Release the Alien Files

            Conspiracy theories, redacted files, and mysterious military bases have peaked people’s interest for decades. Even within the last decade, there was a gathering of people outside of Area 51, which resulted in no new information, but it shows an interest, a desire to know something about space/aliens. President Trump also made promises that he would release the files on extraterrestrial life (among other things), but so far this has been an empty promise, shocker. But what if someone captured that information and put it out to the world, and it turns out that there has been alien contact and a plethora of it, how would that effect the world? That is the question Steven Spielberg is asking in his new film, Disclosure Day.

            Disclosure Day centers on two main characters. One is an employee of an agency that has been retaining data and videos of encounters with aliens, Kellner, and the other is a weather lady at a station in Kansas City, Margaret. Killner, has a backpack this is filled with hard drives that have videos of aliens and his company’s mistreatment of those aliens, but he also has something else in his bag, he has an alien technology that has multiple uses. One of those uses is that it can turn the wielder invisible. The other use allows the holder to teleport their presence to another space by imagining who they want to be with. There are three of these sticks in the hands of humans. Killner has one, the bad guys, Wardex, have one, and Killner’s co-worker, Hugo, has the third, and Hugo is helping lead Killner to release these files.

            Killner is able to stay one step ahead of Wardex, and he spends most of the movie evading them. Margret on the other hand does not have much evading to do. She is just living her life, when a cardinal hops into her apartment, and after making brief eye contact with it, a part of her brain clicks, and she is now able to communicate in any language, and she can read others’ minds. Then once she steps onto the stage to give her weather report, she starts to speak in clicking language and passes out. She is trying to explain to her boyfriend what is going on, but he just thinks that she is crazy, and then she gets a call from Hugo, and now she has a purpose.

            Killner and Margret need to meet, so that the two of them can combine forces to share the information about the aliens with the world. They just have to evade Wardex for long enough so that they can get to the station that Marget works at to get the information out to everyone.

            This movie is asking an interesting question. If it did come out that aliens are real, and that we have been in contact with them, would it change the way that people think about the world and their faith. In the movie, the world is on the brink of World War III, when the information about the aliens comes out, and everyone stops what they are doing and stares at their screen. The movie is saying that it would alter the state of reality as we know it, and that people all over the world would stop what they are doing, so they can dump their resources and attention into this.

            The faith aspect plays a key role in this film. Killner’s girlfriend, Jane, was on the path to become a nun, and she lived in a convent. When they are on the run, she brings them to a convent to hide. Later in the film, she is being interrogated by Scanlon, who is using the alien technology to get the answers he needs to find Killner, and she is gripping her cross trying to use her faith to banish him from her mind and tether her to reality. Jane seems to think that if Killner leaks the alien footage, that everyone will lose their faith in God and instead place it into these supreme beings, an interesting thought, although I am not sure how true it is.

            I am not sure that the leaking of the presence of aliens would ultimately shift my perception of reality, and I think it would be the same for others. I also do not see how aliens being present would make it so that God does not exist. If you believe that God created us, then why could he not also create another intelligent species?  

            Also I do wonder if the whole world would stop to stare at the news if this was released. A large number of people would just assume it was fake, no matter what evidence was presented to them, unless they saw the alien themselves, they would just think it was not true. Other people might just shrug. It really depends on the presence of the aliens. Are we now in constant contact? Are they integrating into our society? And most important of all, are they giving us their technology? This would be the real ground shaking impact. If we could also now engage in interstellar travel or cure uncurable diseases. That might make everyone stop and stare.

            The last word/line of the movie is Margret saying, “Listen…” Earlier in the movie, the aliens said the most important evolutionary advantage was empathy and the ability to feel for others. This makes sense, if you take the time to care for others, then your species will be able to survive and thrive, because someone has your back, and although physical health is important, emotional health is important too. This is something that seems like it is slowly becoming absent from humanity. Everyone faces challenges, but people just seem to overlook that, and they overlook what would be best for everyone. Empathy is dying and this leads to a never-ending conflict cycle that leads to the detriment of all. So yes, we do need to listen to each other, to the environment, and maybe even aliens to help to sustain the longevity of our species.  

            There is a ton to like from this film. The acting of Emily Blunt is superb. She pulls off a wide range of emotions, and she can be serious, but also silly. She creates a couple of good laughs throughout the film. Coleman Domingo is also in the movie as Hugo, and he is currently my favorite actor, so any time I get to sit and listen to him talk, I am all in. The score also stuck out to me. The famous composer, John Williams did it, and it truly adds to the marvel and the emotion of the film. Parts of it reminded me of the score from the original Star Wars Trilogy.

            Overall, this is a really good movie. It was a little different than I expected given the trailer. The trailer portrayed this movie to be a little creepier, but it did not feel that way. It felt more grounded in the emotional and mental reaction this would have on humanity. Parts of the story left something to be desired, but ultimately the plot was constantly propelled forward in an interesting manner. Spielberg still has it, and he continues to make movies worth seeing. I recommend a trip to the movies! 3.5 Stars.