Set against the near-complete global breakdown among certain warring nations (not unlike elements of the current world situation), Steven continues to answer the big questions in a way only Spielberg can. He returns to the age-old question: Is there life on other planets? In this entertaining romp. His craft remains peerless, and his alien ideas are as kooky as ever
.The main theme is a well-used one, that aliens have been visiting Earth for decades, and the truth is being kept from the public by the US government and in a slight departure, aided this time by an evil multinational corporation. Curiously, Spielberg’s approach highlights only modern events and completely ignores those other alien breeding grounds like the Egyptian and both the Mayan and Aztec civilizations. Too much of a good thing, I guess.
The structure of the film is based around a whistleblower arc and plays out in quite a thrilling manner. The alien technology that backs up the main chase is as outrageous as all the other efforts in this genre, but that does little to distract from the fun. Steven even finds a line of biblical scripture that reinforces the belief in life on other planets. It’s all based in a fantasy land and reinforces the truth that we humans will probably never know the accurate details.
Unfortunately, there are times that the director just can’t help himself, and the final few minutes seem completely unnecessary. It once again feels like he lacks complete trust in his audience and has to overstate the main theme to make sure everyone gets it. The almost complete grasp of his craft makes these moments so unnecessary. That distraction aside, Disclosure Day is a lot of fun and raises more questions than it does answers about those little grey men.
Rob Hudson
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