Movie Review – ‘Disclosure Day’ debates whether the truth should be out there

“Are we alone?” It’s a question that has been asked for generations, one that reached a fever pitch after the Roswell incident in 1947 when an unknown object reportedly crash-landed in New Mexico. Since then, people have debated whether humanity is truly alone in the universe or whether we’ve been visited by beings from somewhere far beyond our world. For years, those conversations were largely dismissed. People who claimed alien encounters or abductions were often labeled kooks, conspiracy theorists, or worse.

But over the last decade, the U.S. government has released more information than ever regarding UAPs (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, formerly known as UFOs), forcing many to reconsider what once seemed impossible. Yet questions remain. Is the government telling us everything? Should the public know the full truth? Those are just some of the ideas explored in Steven Spielberg’s spectacular new film Disclosure Day, starring Emily Blunt and Josh O’Connor.

The film wastes no time thrusting viewers into the action. Daniel (O’Connor) is forced by a shadowy organization to hand over stolen files in exchange for the release of his girlfriend Jane (Eve Hewson). A former criminal turned cybersecurity expert, Daniel has joined forces with former colleague Hugo (Colman Domingo) and dozens of others who once worked at Wardex, a secretive private organization dedicated to ensuring the truth about alien life never reaches the public.

Led by Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth), Wardex surveils social media, internet activity, and who knows what else in order to keep secrets that have remained hidden for nearly 80 years. Daniel, like Hugo, was once proud of his work there until he uncovered the disturbing truth behind what Wardex and the government have been hiding. Determined to expose it, he makes it his mission to provide “full disclosure to the whole world, all at once.” But with Daniel in possession of information that could change humanity forever, Wardex will stop at nothing — including murder — to ensure the truth never sees the light of day.

In a seemingly unrelated story, Margaret (Blunt) is desperate for her big break. Living with her musician boyfriend Jackson (Wyatt Russell), the KCXE weather personality dreams of moving beyond forecasting clouds and cold fronts and into the anchor chair. She’s beginning to wonder whether Kansas City is as far as she’ll ever go. Everything changes when a seemingly harmless cardinal flies into her apartment. Suddenly, Margaret can speak languages she’s never learned and read the minds of anyone whose eyes she meets. What begins as an ordinary weather report quickly turns her into a vessel for something far greater. Guided by her newfound abilities, she’s led toward Daniel. Why? She has no idea. What she does know is that the two are connected, and that connection is pulling them toward a truth neither can fully comprehend. What follows is a thrilling, pulse-pounding cat-and-mouse chase as Hugo races to bring Daniel and Margaret together while Wardex works just as hard to make sure that never happens.

Emily Blunt, now starring in her second blockbuster of the summer following The Devil Wears Prada 2, has never been better. Nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of Kitty Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer, Blunt makes viewers feel every ounce of Margaret’s confusion, fear, and wonder as she struggles to understand both her abilities and their purpose. O’Connor is equally impressive. Rather than playing a traditional action hero, he approaches Daniel as a man trying to make sense of an impossible situation. He’s not leading a revolution; he’s simply trying to stay one step ahead while figuring out what comes next. That grounded quality makes him instantly relatable. Hewson, meanwhile, delivers what should be a star-making performance. Playing a former nun, Jane becomes the film’s moral compass, constantly questioning whether humanity is truly prepared to learn that we aren’t alone and whether such knowledge could fundamentally alter faith itself.

And as for Spielberg? It’s wild to think that it’s been nearly 50 years since he released Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the film that cemented his fascination with UFOs and alien encounters in the public consciousness. But few realize that wasn’t actually his first alien movie. That distinction belongs to Firelight, a little-seen 1964 film he made as a teenager. His fascination with the unknown reportedly began when his father took him outside to watch the Perseid meteor shower. This week on Today, Spielberg described it as the beginning of a lifelong obsession with “the unknown becoming the known.” That fascination fueled classics like Jaws, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park, and countless others.

During the past decade, Spielberg shifted toward more personal projects such as West Side Story and The Fabelmans but with Disclosure Day, he returns to the blockbuster filmmaking he helped invent. Reuniting with longtime collaborator David Koepp and once again featuring a soaring score from John Williams, the film feels like a culmination of themes Spielberg has been exploring his entire career. The timing couldn’t be better. Public interest in UAPs and government transparency has never been higher, making the film feel oddly relevant despite its science-fiction premise.

Ultimately, Disclosure Day isn’t really about aliens. It’s about humanity. It’s about faith, truth, fear, wonder, and how we might react if presented with undeniable proof that we’re part of something much larger than ourselves. And in the process, Spielberg has delivered his best film in more than two decades, completing what feels like an unofficial trilogy of alien stories alongside Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Sorry, War of the Worlds, you still don’t count.