the audience on edge throughout the film by only revealing key points of each character’s past bit by bit, bringing the rendezvous to a full crescendo. It is only at the end of the story that we realize why these two characters were drawn to each other, why they have the powers that they have, and how the whistleblowers’ protection over both of them enables their disclosure to the entire population of Earth, what the government has kept hidden for years, via Margaret’s TV station. The global reaction to the disclosure gives pause to the imminent war, and reminds us all what we should actually be doing all day, every day, in real life: empathizing with one another. Above race, religious beliefs, political beliefs, above gender, sexual orientation, and any other differences that keep us divided, there is no doubt in my mind that Earth and every living thing on it could use more empathy.
Spielberg keeps all of this about as relevant and plausible as possible, by referencing not only Kecksburg and Roswell, two of the most well known and controversial UFO incidents of our times, but also recently declassified footage of the what appears to be actual UFOs, in real life. Emily Blunt delivers an Oscar-worthy performance, particularly as she delivers a panic attack that would be very hard to differentiate from an actual panic attack. Also worth mentioning, an astounding performance by actress and former real-life news reporter Courtney Grace, the main anchor that delivers the broadcast to mankind. Her cracking, emotional narration is jaw-dropping, and adds a whole new level to the disclosure.
All-in-all, a breathtaking film that flirts hard with reality, and delivers above and beyond on a message we as humans all need to hear and collectively practice more often.
I could not recommend this more. Seriously, this is what I hope for every time I go to the movies.
