Now, with Disclosure Day, he returns to the science fiction genre to deliver what feels like his definitive statement on one of humanity’s oldest questions: are we alone in the universe?

If you found out we weren’t alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? This June, the truth belongs to seven billion people. We are coming close to … Disclosure Day.

Spielberg’s Definitive Statement On The Unknown

Arriving at a time when public fascination with UFOs, Area 51, and government disclosure is at an all-time high, Disclosure Day feels remarkably timely. Yet while its premise is rooted in conspiracy and mystery, Spielberg never loses sight of the human story at its centre.

The film opens on the brink of global conflict, with tensions threatening to push the world towards catastrophe. At the centre of the chaos is Daniel Kellner (Josh O’Connor), a gifted hacktivist who uncovers evidence proving the existence of extraterrestrial life after stealing classified information from the shadowy Wardex Corporation, a private organisation dedicated to suppressing alien activity.

As Daniel races to reveal the truth, his path unexpectedly collides with Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt), a Kansas City meteorologist and former journalist desperate for a second chance at relevance. Together, they become entangled in a conspiracy that stretches far beyond anything they could have imagined, setting in motion a globe-spanning race where the future of humanity hangs in the balance.

Pure Spielberg Magic

Every hallmark of Spielberg’s filmmaking is on display throughout Disclosure Day. This is blockbuster cinema crafted by a master operating at the height of his powers.

The film seamlessly blends intimate emotional drama with pulse-pounding action and nerve-rattling suspense.

Spielberg’s greatest strength has always been his ability to balance spectacle with heart, and nowhere is that more evident than here. The moments that resonate most are those where emotional vulnerability collides with breathtaking scale, creating sequences that are both exhilarating and deeply affecting.

Longtime collaborators once again elevate the experience. Cinematographer Janusz Kamiński fills the screen with striking imagery that captures both the wonder and terror of the unknown, while John Williams delivers a sweeping score that reminds audiences why his partnership with Spielberg remains one of cinema’s greatest creative alliances. The result is unmistakably Spielbergian in every sense.

Emily Blunt Leads A Stellar Cast

The cast proves equally impressive, with Emily Blunt delivering one of the strongest performances of her career. As Margaret Fairchild, Blunt brings remarkable vulnerability and authenticity to a woman whose life is suddenly upended by forces beyond her comprehension. Through Margaret, Spielberg explores humanity’s need for answers in an increasingly uncertain world, and Blunt carries that emotional weight with extraordinary grace.

Josh O’Connor also impresses as Daniel Kellner, grounding the film’s larger-than-life premise through a relatable everyman perspective. His determination to expose the truth gives the narrative its momentum, while his chemistry with Blunt provides much of the film’s emotional core.

Meanwhile, Colman Domingo once again proves himself a magnetic screen presence. As Hugo Wakefield, he brings wisdom, mystery, and an undeniable sense of wonder to the story, stealing every scene in which he appears.

Final Verdict: A Sweeping Science-Fiction Epic

Disclosure Day is Spielberg at his finest: ambitious, thrilling, emotional, and filled with the sense of awe that has defined his career. While it grapples with questions of extraterrestrial life and humanity’s place within the cosmos, its true focus is far more intimate. This is a film about truth, connection, and the hope that understanding something greater than ourselves might ultimately help us better understand who we are.

Image: Universal Pictures

The post ‘Disclosure Day’ – Steven Spielberg Reaches For The Stars In A Thrilling Sci-Fi Rush – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.

Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle) aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.

Winding back the clock and looking back on the past with deep significance and nostalgia, Steven Spielberg, the man long regarded as the greatest cinematic visionary of all time charts a journey of a young man’s discovery of the cinema and a quest to know the power of the movies in The Fabelmans. Re-teaming with long-time collaborator and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright turned screenwriter Tony Kushner, Spielberg pulls from his own life to tell the story of a young man’s coming of age and how the movies would shape his destiny with The Fabelmans. This is a deeply personal and autobiographical film, but it is also delivered with deep reverence for the power of narrative, and it delves into the reasons why we choose to be enchanted by the cinema. Every frame and each story beat is a personal annotation by Spielberg on his own life as an aspiring filmmaker and you feel his deep passion for what is the most important story he’s ever told.

