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Disclosure Day: I Want to Believe

• Steven Reyes & Sean Anderson • Episode 372

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Intro

SPEAKER_00

Hello, everybody, and welcome to the podcast. We've got a good otherworldly extraterrestrial movie for you today, everybody. I agree. Steven, I'm yeah, I'm glad to talk about this one with you and with everybody listening because I mean, how often do we get a great Spielberg movie coming out? Like it's an event. It's an event movie, and disclosure day is an event. So let's get to talking about this one on this week's episode of more Movies. Please.

Movie Discussion

SPEAKER_01

That we are jumping right into your spoiler warning that if you haven't seen Disclosure Day yet, one, what are you doing? Two, well, or listen at your own risk because we're gonna dive right into this film.

SPEAKER_00

We're spoiling everything. Yeah. You know what? You know what? Aliens are real. Oh da.

SPEAKER_01

And they're not trying to invade like uh Independence Day, like they actually are enlightened.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Or or even like uh another Spielberg movie, War of the Worlds. Like they're not here to turn us into dust.

SPEAKER_01

Yep.

SPEAKER_00

They're they're here to uh say, hey, you guys are cool. We love that you love everybody. Let's we're just gonna hang out.

SPEAKER_01

You guys need to find a better balance with life, and we're gonna help you do that.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah. With our crazy alien technology and our uh uh uh giving powers to people and appearing as big old deer and little tiny red cardinals.

SPEAKER_01

Would you say it was giving powers, or is just more their technology is so advanced that they were able to project this stuff?

SPEAKER_00

Hmm. Yeah, yeah, you got it, you got a good point. I know it's like this whole movie, it's oh, it's alien, so it's already, you know, it's science fiction, but I don't think it's it's veering into like magical powers fantasy. So yeah, I agree with you. I think it's just great future technology.

SPEAKER_01

Because I love the whole concept that magic is just technology people didn't understand.

SPEAKER_00

Oh yeah, yeah. Uh uh oh, there's there's a uh saying for that. It's like any sufficiently advanced technology is in uh distinguishable from magic, I think.

SPEAKER_01

Yep.

SPEAKER_00

Is something like that?

SPEAKER_01

And I think there was an episode of the Orval that did a great job of that, like where somebody used tech to heal somebody and they thought she was a deity, like a godlike person because she was able to do that.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I remember that episode. Yeah, yeah, that was a good one. Yeah, same deal, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

A great mind bender because it's like, holy shit, is this actually what you think? Like, are we gonna rock people's religions?

SPEAKER_00

I know, yeah, right. Yeah. No, same, same deal here. That it like, yeah, that was just the entire like background of this entire movie. It was just like, uh, you know, we've got we've got some like people who have secreted away some some like world-bending, changing uh alien technology secrets, and then we've got this shadowy organization who's trying to keep them from revealing everything. And uh, yeah, that's that's kind of the case here. It's like, can the world handle all of this like crazy information?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, it's just to quote another alien movie, like Men in Black. I love how Will's like people are smart and can handle these and Tommy Lee Jones like, yeah, a person is, but people as a group are just like like oh oh uh they're real bad.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. So do I agree with this shattery organization for being hesitant thinking the world can't handle their existence to aliens? I agree with that. I don't think their intentions were because they were afraid of things falling apart. I think their intentions were more driven by greed and using the technology they found to profit.

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, if if it was for, you know, quote unquote the good of humanity, which, you know, uh on paper, that's what they're saying. But yeah, I agree with you. I think there's a lot more like shady stuff happening here. Um just just by the way they they were able to like track people down the way they were, like it was very like end of dark night sort of stuff, where it was just, you know, uh uh like they're able to find these people on the run down to you know a square meter or something. And like that, being able to do that and being so like so laser focused on getting these people and then presumably like locking them away for the rest of their lives so they can't say anything.

SPEAKER_01

Like that's not well, it was killing them because like when they took control of that one guy's girlfriend, they made her grab a knife to stab him while he was driving.

SPEAKER_00

That's right, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, yeah, call the first character was because she was amazing that instead of stabbing her boyfriend, she would cut herself to kind of knock the person that was mind controlling her out of her head, like using pain as a distraction.

