Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day
·1 min read
Beware of spoilers
I recently watched Steven Spielberg’s newly released sci-fi film, Disclosure Day, and I found that it offers a genuinely fascinating twist on a very familiar cinematic genre. Instead of leaning into the tired trope of violent aliens hell-bent on wiping humanity off the face of the earth, the movie completely flips the script by introducing us to a peaceful, benevolent alien race.
In this story, humans take on the unfortunate role of the aggressors, treating our cosmic visitors with deep-seated mistrust. The movie doesn't hold back, featuring several disturbing elements that closely mirror recent human issues, such as brutality and violence during interrogation, alongside outright torture.
Through this conflict, the film displays the absolute worst qualities of humanity: our unchecked aggression, capacity for violence, and deep-rooted deception. Meanwhile, the aliens themselves are framed in a completely different light, shown to value empathy not as a weak sentiment, but as an absolute evolutionary necessity for survival.
On a narrative level, the film does have its bright spots. There are some genuinely interesting, mysterious plot elements that successfully build suspense—most notably, the compelling backstories of two central characters that keep you guessing about their true loyalties and motivations.
However, what I absolutely disliked was the sudden introduction of the completely unexplained alien stone artifact. It operates as a frustrating Deus Ex Machina, letting the antagonist magically invade peoples' minds without rules and conveniently letting the protagonists escape whenever the script paints them into a corner.
Final Thoughts
While the movie was certainly watchable from beginning to end, it ultimately leaves you with a strange aftertaste. Whie Spielberg's movies do try to garner sympathy for aliens (a la ET), it strikes me as ironic that a movie explicitly designed to showcase a deeply empathetic alien race somehow completely forgets to empathize with its own audience.