Once again, Steven Spielberg is imploring us to look up at the stars in sci-fi outing Disclosure Day, the esteemed director's latest exploration of the social implications of alien revelations. Here, the scale is far larger (genuinely worldwide by the end), allowing ample space for discussion of themes around disclosure, faith, and human culture, which are handled well in this material.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind was an incredible look at the cosmos in 1977, beautifully capturing the awe and wonder of a first encounter with aliens. Only five years later, we saw a bond between an adorable boy and an equally adorable alien in 1982's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. The first of these films captured awe, wonder, and the complexities of interstellar communication, while the latter highlights the extent to which government forces would go to control alien encounters. Both films are arguably masterpieces.
The sci-fi thriller War of the Worlds is an underrated, pessimistic outing that's only undone by a subpar ending shared with the source material. Finally, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is, well, not great by Indiana Jones standards (but that's a high bar). It still has its moments. In a way, Disclosure Day is an amalgamation of these elements. It proves a capable reengagement with both the themes of the former masterpieces, while retaining the action and hastened pace of the latter pair.
Disclosure Day doesn't quite capture the raw magic of Close Encounters or E.T., but it does deliver exceptional performances, a believable, modern take on what disclosure could look like, and a lot of fun. It also makes a few mistakes, for an uneven film that succeeds more often than it doesn't.
Emily Blunt Gives the Best Performance of Her Career Thus Far
Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt) is a Kansas City meteorologist with ambitions of becoming something greater. One day, she appears on camera and begins speaking in an inhuman tongue made of clicks and other noises. Meanwhile, Daniel Kellner (Josh O'Connor) is on the run with a backpack full of secrets he was supposed to protect, and the pair are drawn together by strange forces and secrets of world-shattering import. Can they get the message out?
Blunt is spectacular as the besieged meteorologist trying to make sense of her growing range of capabilities, which include universal communication, knowing someone completely, and utilizing alien artifacts. She's given many exceptional performances in her career thus far, and this may well be her best. Terrified, traumatized, yet often charming and capable of flipping on a dime as forces within her emerge, Blunt delivers a layered, exceptional acting tour de force.
O'Connor's Daniel is strong as a white hat on the run for all the right reasons, enamored by Eve Hewson's Jane and willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good. Colin Firth makes a solid foe standing up for The Powers That Be, and Colman Domingo's Hugo Wakefield is a warm, dare I say, serene charisma bomb defending disclosure to the masses. It's a great cast overall without a weak link.
Disclosure Day Engages & Delights but Sometimes Confounds
As far as the narrative goes, a lot works well in Disclosure Day. After the dreamy walk down memory lane in The Fabelmans and the gorgeous choreography in West Side Story, Disclosure Day has a few scenes that remind us Spielberg can still land an action sequence. The film boasts genuinely fantastic bits of comedy that complement and enhance, rather than detract from, its tension.
One of the film's biggest issues is that there are moments when human characters don’t behave believably, for no real reason. Daniel, for example, insists on keeping Jane around even after she’s been proven to be a liability. While he does spitball a reason, it's insufficiently developed. Another example that has to be handled carefully to avoid spoilers is that the villainous forces repeatedly prove they’re willing to do anything to prevent disclosure. But there are moments when realistic counterparts would have done far more dangerous or fatal things. The protagonists got lucky.
Adding to this equation is that there are some larger-than-life events that, in practice, are hard to comprehend. It’s impossible to fully discuss without spoilers, but certain characters and plot devices prove they can accomplish anything, apparently. There’s an old adage that, at a certain level of technological development, technologies are indistinguishable from magic, and Disclosure Day might be the truest that has ever been. It’s a larger-than-life film, but sometimes in ways that are far too convenient or stretch credulity.
These elements aside, Disclosure Day is a smart and engaging film with wonderful, exciting moments, an all-time great performance from Emily Blunt, big ideas, and impeccable execution. It has issues from a narrative perspective, and some (like myself) might take huge issue with the specifics of its ending, but it’s still a return to some time-honored topics for Spielberg.
Final Rating: 7/10
Disclosure Day lands in theaters on June 12, 2026.