SPEAKER_00

That was so good and clever. I'm like, how do you like in the moment where you're experiencing this thing that no human being has or ever experienced, where your like your mind is taken over by somebody, to have to still have like the ability and wherewithal to be like, okay, I'm gonna take my my cross necklace off and like stab it into my hand, or I'm gonna take this knife and again stab it into my hand, just to like get them out of me. Like that was crazy. This this uh secretly, this this woman, Jane Blankenship, uh who's just paling around with with Kellner the entire film. She okay, I'll say it, I'll say this first. I love Emily Blunt, I love Josh O'Connor. They were not the most interesting characters in the movie for me.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

I like Jane's character, and especially hopefully we can get to it later, the the NBC News anchor at the end, they blew me away more than anybody in this movie. They were great.

SPEAKER_01

Well, they were fantastic. Everybody was amazing. It was just we had some surprise performances from supporting characters that you normally don't get.

SPEAKER_00

Now, Eve Hewson, everybody look out for Eve Houston. She's been on a bunch of stuff on like Apple TV. Um, also, she's Bono's daughter. That's cool, I guess. Uh she she's great. Like, I I hope she is just on the rise after this.

SPEAKER_01

I would imagine so, and I just love the concept on this film that the premise is literally empathy the empathy. That I love how their solution is understanding, not being mad, not having a hard time. Because like often you see like movies where an alien is trapped and they're trying to get away, and they use their powers to overpower the people that are trying to capture them. This one, yeah, literally every time that they got the the humans that were gifted abilities, were trying to be free, they just tapped in people's head and showed them something heartfelt to disarm them, to make them feel comfortable. It wasn't like, hey, I'm gonna put a force drill and just push through you guys, or I'm gonna swipe you away like Vader. It was I'm gonna connect you and reach out to what's bothering you. Hell, the after the newscast, like, hey, you should leave him. Grab your your daughter and go to your sisters and just like tapping into what's bothering people. It was like it was helpful stuff of being empathetic and relating, not controlling. I was like, holy crap, that really is an evolved perspective of forget about what's making you mad and try to understand the person.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah. It was yeah, I I really like that. It was very interesting the way she, uh Margaret Fairchild could do that. Um yeah, it was it was very much like a uh just I'm gonna get a little book geeky for a second. It's like the dead uh zone, except this she's not seeing just how these people will die. Um it's it's just like, hey, yeah, like you said, it's I see how your life could be improved if you just do this one thing, so do this one thing, you know? Get get your child out of there, or like uh uh get you know, uh have a nice dinner date with your wife or something. She she needs some attention, or just like or like here's the thing.

SPEAKER_01

I know you feel bad and that that she's taking this the wrong way with about the pregnancy. Just let her know you are excited. Like it was just you were stressed.

SPEAKER_00

Oh my god, yeah. When that cop pulled her over and she was just like, uh, okay, uh, hey, uh your wife's taking a it's it's tough for her right now. So, you know, just give her some attention. And he's just like, How do you know this? Oh, okay, I'll I'll do that. And then he shows up later on and he's like, Thank you, everything's the better now. My li my life is great.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, it's funny too, because like it's fine, like, oh, he got a it wasn't a bad reaction to a pregnancy. It was more of he was just stress and it wasn't the enthusiastic immediate response, which is fine. Like, just because you don't immediately are aren't immediately excited doesn't mean you're not excited, just he needed a moment to process.

SPEAKER_00

It's such a huge life-changing thing having a child, uh like for for anybody, I would think. So, yeah, like uh, you know, he he he was in his own head and he just forgot, like, oh, you know what, my wife is also going through some shit, and also she's carrying, she's growing a child inside of her. So, you know let's let's it it it seemed like this this cop uh just forgot that they were supposed to be a team and he was just kind of focusing on himself.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, and they just both got distracted by their stresses, and it literally was just third party like, hey, you're fine, you know it, just do this, it'll help. Like, just take a moment for you guys.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, which is kind of just like the lesson that everybody in this movie needed to learn. Uh even with uh Margaret and uh Jackson, like her partner. It's just like uh like we keep saying, it's empathy. Let's stop dividing each other, you know, or pulling away from each other, and let's just understand that we're all going through them through some shit, and we gotta be here for each other, you know. And it doesn't need to be anything like uh big and dramatic. You don't need to, you know, uh make a flash mob and and like you know, uh Although you can if you really want to go big, like if you want to go big, that's fine, but usually what you just need is just to like acknowledge somebody else in your life and say, like, I see you and and I see that you're going through some shit and I'm here for you.

