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James Mottram

3.5/5 stars
“The world is on the brink,” mutters Colin Firth’s government operative Noah Scanlon at the outset of Steven Spielberg’s new sci-fi thriller, Disclosure Day.
The legendary director’s return to the genre, following such game-changing blockbusters as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Minority Report, once again posits the idea that aliens are out there.
Indeed, a shady government-affiliated outfit called Wardex has been repressing military-shot footage of extraterrestrial encounters for 79 years – all to prevent a mass panic.


Now, a former employee, cybersecurity expert Dr Daniel Kellner (Josh O’Connor), has gone rogue, stealing the clips in an effort to release them to the world as he goes on the run with his girlfriend Jane Blankenship (Eve Hewson).
Meanwhile, Kansas meteorologist Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt) has just gone on live TV, speaking in a guttural clicking language that only Kellner understands. If that is not mad enough, North Korea appears to be aiming to kick-start World War III, sending the public into a frenzy.
Scripted by Spielberg’s frequent collaborator David Koepp – some 33 years since they first worked together on Jurassic Park – Disclosure Day also sees the director himself receive a story credit, and for a long while, it works.
Starting at a breakneck pace, the first half is a tanked-up chase movie as men in blacked-out SUVs pursue Kellner and Blankenship.

The twist comes with a piece of alien tech that Firth’s permanently glowering character can use to mind-control others, including Blankenship – all very helpful when trying to track down targets who have gone off-grid.
Fairchild’s own high-octane journey also starts energetically; her constant bickering with her musician boyfriend (Wyatt Russell) brings some much-needed humour into play.
At 79, Spielberg has lost none of his instinct for what makes a good set-piece. A nerve-shredding train sequence, where Kellner and Fairchild finally meet, is among the most brilliantly executed in the Spielberg canon. That is even before reaching the scene with the invisible fire engine (no, really).
Unfortunately, the final act blows it. Colman Domingo’s turn as a benevolent scientist in league with Kellner feels underwritten, while the schmaltzy backstory for Kellner and Fairchild breaks the spell even more than the poorly rendered CG animals that stare dolefully at Kellner.

While the story can be read as a critique of America’s immigration policy and ICE’s treatment of illegal aliens, it never quite delivers the desired wonder and awe.
Blunt and O’Connor do their level best to stay committed, but even they are not skilled enough to steer this juggernaut towards a satisfying conclusion.
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Emily Blunt as meteorologist Margaret Fairchild (left) and Josh O’Connor as cybersecurity expert Dr Daniel Kellner in a still from Disclosure Day (category IIA), directed by Steven Spielberg. Colin Firth co-stars.

Colin Firth as government operative Noah Scanlon (centre) in a still from Disclosure Day.

Emily Blunt and Josh O’Connor in a still from Disclosure Day.

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Starring Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth, Disclosure Day starts well and features exciting set pieces, but the final act blows it


Starring Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth, Disclosure Day starts well and features exciting set pieces, but the final act blows it.


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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Starring Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth, Disclosure Day starts well and features exciting set pieces, but the final act blows it

Starring Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth, Disclosure Day starts well and features exciting set pieces, but the final act blows it