Steven Spielberg has been one of our greatest living filmmakers for decades, managing to put his mark on almost every genre across his Hollywood career. The number of iconic films under his belt is so well known that recapping them would just take up word count. To that end, though, Spielberg’s work in the science fiction genre has been something film fans have been eager to see him return to, as the director has managed to release something in the genre in every decade that he’s been working. Now over halfway into the 2020s, Spielberg has not only kicked down the door on sci-fi once again, but delivered a movie that is timely and unique.
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With Disclosure Day, Spielberg not only returns to what might be considered well-trodden territory with a UFO themed-thrill ride, but uses it as an opportunity to prove that his filmmaking fastball still has plenty of speed. Telling a story fully anchored in the present moment, in more ways than one, Disclosure Day is a sci-fi blockbuster that manages to be both an engaging experience in its action and maintain a thematic arc that will linger with you well after the credits roll.
Rating: 4 out of 5
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Emily Blunt is incredible | Some thin characters |
| Prescient & thrilling story | |
| Great cinematography & score |
Disclosure Day Tells a Prescient UFO Story
At the heart of Disclosure Day is Daniel Kellner (Josh O’Connor), a cybersecurity expert on the brink of revealing something massive to the world: confirmation of the existence of aliens and UFOs. The confirmation goes deeper than just the fact that aliens are real, though, and is what lands him in the crosshairs of Wardex, an agency fighting to maintain the secrecy. This is, of course, the natural propulsion of the film that turns it not only into a cross-country chase film, but a thriller about what this agency knows and is capable of.
The unexpected wrinkle that neither Kellner nor Wardex could have predicted is the sudden activation of bizarre powers by Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt), a TV meteorologist in Kansas City who begins speaking in an otherworldly language during a broadcast. Though the story of Kellner being on the run, Fairchild navigating her fantastical new abilities (such as looking in people’s eyes and knowing their entire life story), and Wardex working to suppress every element of this from the world may seem like a lot of pieces to juggle sounds like a lot to juggle, the film never feels overstuffed.
Disclosure Day has a seamless pace that never stops as Spielberg keeps the heart of the story beating and never lets the film get slow or stale. Paired with his iconic cinematographer, Janusz Kamiลski, Spielberg allows every moment and scene to breathe, letting the camera stay on the action and characters without wild cuts. This not only allows the action to work, but means the power of the images lingers, showing every other quick-cutting movie how it’s done.
The larger plot of Disclosure Day feels as timely as ever, though, with a narrative that is built on the foundation of our modern world’s 24-hour news, a mistrust of the government, an intense demand for the truth in all corners, and the lingering threat of annihilation by our fellow man. All of these things work in tandem with a key piece of UFO narrative that feels like Spielberg himself shaking the audience to make us listen, showing us that the most important things in life are right in front of us and not hidden in the stars.
Disclosure Day Is Anchored By Emily Blunt’s Performance
As Kellner, O’Connor brings an everyday energy to his performance, grounding Kellner as a man caught in an extraordinary position but with the ultimate conviction of what he must do. He’s flanked by a great supporting cast, too, such as Colin Firth as the terrifying Noah Scanlon, the head of the Wardex, whose hardened heart makes him incredibly dangerous thanks to the lengths he’s willing to go to. Firth uses his gravitas in terrifying ways, ascending to one of the most impressive in the film.
Eve Hewson also does good work as Jane, Daniel’s girlfriend and someone wrestling with the reality of what full disclosure would do to the world, though her character gets less to do as the film goes on and feels thin at times. Colman Domingo as Hugo Wakefield, a former Wardex employee actively working for disclosure, delivers a performance as grand as one might expect from the actor, even if, again, his character appears to exist for plot reasons rather than personal ones.
As noted, though, Emily Blunt’s character makes a splash in the larger narrative of Disclosure Day, and it wouldn’t work nearly as well as it does without her incredible performance. From her first scene, where Wyatt Russell as her partner provides great comedic relief, Blunt reveals her take on Margaret as a woman who is always on the move, literally unable to sit still for even a few seconds. After a surprise encounter with a seemingly overly friendly cardinal, Margaret suddenly begins speaking Russian, unaware that she’s even doing it.
This marks the first sign of something extraordinary going on with Margaret, which wouldn’t work if Blunt wasn’t able to deftly handle the quickness of her character’s mind. In one minute she’s rushing to get to work, and in another she’s translating a miscommunication in Korean, a language she doesn’t speak. As the film progresses, Blunt wields her ability to shift between moments of crushing empathy in a way that carries a lot of weight and makes you unable to take your eyes off her every eye twitch and shifting glance; she’s magnetic.
The Heart of Disclosure Day Makes It Stand Out in Spielberg’s Filmography
The core thematic arc of Disclosure Day is what makes it feel even more contemporary than the larger narrative sweeps of leaking government data and the lingering threat of global war. In its heart, Disclosure Day is a film about the battle between cynicism and faith, not straying so far in one direction that it becomes an overtly religious movie (though it brushes against it), but decisively making a comment on the power of empathy in a world that rewards indifference and disdain.
Though some of its larger ensemble can’t match the energy of its lead character, Disclosure Day remains an incredibly entertaining sci-fi thriller. One of the most impressive facets of it, though, is that even after all its questions are answered, and the mystery itself is resolved, that doesn’t suddenly make the initial moments of the film unwatchable.
Disclosure Day will clearly be rewarding on rewatches, not only to see the tricks that Spielberg was hiding the entire time, but to feel the whole breadth of its narrative in every moment. The final larger sequence of the film is a spectacle that defies blockbuster convention, though, leading to one of the best final lines in a summer movie in years.
Disclosure Day opens in theaters June 12. Are you going to see Disclosure Day? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