SPEAKER_01

Yep, yep. That it's just that. And I love that every time somebody got hypnotized by this new enlightenment, it was yet again empathy, not like oh, it's an knowledge or somebody changing your thought. It was just like they got shown a perspective and now they can't unsee it, and they realize things are so much bigger than what they think, like the everyday troubles wash away because in comparison, it was just like, no, this is fine, like this is what matters.

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely, which is why I think ultimately I think humanity in this movie is gonna be okay, you know. I I understand where where Noah's coming from, where Colin First's character is coming from, where he's just like it's it's too big of a change for the entire world to deal with. And I bet there will be upheaval and kind of chaos for a while, but if these aliens are just trying to spread the good word about empathy, I think eventually things will calm down and and ultimately like we'll all be better off for like just being here for each other.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, and it's just all about perspective because it was funny that both our main characters that uh do do do do do what was the guy's name again?

SPEAKER_00

Uh Daniel Kellner.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, Daniel. I'm not seeing that on the character list. Oh, Doc Dr. Daniel.

SPEAKER_00

The second one. Dr. Daniel, sorry.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, okay. I thought he was like a computer person.

SPEAKER_00

No, I guess he was uh what is he described as um in in Wikipedia? Cybersecurity specialist. I guess you can have a doctorate in like computer science too.

SPEAKER_01

Well, Margaret and Daniel both when they got abducted abducted both when they got abducted as children, which I'm gonna say borrowed because it was a very sweet way of taking them.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, there was no like like uh we're sucking you up into a UFO or we're gonna probe the hell out of your ass or something. It's not it wasn't South Park or anything.

SPEAKER_01

Both terms are correct, technically, they get taken, but as you said, it's not South Park, there's no anal probe that it's perspective because he was freaking out as a kid, she wasn't, because like when their long bony fingers wrapped around the head to hold them while they were scanning them to give them these enhancements, it was so gentle. And like if you imagine that was a human hand like in a hospital, you would have been nice and calm, like, oh, the nurse is comforting me. It was just literally because it was a hand that looked different than what you're used to. Perspective.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it's weird. The these children are like taken out of their homes, and suddenly they're in this ship, and we've got these little grey uh gray alien guys. Like, I I would be freaked out too. Uh, but no, Margaret was just like right there with him, held his hand, and is like, it's gonna be okay. It's fine.

SPEAKER_01

Like she can see she was able to sense, like, oh, they're nice, they're not here to hurt us. They look scary, but they're not scary. Yeah, absolutely. Come on.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Which is why I think she ended up having the enhancements or powers or whatever you want to call them, though that she did. She was all about really spreading empathy, and he was sort of given the ability to just like know all of math and computers and everything. Like he he could see behind the curtain of like how technology works, and she was seeing how human emotion works, how people work, yeah. Which is a good pairing, you know. It it those two together, like gam together and like they're kind of unstoppable. Uh, but yeah, it's it's uh it is very nice to see them together and how how they they helped each other and played off each other. And um, yeah, I I was really happy to see it when they they finally met each other in real life because it seemed like they both felt such relief after that, you know. He he was just like uh anguished and just like buried under the weight of all of this like technical knowledge and and just trying to escape from Noah all this time. Um and she was just like, Why can't I suddenly like look at somebody and see their entire life? Like, oh my god, that that's gotta be burdensome too.

SPEAKER_01

Well, yeah, because she even said it like when she went to the main guy who was leading the res revolution, he's like, Why won't you look at me? She's like, Because once I look at you, I'm gonna know what you know, and you know everything, and I'm not ready for that.

SPEAKER_00

What a powerful moment, yeah, right? And yo, God, that was that was such a like anxiety-filled moment for me, too, because she she s gets to this uh warehouse and she sees that they've built a an entire copy of her childhood home, and like all of this new information is coming at her. Oh my god, they're aliens and and like I'm here in my home. Why is this why does this exist? Why do you know all this about me? And she's just like having having a panic attack right there. And she's like, I can't look at you because my head'll explode.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah, pretty much. And it was just it made sense. But it was just so simple. Like they the movie has a very simple concept and isn't a complicated message to get out. But I love that most of the time they spent in the film was trying to get the message out while being traced by people who wanted to stop them or hinder them or hinder their growth. And yes, that would that make for good action sequences and an exhilarating experience? Yes. But also I love the fact that it was focused on like hey, there are so many people who are afraid of change that they're gonna hinder your growth. And that's like a great message for life. Like you can be hindered just by fear, and it's not somebody truly trying to hurt you, it's just they're not willing to accept the next level of enlightenment.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah, no, it's everybody wants to keep the status quo as the status quo, you know, because it's it's change is scary, and and especially something this big, I I you know, I I think Noah is ultimately in the wrong here, and especially with his methods. But also I think he was not giving humans enough credit.