Framing his own life through the character of Samuel “Sammy” Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle), a young Jewish-American teenager growing up in the late 1950s and early 1960s who discovers love, passion and talent for the art of cinema, we come to see the formative events that shaped Speilberg’s own life as an artist and filmmaker. And the results are astonishing. While this may be Spielberg’s story, we are treated to a sensational performance of rising young star Gabriel LaBelle at the centre of the film that captures the attention of the audience. Facing adolescent pains, family dramas and the desire for a dream that sometimes feels utterly impossible, we see the world through Sammy’s eyes, and more importantly his camera lens, and in the process, we see the formation of the talent of a young Spielberg in the process.

While LaBelle’s portrayal of Sammy might be the frame from which we view this story through, of key importance to the success of The Fabelmans are the presence of actors Michelle Williams and Paul Dano as Sammy’s parents Mitzi and Burt Fabelman. Where Mitzi is a talented performer and highly-strung woman who suffers deep emotional swings, Burt is his astute, closed off, and at times, cold scientific father, and it’s a juxtaposition that Spielberg was aware of in his own parents, which as it does for the young Sammy, had big ramifications for Spielberg’s own creative life. Williams gives an incredibly transformative performance as Mitzi and her performance commands the attention of the audience whenever she appears on the screen.

With its emotional story of the birth of a young man as an artist, The Fabelmans is also a complete technical wonder and Spielberg’s attention to detail and mastery of the craft is effortlessly seen on screen. Reuniting with frequent collaborator and celebrated cinematographer Janusz Kamiński, Speilberg and Kamiński work to re-create the style, light, tone and grain of classic 35mm film and the light and gleam on the image equate itself with the films of that era. The Fabelmans is a complete reflection of the era and the movies of that time period in which it set, and Speilberg and Kamiński bring that feeling to the big screen in relation to how the movie is shot and you get a sense of this when watching the images make their way on screen. The legendary John Williams also brings his talent to the picture and his score adds an extra layer of magic to The Fabelmans for audiences to experience.

The Fabelmans is a deeply emotional and profound cinematic experience and audiences will be spellbound by its sincerity, beauty and sentiment, and it asks its audience to think about what family, the passage of time, and the experiences that make up our lives truly mean to us. This is Spielberg at his most personal and introspective and the result is a truly astonishing and deeply personal work of art that will make you smile, laugh, giggle, cry and dream.

Image: Studio Canal

The post ‘The Fabelmans’ – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.

Teenagers Tony and Maria, despite having affiliations with rival street gangs, the Jets and Sharks, fall in love in 1950s New York City.

2021 has not been a very comfortable year and for many of us a trip to the cinema is something we could have only wished for. Well, now you’ll get your wish granted because Academy Award-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg is here to invite you back to the cinema these holidays for the unprecedented cinematic event that is West Side Story. Bringing the classic stage show from Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Jerome Robbins and Arthur Laurents to the big screen for an entirely new generation, Speilberg pours his boyhood passion and love for the source material into this project and it shows in every single frame of film. Everything about this movie comes together. Cast, production design, costuming, cinematography, hair & make-up, choreography and of course the music, and it’s a truly lively time out at the movies.

Helping Spielberg to bring West Side Story to the big screen is Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and screenwriter Tony Kushner, who as a long time collaborator and friend of Spielberg has helped shape some of the best films of the past two decades including Munich and Lincoln. Together these two artists work to bring the stage show to the big screen and focus very much is on the stage show aspect of the story. Where some Hollywood musicals can just feel generic, Speilberg and Kushner have really worked hard to make this piece of cinema feel like it is a piece of Broadway come alive, both in construction and presentation and Kushner’s adaptation of the famed work strikes new ground for a contemporary audience. Themes of love, acceptance, new beginnings, prejudice and the American Dream abound throughout the narrative and are handled in such a way that feels completely in keeping with the original show, along with having a real relevance in our modern age.

