Rating of
3/4
I Want to Believe the Truth is Out There
Chris Kavan - wrote on 06/27/26
Steve Spielberg and aliens go together like peanut butter and chocolate - a winning combination at any time. While I admit Disclosure Day won't give E.T. or Close Encounters a run for their money, the film still explores some interesting themes while giving Emily Blunt a new high point on her filmography.
The film follows three people - Dr. Daniel Kellner (Josh O'Connor), a whistle blower with some top-secret information taken from Wardex, a private company involved in a shocking coverup that spans decades; Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt) a weather girl who finds herself as a kind of conduit of an other-worldely power; and Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth), the head of Wardex whose desperately trying to track both down before the companies secrets can be revealed to the world. The strong supporting cast also has Eve Hewson as Kellner's wife - while also providing a religious view of the aspects of the film, Colman Domingo as another former Wardex employee trying to herd everyone together and Wyatt Russell as Margaret's husband who is the everyman wondering what the hell is going on.
The movie's strength is by far the cast, Blunt and O'Connor really drive the film and their scenes together - especially a panic attack on a train - are truly great. Blunt's powers of empathy and understanding also make for some powerful scenes. Firth is stone cold while Hewson provides some great emotional support as well. The script is the weak point - with Spielberg you're hoping for something deep and impactful and while Disclosure Day isn't' exactly lightweight - it just doesn't have the impact you'd expect from the director. I will say the ending (once you get there) is pretty amazing but the film takes too long to get into the meat of the story and drags a bit.
I'm glad they got John Williams on board as composer in what could be he final film. The music suits the film to a tee. The film is mostly a cat-and-mouse chase across multiple locations rather than a truly deep dive into the story but despite that, the action also seems too few and far between to keep fans hoping for bombast truly interested. As such, there is a lot of exposition happening and it can get to be a bit much at times.
For all its faults, however, I still think Disclosure Day is a film worth watching. It's not going to be near the pinnacle of Spielberg's output but it still brings a lot of interesting ideas to the table - some probably closer to the truth than you'd want to think - and with powerful performances all around, a fine way to spend time in front of the screen.