SPEAKER_01

Like, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

It's probably gonna be okay. Um but yeah, I I after having seen this one here, it really to your point, I think um this movie is kind of two things. It's it's one, it's just a really long uh chase movie. It's a th a chase movie thriller, which is great. And you know, Steven Spielberg knows how to do that. Like he he's been doing it forever, and it kee he knows how to keep things thrilling and and keep your attention. But it's also like we keep saying, it's about empathy and it's about growing up and it's about caring for the people around us. And it just it makes me uh appreciate where Spielberg is in it, is in his life right now because he's uh how old is this guy? I want to say maybe early 80s. Oh, he's 79. So, you know, he's he's growing older, he's grandpa age, you know, he's got six children of his own. And I I it it just makes me think uh that he's he's sort of getting toward like the third act of his career and maybe the third act of his life, and he's just like, I'm readjusting what what matters to me, you know. I'm still like geeking out of all all this like great action filmmaking, but also like uh there's who's who's got the time or energy to be combative in life? Let's all just like uh love each other.

SPEAKER_01

No, I I agree that I love the message because it was just so peaceful, and it wasn't making people docile, it was helping people connect and have these more rich connections and conversations and just relationships. Like you know how like how great it feels to like catch up and work with somebody and like that you're close with, and then when you're working with a stranger, like being able to empathize the way she does would make the whole world just one big family, and it would be so much more enjoyable.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01

And I also love that the like head nun that was shown was like they they really addressed the whole religion thing in a great way. It wasn't oh, these aliens prove that religion isn't a thing. They're like, nope, like she said, like, hey, this says we're the most advanced beings on earth. It doesn't say whether or not there's more out there, it just says earth. So I love how she was like, aliens don't prove that my religion's wrong, it just proves that all this was made not just for us. I was like, damn.

SPEAKER_00

Just proves that the the universe is huge.

SPEAKER_01

You know, like she gave us a religious and scientific statement all at the same time. I'm like, Yeah, man, that's a good nun.

SPEAKER_00

Like, right? Yeah, gosh. No, it it's it it just is it's her saying, like, if God is all powerful, then why would he just stop at Earth? Why, why would you be so arrogant to believe that we're the only ones here? You know, it's it's it's kind of crazy. It makes me it reminds me of the movie Contact, where at the beginning of that film, uh, you know, the the father tells the daughters, like, there you know, it's a great big world out there. There's so many stars in the universe, uh, it would be uh like a great shame if we're the only ones out here.

SPEAKER_01

Mm-hmm. I love that statement you said about arrogance because like I was talking to this one couple and about like right before like the wedding mine with the whole dance and everything, they're like, Hey, don't worry about what people think because like think about it this way if you're watching somebody else dance, are you gonna be judging them or understanding that they're trying? And the statement was, Are you so arrogant to think you're the only nice person in the room?

SPEAKER_00

I'm like, damn, whoa, damn, that's a good thought technology. I love that.

SPEAKER_01

I was just like, that was a good way of like you could say people are gonna be understanding and be helpful and supporting, but it's easier, it's you say it, but it's hard to believe it. But when you put it that way, like, do you really think everybody else you're the only nice person, everybody else an asshole? Like, yeah, right?

SPEAKER_00

Like, come on.

SPEAKER_01

That's that's not the case statement, and it one made it so much easier to believe people were supportive, two, yeah, it humbles you because you're like, Do you really think you're that special?

SPEAKER_00

I know, right? Yeah. Oh, you got the market corded on being nice, you're you're you're you know, Gandhi too. Come on here. But I was just like, take it easy. Damn, that was fucking good. Wow, I gotta remember that. That's that's good. That you know, that could be the the the secondary theme of this movie.

SPEAKER_01

Yep, yep.