As a cinematic experience, West Side Story is what the movie theatre was made for. Bright, colourful, and majestic, this is a film whose frames use up every bit of space of the canvas and Spielberg brings his unique hand for wonderment to this presentation. Capturing the energy, fashion and style of the mid-1950s with an elevated Hollywood sense of glamour and detail, Speilberg brings to life the frantic clash of worlds that exist between The Jets and The Sharks, and from its opening crane shot that takes you into the bowls of a broken New York City you’re hooked as an audience member. Music and dance combine to transport you back in time and you’re sure to groove in your seats. Of particular enjoyment for me was the film’s school gym dance and the classic ‘America’ performance. Both scenes are filled with lively dancing, a rousing score and dashing costuming, and these two moments for me truly capture the fun and energy of this timeless story.

Portraying the central characters of Tony and Maria are Ansel Elgort and newcomer Rachel Zegler, and both are pitch-perfect in their performances. Elgort gives Tony a true Paul Newman flair as a former bad boy who is looking for a way to do good in his life, while Zegler is a beautiful ingenue as Maria who truly captures the centre of the screen and whose voice and presence are utterly angelic. Both have excellent chemistry on screen together, and pay tribute to the classic performances of Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer, but also make the characters their own. While staying true to the classic rendition of the production, there is also a very present feeling about their performances that leads into the modern.

Providing a key level of support to the film’s story are Ariana DeBose as Anita, David Alvarez as Bernardo and Mike Faist as Riff. DeBose brings spontaneity and flair to her role as the whipsmart and slightly diva-ish Anita. Alvarez on the other hand has the intensity and fire of a young Marlon Brando and makes a forcible presence on the screen as the volatile and hot-headed Bernado. Faist brings the production together with his turn as Jets gang leader Riff, who is so caught up in his own misplaced hate that he is fated to an early doom.

Finally bringing this cinematic presentation of West Side Story to a complete full-circle is the one and only Rita Moreno as Valentina. A triple-crown winning actress, Moreno is a stateswoman of the silver screen for the other actors with her performance here as Valentina, or simply Val as the teenagers of this neighbourhood refer to her as. As a maternal figure to Tony, she tries to guide him and Maria in the right direction, but sadly she can only look on as hate and injustice swirl around them and lead into the tragedy that lie at the heart of the story. Moreno has a grand presence in the film and her performance and spirit hold the attention of the audience whenever she appears on screen.

West Side Story is a lavish, big-screen production of Hollywood at its grandest and this is a film that the whole family will be mesmerized by. Bright and bold it speaks to the power of cinema to both move and entertain us and it is exactly the kind of film we need at this moment in time. Do not miss out on this one at the cinema, for it is a grand treat.

Image: Walt Disney Pictures

The post ‘West Side Story’ – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.

As part of the 2021 Auckland Arts Festival, a world-class, all-Aotearoa curated collection with 70+ performances and event, audiences will be able to able to experience E.T. once more, only this time it will be coming to the big screen accompanied by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, for the first time in NZ.

Experience the magic of director Steven Spielberg’s beloved movie with John Williams’ Academy Award-winning score performed live by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.

This special screening of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial will take place on Saturday March 13, 7pm at Kiri te Kanawa Theatre, Aotea Centre and details about the event can be found here.

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a film filled hope, magic and love and audiences should take full advantage of this amazing opportunity to see it in concert and re-live the wonder of this classic film.

For more information about the Auckland Arts Festival click here.

The post Relive the magic and wonder of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial live in concert appeared first on SpicyPulp.

Set in the near future, Ready Player One follows the adventures of Wade Watt aka Parzival (Tye Sheridan) as he steps inside the virtual reality landscape known as the Oasis. There he seeks to win an astonishing prize left behind by the world’s creator James Donovan Halliday (Mark Rylance).

When you think of cinema one name immediately comes to mind: Steven Spielberg. Since 1971’s Duel this cinematic genius has brought us incredible feats of visual storytelling that have helped us escape into far away universes and introduced us to amazing characters that have become a staple of the pop-culture landscape and who still bring us feelings of joy, happiness, suspense and marvel. Now Speilberg returns to the big screen with a blockbuster adaptation of Ernest Cline’s modern-day cult classic novel that was as much a homage to the work of Spielberg as it was a celebration of video game culture and those who love them.

