“Disclosure Day”
When Steven Spielberg makes a movie about aliens, it’s a good idea to pay attention. His latest, “Disclosure Day,” brings the Spielbergian pop mystique, while also being one of the most singularly weird original blockbusters in ages. Josh O’Connor plays Daniel Keller, an operative who goes rogue after learning his employer, a shadowy government organization called Wardex, has been both suppressing the existence of UFOs for decades and committing atrocities against alien captives. Keller, along with fellow Wardex dissident Hugo (Colman Domingo), plans to flood the airwaves with troves of top-secret alien autopsy footage, something his boss, the ruthless Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth), will stop at nothing to prevent. Meanwhile, after a strange encounter with a cardinal in her apartment, Kansas City weather forecaster Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt) finds herself able to read people’s minds and speak countless languages– including those not of this earth.
In his career, Spielberg has been synonymous with widescreen Hollywood spectacle for so long that it’s easy to forget he’s of the same New Hollywood generation as Scorsese and Coppola. Here, as in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” (1977), he has one foot in both worlds. “Disclosure Day” has no shortage of thrilling set pieces, including two white-knuckle car chases and some eerie extraterrestrial goings-on. But what makes the film so special is its interest in the strange intersection between science fiction and spirituality. The film is shot through with a peculiar new-age sensibility, drawing parallels between the ETs and a higher power. Blunt is excellent, capturing the manic energy of Richard Dreyfuss in “Close Encounters” while coming to terms with the fact that she’s suddenly become something of a living god. So heady are the concerns that you might at first miss a subplot about a potential World War III brewing overseas. Compared to the mysteries of the universe, such concerns become trivial.
There are so many ideas packed into “Disclosure Day” that it’s tough to wrap one’s head around it all in one sitting, and those looking for a straightforward alien adventure film might find themselves baffled. Nevertheless, this is vintage Spielberg, as personal as “The Fabelmans” (2022) and as thrilling and inventive as his best popcorn epics, with a hopeful message that humanity may not be beyond saving. To quote another UFO investigator: I want to believe. — Oscar Goff
At Somerville Theatre, Kendall Square Cinema, Apple Cinemas Cambridge, and AMC Assembly Row 12.
“Masters of the Universe”
’80s vibes are in the air — and in your ear — in this overly long return of He-Man, a Mattel action figure set turned franchise. The 1987 take on “Masters” starred Dolph Lundgren and was cheesy, brash and dull with lo-fi effects (unlike “Flash Gordon” (1980), which brazenly reveled in its kitsch). The current version is directed by Travis Knight (“Kubo and the Two Strings” (2016), “Bumblebee” (2018)). It shows some ingenuity early on but by the end redounds with subpar crash-bang mindlessness. At a nearly two-and-a-half hour running time, the film could have used some paring in the editing room, or a bit more spice in the script department (five writers are credited).
Because as He-Man/Adam, Nicholas Galitzine (“Red, White & Royal Blue”) strikes a nice balance of hunky and goof — think Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord or Chris Hemsworth as Thor in the Marvel Universe. After the evil Skeletor (Jared Leto, who seems minted for these parts) overthrows the kingdom of Eternia, the young Prince Adam is sent to Earth via a time/space portal. In tow is the Sword of Power (you gotta love these witty, high-brow labels). Naturally, Skeletor needs the sword to rule the — well, you know, universe. Adam loses the sword and gets a job as a corporate wonk, which he spends on the internet searching for the hefty, double-edge sword. Cheekily, his pronouns are He-Him, and he’s also on the HR watch list (Sasheer Zamata hits it out of the park as Adam’s passive-aggressive higher up) for using company resources for his “weird,” role-play obsession. He’s a little too candid about his origins (Superman knew better); when he tells a date about Eternia and the sword they head to the bathroom and never come back.
The banal life on Earth is the kitschy, fun part of “Masters of the Universe.” When Adam does find the sword and he’s back on Eternia trying the save the decimated planet from Skeletor, who Leto projects as a Snidely Whiplash with a tang of Jeremy Irons, interest wanes despite Knight’s efforts to crank it up. In the mix is the ever-regal Idris Elba as Duncan, a former Sergeant-at-Arms turned booze hound, and Camila Mendes as his daughter — and able avenger. Lots to like but it all goes on too long. Nice touches are a cameo by the still-jacked Lundgren and the reuse of Queen’s “Princes of the Universe” from the original “Highlander” film (1986). — Tom Meek
Playing at Kendall Square Cinema, Apple Cinemas Cambridge and AMC Assembly Row 12.
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