SPEAKER_00

You know, with with the like implicit understanding, like, you know, there there are exceptions to the rule. Like most, I think most people, the great majority of people in the world, as individuals, are are pretty decent. They're pretty nice, you know. But occasionally you've got somebody like Noah who uh I guess it just ended up walking down the wrong path and had his values and hopefully his uh kindness, his empathy, just uh it got tweaked, it got perverted by uh the power he had in his position, I think. And and and the with his knowledge of there's more out there in the world.

SPEAKER_01

Exactly. Just yeah. This movie makes me oh yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

What you were saying.

SPEAKER_00

Makes me wonder if uh uh Noah was so desperate to uh maybe you already said this, I think. Yeah, I think he he was just like his character was just going off of greed. Like I don't think his his motivation was necessarily only to like protect the world from all this knowledge. I think it was like, you know, I I I'm leading what is it, Wardex? I think. I I'm the CEO of this place. And if everybody knows our secrets, then what's the point of my job in my life? You know, I think he was just like, no, I I he was he was high on his own power and he didn't want to let it go.

SPEAKER_01

If everybody's super, nobody's super.

SPEAKER_00

Exactly, yeah, yeah. I mean, what's the point of Wardex after everybody knows about this? Uh I probably no point.

SPEAKER_01

You know what? It's funny, the whole secret of the technology and where they get their advancements from, like they're copying alien tech to invent stuff. Men in Black made that comment too about like the microwave machine, all this stuff was based off of this tech. Like, there's been lots of movies that hint that our advancements are because we're copying somebody else's technology that crash landed.

SPEAKER_00

Hmm. Hmm. Is that the real case, everybody? Uh ask yourself that.

SPEAKER_01

Even Independence Day does that too.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, that's right, yeah. Yeah. What kind of a true believer are you, everybody? Huh? I uh to make is it just the military figuring out how uh microwave radiation works, or is it aliens? Ooh.

SPEAKER_01

I still love the Independence Day comment of like, how did you guys fund this? Uh do you really think they spent $10,000 on a hammer, $30,000 on a toilet seat? I'm just like Yeah, actually it's pretty damn smart. Because like there are some line items that are just like, damn, that's a lot for that facility. It's just like just because that's what they wrote. That's I mean that's what they spent it on.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah. Fancy accounting.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Hey, as long as as long as all the registers balanced, then who cares what everything actually is for.

SPEAKER_01

That is crack me up. It gets me every time I watch it, that line, I just laugh so hard.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Oh boy. So uh see, it's been a little while since we've actually seen this movie in theaters. Um, and also seeing this movie in the theater is a great way to see it. So uh if you can find it out there, everybody, just go ahead and do it.

SPEAKER_01

I'm pretty sure by the time this airs, it will be streaming by then. It may not be.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, probably. Well, hey, I hope you were able to see it in theater when when it was out. Um but uh since watching it, I I think I've I've come to the feeling that um I was I've got a cat walking through here, probably brushing up against the microphone. Hello, Hammy. Uh what a hammy that the the m the movie was great and all, like it was it was great, it was thrilling. You know, it's two and a half hours, but it doesn't feel like two and a half. Well, it kind of feels like two and a half hours, but it's not boring at all. And it doesn't make you, it doesn't drag at all. Um, but then we get to the end of this movie and we see, oh, aliens are real. Here's a freaking like real life alien living, breathing, and standing in front of us. And then you know, the movie ends with with Margaret just you know addressing the camera and saying, just listen. And I was thinking, it's a cool movie and all, but oh my gosh, now I really what I wish I had seen was what happens after the credits uh start rolling. Like what what goes on there? Yeah, just you know, uh how are you feeling about the movie since we've seen it? And and you know, because I I I like the movie, but I'm also a little disappointed that I didn't like uh venture into like what what goes on with the world after we find out that aliens are real.

SPEAKER_01

So are you asking if I feel the same way? So I like the ends on an optimistic note because the message is listen, which leaves you thinking about what was just shown to you, what you how you would understand this like contemplating rather than saying, oh, if this were to happen, this is how the world's gonna react. So this is like just plain it out. Plain it out, it's nice, but I kinda like the idea of like we just end on an optimistic note because the message is listen, which leaves you thinking about what was just shown to you, what you how you would understand this like contemplating rather than saying, oh, if this were to happen, this is how the world's gonna react. So this is like just playing it out. Playing it out, it's nice, but I kinda like the idea of like we just end on an optimistic note because if we show people flipping out, then we're like, oh, it won't matter if we try to be evolved, people are gonna be people. But if it leaves us we're all stunned and just saying listen to each other and here's our chance, it leaves it with we can do this rather than this is what would happen.