In short Spielberg’s decision to direct Ready Player One is a match made in heaven and the film greatly benefits from his directorial eye. Not only does he have the ability to handle The Oasis’ grand feats of visual spectacle, but he roots the film in a world that is not unlike our own with characters who are experiencing real problems and who within The Oasis are searching for something better. This balance can be attributed to a master storyteller like Spielberg who is now regarded as one of the elder statesmen of the cinematic art form and who continues to inject passion and meaning into his work. In my own opinion this film could not have lived up to its promise had it not been for Spielberg’s guiding hand and his presence creates something truly extraordinary.

If you’re a pop-culture fiend like myself, then, well, YOU’LL LOVE READY PLAYER ONE! This film is simply a dream come true and takes everything you’ve ever loved about film, TV, video games and the 1980s and throws it all into a melting pot of extraordinary visual imagery. With every reference conceivable form Back to the Future to Overwatch present, you’ll find yourself trying to tick off your own mental list of your favourite characters. This distinctive pop-culture shapes the film’s narrative, and most importantly it’s three tasks. The way these are constructed are incredibly interesting and recall those moments that have shaped our lives from an entertainment point-of-view.

Spielberg employs some incredible visual effects to realize The Oasis and it’s awesome to see how he re-interprets the film’s source material within this crazy VR world. One moment you’ll be howling with adrenaline and the next you’ll be cowering in fear as The Oasis comes alive in front of you.

But while spectacular visual effects abound before us, it’s Spielberg’s focus on his characters that really make this film so watchable. Tye Sheridan is a completely relatable hero as Wade Watts/Parzival who takes it upon himself to follow the quest to find the hidden Easter Egg and who in doing so bears a direct reference to Sir Percival and the Grail Legend.

Wade is an all cases an everyman hero who through his quest learns to trust others, finds romance and accomplishes something truly remarkable. His journey completely references that of the classic Monomythic Structure conceived by Joseph Campbell and Sheridan really gives himself to crafting a fantastic performance.

While having a relatable hero is one key ingredient to the narrative of Ready Player One, Spielberg also examines the theme of reality and fantasy. This is scene very literally in the crumbling reality that Wade lives in and the imaginative world of The Oasis that he regularly and almost obsessively escapes to.

Spielberg explores how fantasy can be very fulfilling, it is ultimately reality that truly matters and the journey that Wade and his friends take to learn this fact is extremely thought-provoking. Ready Player One has been released at a very interesting moment in our cultural history and it offers a fascinating mirror to look at our current digital practices.

But while there are some major thought-provoking themes at the heart of Ready Player One it is ultimately an enthralling cinematic blockbuster that is just a blast to watch. It’s everything you could ever want out of a blockbuster and I implore you to watch this film on the biggest screen possible. Pop-culture has never been this much fun, and when it’s synth credits begin to roll, well, you’ll be grooving out like it’s 1985 and you’ve just stepped out of a DeLorean DMC-12.

Image: Roadshow Films

The post ‘Ready Player One’ – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.

1971. America is reeling from the fallout of the Vietnam War and a collection of clandestine documents winds up on the doorstep of The Washington Post’s editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks). In front of Bradlee is the story of a lifetime, one that could shake-up and rearrange the very essence of power in America, but it’s not his call to publish it. That decision rests on the Washington Post’s publisher, Katherine Graham (Meryl Streep) who must decide what stance her paper is going to do: to either walk the line of the status quo or champion the power of the free press. 

Taking centre stage in The Post is living legend Meryl Streep who effortlessly walks into the role of Katherine ‘Kay’ Graham, herself another legendary powerful woman who served as the publisher of her family’s newspaper, and an American Institution, The Washington Post. However, her greatest triumph is still some time away and here Kay is still essentially trying to find herself as she recovers from the recent loss of her husband, and is facing mounting pressures as she takes her company public. The last thing she needs is to manage a potential crisis that could upset the established political order and call into question the actions of the Nixon government. But that’s of course where she finds herself.

It’s in this situation, where her leadership is being called into question that Streep really shines as she showcases the slowly burning fire that leads Graham to triumph. Streep’s performance is very reserved and business-like and she keeps a veneer of tranquillity which makes her very hard to read, but it is clear that in private she is wrestling with some very big issues. Gradually as the film progresses she slowly addresses the crisis, waiting until she has all the facts to make a stand and challenge the status quo.

