I feel that when a new Steven Spielberg movie comes out, people tend to hold it to a higher standard. After all, the man is objectively one of, if not the most famous, directors of all time. When Disclosure Day was announced, it seemed like we were getting another fantastical extraterrestrial film. With this new film, we do get that, but not exactly in the way you might think. While this movie does not reach the levels of Jaws or Jurassic Park, Spielberg does show he still has some juice left.
A meteorologist (Emily Blunt) and a cybersecurity expert (Josh O’Connor) find themselves at the center of a movement to expose the government’s cover-up of extraterrestrial secrets. If you are coming to this movie and expecting a non-stop thrilling action adventure film, this is not it. I wouldn’t even call it a summer blockbuster. The plot walks at a slower pace, more interested in talking about the government cover-ups that have possibly been taking place. There have been some real-life court hearings on this topic, and it certainly feels like Spielberg is more interested in this than anything else.
But that doesn’t mean there isn’t action. There actually are some pretty impressive sequences; they just don’t come one after another. Spielberg also doesn’t love to explain everything, so we do get a lot of unanswered questions here. The movie only touches the surface of a few ideas but still stays interesting throughout.
What is most phenomenal in Disclosure Day is the acting. This is easily Emily Blunt’s best role of her career. She finds the perfect blend of comedy and being freaked out about what is going on. The rest of the cast does a fine job as well, but Blunt is definitely the stand-out.
The film, at around two and a half hours, is a bit long. Personally, I feel certain scenes could have been cut and we still would have gotten the idea. The ending of this movie is not to be missed, though. The payoff definitely delivers, and I was glued to the screen.
Overall
Disclosure Day is a good movie. It is thought provoking, well acted, engaging for the most part, and beautifully shot. The score is also really good. The problem is that some people are going to want a classic Spielberg action movie, and this is not that. The biggest issue is the runtime, and the movie isn’t great. It feels so weird saying that, but Spielberg has given us some of the most memorable iconic films of all time. Disclosure Day is solid, I’m just not sure it will be talked about in a couple of years.