SPEAKER_00

Right. I mean, I I agree, but I think you could also have had the same uh message uh of empathy with like oh post-disclosure day, you know, disclosure day two, basically. Yeah, it doesn't necessarily have to turn into children of men where it's just like oh the it's a it's a raging post-apocalypse and everybody's in prison or like just trying to murder each other.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Uh but yeah, I mean, again, I'm not unhappy with the movie we got. It's just uh since we've seen it, I'm just like, uh, you know, this is great, but what more could it have been, you know? And and heck, I don't know. That's that's not me saying that doesn't mean that there's never gonna be a disclosure day two. Yeah, you know. Who knows what'll happen in the future. But uh it's to me, like that that's an interesting story as well. Like, how how does the world handle this kind of information? And hopefully, how does the world change for the better?

SPEAKER_01

You know, I I agree that I hope it just changes for the better in general.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, uh it'll be interest it would be interesting. Um I think uh you you've got a lot of like good holders of the you know, having Margaret and and Daniel as sort of like just these these like emissaries or or these this bridge to alien life uh is good. And I'm sure they'll have a lot more to do in their future, you know, uh sort of just being like uh we've got alien powers, and here's how we can all improve our own lives, and all it takes is just you know, stopping all of this this like conflict. Let's stop this World War III thing that we're barreling into.

SPEAKER_01

It was funny, it's just like hey, we're reporting on the current crisis of it seemed like World War III being at a peak. Like, what's gonna be important enough for us to cut to a different news feed? And they're like, Look freaking aliens, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

That that's just about the only thing that could actually like stop a war from happening, I think, especially you know, a world war like that is you know, something that's not of this world, something that is like it it turns us all into one giant global community against you know or or or like underneath this this like great big uh disclosure. Uh and yeah, at that point, who cares about what North Korea is doing, you know, because we're all just like, whoa, what the hell is the is outer space doing?

SPEAKER_01

I love the fact that even all the locations that seem to be fighting when they cut to the feed all kind of pause for a second and would just watch, and it was like everybody just stopped. It kind of reminded me of I don't know how far did you get in Doctor Who, like which did you see all of Capoldi's stuff by any chance?

SPEAKER_00

Oh, I'm not nearly that far. No, still antenna.

SPEAKER_01

So I won't give out any spoilers, but they do have an episode that address the armistice, like that one time that there was a battle where on Christmas Day both sides just stopped.

SPEAKER_00

And yeah, what was that? World War One?

SPEAKER_01

I I think so, like literally both sides stopped and like were nice to each other, like pretty much call the truce mid-battle and were like actually celebrated Christmas and went their separate ways. And I was just like, literally, that's what it felt like on the screen for disclosure. Like everybody just stopped for a second, which I'm still in awe that that even happened in real life at all. I'm like, how does that happen where nobody breaks it like in the heat of the moment? Like I it's amazing and it's beautiful, and it's just spectacular, but I was just like still in awe of that. I'm just like, that is what we need more of being able to literally step aside and pick a bigger goal, even if it is just for a few hours.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, absolutely. Well, I think often, you know, it's the the people, you know, in this case, uh in the trenches, who are just doing what they're being commanded to do. Like they're in a war, so their their commanding officers are saying, Well, you better, you know, kill these people, otherwise you're gonna be in trouble. And and yeah, it's always the higher-ups who are who are the the real like puppet masters with all of this stuff. And um yeah, I think that's it's it goes back to what we were saying about uh Noah's character is just like he he's the puppet master and he just wants to keep pulling the strings, and it's everybody else who uh he he's saying has to go along with what he says, even though I think everybody on the whole just like we we all just want peace, you know. Nobody wants who who in their right mind wants a World War III or two or one, you know, it having that kind of destruction, that kind of like death, uh, you know, especially World War III, it's like it's not gonna be just like trench warfare, which was understandably awful, it's likely gonna be nuclear warfare in World War III. Uh and it's it's gonna be I I don't even want to imagine what it would be like, but it's not gonna be great to say the least. So yeah, yeah. But I I I did love that like the the most of the like third act of the movie is like okay, we've got all this all this footage. It's Daniel that's like trying to get into the newsroom, and they're trying to get this newsroom to to report on what is what is known now, and then it just gets beamed out into the world, and uh like you're saying, all these news anchors were just like reporting on it. And this to me, like uh I I loved this part because seeing that that NBC anchor, the the woman who who was doing that, who I think is actually a real anchor, a real life news anchor, um, reporting on like her performance blew me away. Like it was like for me the secret, like best performance of the movie. Because like seeing her go from just being a professional news person, just reporting on on what she's seeing and just trying to do what she's been trained to do, but then letting you know this overwhelming information is just like crashing down on her, and she's like being affected by it and just like overwhelmed by it too, was such a good performance for me.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. And I think it was incredible. And the trivia actually addresses that.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, yeah, yeah. Oh, that's right. Uh yeah, it's it was such an incredible performance, and very much what I would imagine would actually happen, you know. So y yeah. What a movie, Steven. What a what a good like rousing Steven Spielberg movie. This guy, uh uh I don't know about you, but I think he's got uh a bright and shiny future for him ahead of himself.

