For years, the strangest calls during the morning show came from people who were absolutely certain the government was hiding aliens.
One guy used to call every Thursday at 6:40 a.m. Same guy, same theory, different evidence. Weather balloons, blinking farm lights, missing cows. You name it.
After watching Disclosure Day, I’m starting to think I may owe that man an apology.
Not a big apology. Lets not get carried away.
What Happens in Disclosure Day?
Steven Spielberg’s film follows a television meteorologist who experiences a bizarre encounter and begins displaying abilities she cant explain. She eventually becomes connected to a larger attempt to reveal proof of extraterrestrial life to the whole world.
Emily Blunt is excellent.
Her character spends alot of the movie trying to stay calm while everything she understands about reality falls apart. That felt more believable than the usual sci-fi hero who sees an alien ship and immediately grabs a weapon.
Most normal people would need to sit down.
The early part is slow, but in a good way. Weird details begin piling up. Strange sounds, lost time, people speaking languages they never learned. The movie lets that discomfort build instead of throwing a giant spaceship onto the screen in the first five minutes.
The Movie Gets People Right
The alien stuff is interesting, but the best part is how everybody reacts to the possibility of disclosure.
Government people worry about panic. Scientists want proof. Reporters want the story. Regular people mostly want to know whether they still have to go to work Monday morning.
That last part felt accurate.
We get callers at the station after every major news event, and half the questions are never about the event itself. They ask whether school is canceled, whether gas prices will rise or whether the Huskers game is still happening.
Aliens could land in downtown Omaha and somebody would still call to complain about traffic.
A Few Problems
The movie becomes less interesting once it starts explaining everything.
The mystery feels huge at first, then the final act gets crowded with speeches about humanity, truth and whether the world is ready. Spielberg lays the emotion on pretty thick. Some people will love it. Others may feel like the movie is grabbing them by the shoulders and yelling, “Please feel wonder now.”
I was somewhere in the middle.
The visuals are beautiful and John Williams’ music does alot of heavy lifting. One scene involving lights over a field gave me chills, even though I knew exactly what the movie was trying to do.
I had actually been browsing Myflixer for something older when a coworker mentioned Disclosure Day. Then I discovered my previous Sflix bookmark no longer worked. For anyone dealing with the same issue, the replacement address is Sflix new site .
My Verdict
Disclosure Day gets 7.5 out of 10.
It’s thoughtful, well acted and occasionally incredible. It’s also too long and explains more than it should.
Still, it gave us nearly two hours of alien calls the next morning, which is excellent radio.
And yes, the Thursday UFO guy called.
He said, “Told you so,” then hung up.
