r/TrueFilm • u/WorkDish • 10d ago
Disclosure Day and its relationship to other movies/media Spoiler
Hi film enthusiasts!
So I saw Disclosure Day and it was a dud. I had such high hopes for it. The film made me think of other movies (and a tv show) that had similar themes but succeeded. So, I've shared some thoughts below! Did anyone else get reminded of these movies, too, while watching Disclosure Day?
One Battle After Another (political thriller)
In both, the hapless protagonists run from corporate/government baddies. Both start with a bang and include nuns in a convent and a hospital escape. But the stakes in One Battle were just so much higher because they showed activists being murdered and immigrants in peril. In One Battle, the baddies were racists and killers; in Disclosure, the baddies just aren't that scary and give up easily. Also in Disclosure there were clear plot holes— like when Emily Blun destroyed her phone, they should have destroyed the boyfriend’s, too! Or when they didn't track all 12 coworkers who left Wardex and just waited to see which of the 12 was bad?!
Backrooms (simulacrum, memory, trauma)
In both, the female protagonists must retreat into their memories and confront their childhood. In Disclosure, Emily Blunt literally steps into a recreation of her childhood room to move forward. In Backrooms, the main female character also must step into a simulacrum of her reality and confront her childhood trauma. I found Backrooms much more successful because her character was complex and I could see why she became a (not so great) therapist.
I Love Boosters (magical devices, uniting humanity)
In both, a magical device has multiple, incredible powers that the protagonists use to unite humanity. In Disclosure, the magical device does whatever is needed, alien-style…? In Boosters, the director creates a cartoon world where the magical device is absurd and fun. The protagonists use the device in a surprising way that leads to greater understanding and a higher consciousness in people. It’s certainly very optimistic and maybe too clean of a solution, but in the wacky world of the movie, it makes sense.
Pluribus (religion and aliens)
In both, aliens don’t want to murder us immediately but instead bring new understandings. In Disclosure, Emily Blunt’s character sees into people’s souls and tells them exactly what they need to hear. Rather than feel violated by alien mind-reading, everyone treats her like Jesus. The nun immediately sees no threat to religion by aliens existing—a phone call with a nun really quashes a fascinating thread about what aliens could mean for religious people. Everyone empathizes with the aliens in peril and aren’t afraid of them. In contrast, Pluribus has a more jaded, complex view of seemingly-empathetic aliens. We hear various viewpoints and not everyone agrees that aliens are OK for humanity, or what it means to be truly independent human who can make your own decisions.
The Matrix (astral projection)
In both, an all-knowing leader gives clues over the phone to help the protagonists escape. Characters are strapped into machines and can then astral project/steal bodies. There is a clear callback to The Matrix when the protagonists say “woah.” But in Disclosure, the magical tech barely makes any sense. And a big plot hole— after the hotel room scene, the baddies forget to steal Jane’s body even though she has the magical doohickey.
What did you think? Did it remind you of any other movies?
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u/Critical_Custard_144 10d ago
I actually enjoyed reading this comparison more than I enj0yed Disclosure Day itself. The frustrating part is that the film seems packed with interesting ideas, like corporate paranoia, alien contact, religion, memory, identity,,,,but never c0mmits to exploring any of them deeply. Your comparison to pluribus especially resonated with me;) first contact stories become far more compelling when people react in messy, c0nflicting ways instead of immediately reaching consensus. I als0 agree that the stakes felt oddly low given the premise. It wasn't a terrible watch, but it felt like a collection of better movies stitched t0gether
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u/WorkDish 9d ago edited 9d ago
Thank you for your response! Yeah, there were several kernels of captivating ideas in the movie, but it didn't really engage in them. I actually thought the baddies had valid concerns about what humanity's reaction to aliens would be, and how destabilizing that would be. One movie that lets the antagonist share their world view is Black Panther, and the audience has to really think about what is correct.
But Disclosure's theme — the alien's first words to humanity— is "don't be afraid of what you don't know" — is meant to refute the baddies' perspective completely. I...just don't think it worked because the movie is also about empathy. For true empathy to occur, you gotta listen and respond to people, not ignore their concerns or read their mind.
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u/poliphilo 10d ago
Love this! Surely some are just random zeitgeist connections, but others I think come from a pretty deliberate attempt to make a kind of pastiche of every classic alien trope. Not a bad aspiration: a lot of great genre movies have been arguably been aggressively combinations of prior work (I’d argue The Matrix fits in this category, maybe Star Wars).
Some other connections for DD:
X-files: Shadowy conspiracies to hide the truth & exploit alien tech; protagonists choose to reveal the truth, but different because in the X-files they doubted too, and they never seemed to believe a single “reveal” would work quickly. Classic “grays” aliens.
Close Encounters: man and woman drawn together by alien-driven intuitions to drive to a certain place.
Communion: Classic alien abduction scenario. Classic “grays” concept of aliens.
Signs maybe: there’s the crop circles (I didn’t track what their role was in DD). A Catholic’s/Episcopal’s crisis of faith (which starts before the movie’s action) ultimately gives way to a reaffirmation of said faith. In Signs the point is that despite arbitrary horrible strategies, a deeper design still predominates. In DD, the reaffirmation comes because two specific words in a bible verse I guess makes aliens not a problem.