SPEAKER_01

Maybe, maybe, I don't know. We'll see.

SPEAKER_00

Uh I mean, what what does he have coming up? Does he have anything in the works? Let's see. Uh no, no, Wikipedia. I don't know. We'll we'll see what he's got cooking. Probably either well, knowing Steven Spielberg, it's gonna be either like, I don't know, what, family drama, uh, war film, or sci-fi. That's that's what he likes doing.

SPEAKER_01

Or he's stolen all the alien footage and is gonna release it.

SPEAKER_00

Oh yeah. Oh my gosh, what if Disclosure Day wasn't just a fiction movie? What if it was like, oh yeah, he knows some stuff.

SPEAKER_01

It is Spielberg.

SPEAKER_00

Let's see. Upcoming Unti Napoleon. Upcoming Frank Bullet project. They're redoing Bullet? Interesting. That Steve McQueen movie? And then also Napoleon. What is this Napoleon thing? A TV miniseries. But they already did Napoleon with Joaquin Phoenix, who's a Ridley Scott thing. Who knows? I don't know. Oh, this is a a Kubrick originally a Kubrick thing? Well, anyway, I'm getting way distracted. That's what happens when you start looking into Steven Spielberg's uh life. He's just a fascinating person.

Trivia

SPEAKER_01

Let's look into the fascinating trivia for his film.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I agree. We got some good stuff here, thankfully. Alright, when Steven Spielberg approached John Williams to provide the score, Williams first suggested four other composers to take the job, since Williams had retired from film scoring. Yeah, I think he's pretty old. He's gotta be at least in his 80s. Uh Spielberg insisted Williams score the film himself, and Williams finally agreed. Because, you know, these two guys together, like they've made some of the most iconic film scores in all of cinema history. So how could you work with anybody else?

SPEAKER_01

Just one more. One more.

SPEAKER_00

Like just guy did Star Wars. Like, come on. Yeah. Oh, he's 94. Oh my god. Yeah, okay. I get why he was hesitant to do it.

SPEAKER_01

Come on, I'm tired.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Let's see. So speaking of conspiracy theories, the footage of President Richard Nixon meeting with Jackie Gleason is based on actual conspiracy theories. Gleason was obsessed with UFOs and their lore. Nixon wanted to impress him by showing him alien artifacts that were in the government's possession, and it's rumored he did show him alien bodies.

SPEAKER_00

Man, this uh that's an interesting theory.

SPEAKER_01

So here and here's the thing. If there is any kind of stuff like that in the government's possession, I feel like this group, I forgot what they're called already, the something X, Tech X, WarX. I feel like a group like that would have to exist. Because if there was any of this information that they disclosed to each president, Trump would have fucking said it already. His mouth wouldn't have been able to keep his mouth shut. He would have been like he would have shown stuff like they came and they know I'm the best and they just want waiting for me to show that they're real. Just like he would have fucking spilled it. So if there is stuff in the government possession, Wardex has taken the lead and kept the presidents out of succession for this info. Because there's no way this fucker would have kept his mouth shut.

SPEAKER_00

Well, we'll we'll see. We'll see if uh any unredacted Epstein files come out, you know. That would probably be the time. So we'll see.

SPEAKER_01

Like one more curveball to distract.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Or maybe, you know, the people running Wardex are like, you know what, this uh, you know, the real life wardex are like, you know what, this is real, but also we can't trust this guy. So, you know, he might be the president of this country, but he doesn't need to know everything. I mean, you know, who knows what's going on in Area 51, really? Alright, so Josh O'Connor, who played uh Kellner, was struggling with an emotional scene one day. I wasn't sure how to do it. That night he received a text from Steven Spielberg saying, The door's on the latch, just push. O'Connor thought it was acting advice, and then the next day he went to thank Spielberg for his advice, saying, Stephen, that was inspired. And that's just what I'll do with the scene. The door is on the latch, just push. And Spielberg then said, What are you talking about? He checked his messages and began laughing. What had actually happened was Spielberg's wife had texted him saying that she had accidentally or she had actually uh uh I'm sorry, that she had forgotten her house keys and would be home late. The text was meant for her, and it became a joke on set later on.

SPEAKER_01

So he texts a message for the wife.

SPEAKER_02

Oh man.

SPEAKER_00

Just just the doors on the lesh. Just push. It's fine. You can get in.

SPEAKER_01

That's why I that's why it's funny, like when you think somebody is so profound and they send you a mistake and you think you you turn it into something more than what it was.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Hey, you know what? If you get something good out of it, then it was it really a mistake.

SPEAKER_01

Which also That's fine. Yes, I could see Spirable giving somebody a comment like that to inspire them.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, oh yeah, absolutely. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

But you had mentioned this about the anchor. The NBC anchor during the disclosure broadcast at the end of the film is played by an actual television presenter. This is former newscaster Courtney Grace. Grace called this role a full circle moment.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. I'm not surprised that she was able to do, you know, the teleprompter reading and just be the news anchor sort of person. But to see her slow overwhelm and and break down like that, like that was some top-level acting. And like, hats off to her for being able uh to find that.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, like even if she's thinking about stories that have been horrific that she's reported on, she's still channeling that and knowing what to deliver in the pacing of the moment.

SPEAKER_00

So she's gotta do that on a film set with a bunch of people watching her, like multiple times.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, they're gonna be extra takes. You also are in front of uh Legend Spearberg, so like that's gotta be nerve-wracking.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, alright. Yeah, it's it's a lot, but man, she pulled it off. I like I said earlier, she her performance is one of the best ones in this entire film for me.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, yes, indeed.

Recommendations

SPEAKER_01

And I think it's no surprise as to the fact that we probably both rated this pretty damn high.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, absolutely. Uh I I think so. Um, me, I gave this one okay, I I gotta say this. Initially I gave it four stars. I was pretty uh enamored by it coming out of the movie theater. But then as it sort of settled on me, I was sort of just playing it through it in my mind. I I dropped it down to a three and a half, which is, I think, still very uh complimentary. I think it's worth uh a rental, so so give it a go.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, I agree that I did three and a half because I knew I was enamored when I walked out of the theater. I was like, I need to rate this as a film, not just as the message, because the message had me at five-star rating, but I had to remember I'm rating a film. Absolutely, and the film was still spectacular, but it was simple, and that was the point. It was meant to be something just to elevate your perspective, not some elaborate gr fan piece of cinematography that just keeps you enthralled. It was a message that they wanted to get through.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, absolutely. It's good. It's a good one. I think it really stands up there with some of the the better uh Spielberg movies.

SPEAKER_01

I agree. And even though it's three and a half, I'm still gonna get it. I will wait for it to be on sale, but I will get it.

SPEAKER_00

Sale price is good. Yeah, no, it's worth watching again because it's I think it'll it'll keep giving you more good stuff.

SPEAKER_01

Just a nice refresher of just enjoying the message.

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely.

Outro

SPEAKER_01

Let me say thank you for selecting this. I'm glad that we got to watch it and got to share our perspective with our audience that it was just a fantastic experience. So thank you again for adding it, Sean. Thank you to our audience and to our space friends for listening. We hope you found this entertaining and will share your empathy with us. That I am open and willing Steve here with.

SPEAKER_00

Uh uh kind and loving Sean.

SPEAKER_01

And we have nothing but hugs for you guys on this episode and next week's episode of More Movies.

SPEAKER_00

Please remote.