Standing beside Streep in The Post is another screen legend, Tom Hanks, who is full of dogged determination as Ben Bradlee, the energetic and charismatic editor of The Washington Post who wants to do everything in his power to release the story of The Pentagon Papers.

Streep and Hanks make an interesting pair as Graham and Bradlee on screen and the two of them each bring a different perspective to how the release of this epic and challenging story should be released through the Post. They compliment each other brilliantly, but Hanks understands his role as Bradlee and while he is a very pushy character you sense that whatever decision Graham makes he will stand by it.

One could almost be forgiven for forgetting that The Post is, in fact, a Steven Spielberg film. This is such in keeping with the incredible performances from both Streep and Hanks that you forget to think about the Spielberg’s acting as a director. But this is not to say that he does not do a terrific job, on the contrary, his ability to keep his audiences attention focused squarely on the situation that they find themselves in. The Post is not an overly stylized film and Speilberg plays it very straight. Through this, your attention never wanders from the decisions that are facing Graham and Bradley and the film is all the more gripping for it.

The Post is also an incredibly important film that champions the power of the free press and its role in holding government and other higher powers to accountability. It’s production and release is a very timely event, especially in the wake of America’s rocky political standing and the era of ‘fake news’ and specially targeted media that is now used to shape a person’s opinion and beliefs. Speilberg makes a real effort to highlight how important our free media is and that we should never take it for granted. His is a message that the media is a space where one can have a powerful voice and that with good guidance and the right people the press can, in fact, make a difference for all of society.

The Post is an extremely powerful film and one that’s gripping story and powerful performances command your attention from its very first frame. It’s essential viewing in the times that we live in and audiences would do well to watch it.

Image: EOne Films

The post ‘The Post’ – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.

The first teaser has been released as a part of this year’s San Diego Comic Con and it is spectacular. Check it out below:

Here’s the synopsis:

Set in the near future, Ready Player One follows the adventures of Wade Watt aka Parzival (Tye Sheridan) as he steps inside the virtual reality landscape known as the Oasis. There he seeks to win an astonishing prize left behind by the world’s creator James Donovan Halliday (Mark Rylance).

Those familiar with Cline’s story will know just how much of an emphasis 1980’s pop culture has on the plot and judging by this footage Spielberg has really captured the fantastical atmosphere of the story. With early references pointing to the likes of Back to the Future, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Akira, Ready Player One will be a must watch for anyone with a love for pop culture entertainment.

Like its plot and world-building, the film’s cast is equally impressive and includes noted performers such as Ben Mendelsohn, Simon Pegg, T. J. Miller and Sir Mark Rylance.

Ready Player One will be released on March 29 in New Zealand and Australia and on March 30 in the US and UK.

The post Step inside the world of ‘Ready Player One’ appeared first on SpicyPulp.

Cinema maestro Steven Spielberg brings to life the world of Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s book, The BFG, in his first-ever collaboration with Walt Disney Pictures. Spielberg has long been a director capable of producing magic on the silver screen, and it is fitting that he ‘s now worked for the most magical of all studios in Hollywood. Spielberg focuses on the fairytale aspects of Dahl’s famous tale, building a world that both children and adults will want to visit over and over again, while also injecting moments of absolute hilarity.

Perfectly cast is Spielberg’s former collaborator Mark Rylance as the titular BFG. Rylance truly captures the spirit of this beloved character with subtle character traits and mismatched speech. With emotions that lead from joy to misunderstanding, shyness and humour, Rylance crafts an almost grandfatherly figure as The BFG, who is also in desperate need of a friend and finds one in the precocious Sophie. The friendship that builds between these two is sweet and sincere, and is a testament to how we can overcome one another’s differences.

While Rylance brilliantly conveys his character through superb CGI work, it’s newcomer Ruby Barnhill who is really the star of the film, and an amazing talent to keep an eye on. It is hard for any performer to react to a green screen let alone someone as young as Barnhill, but this young talent’s realistic reaction to the giants around her is so convincing that audiences won’t fail to believe her for a moment. Her portrayal of Sophie channels curiosity, intelligence, feistiness, and ultimately kindness, as she comes to build a friendship with The BFG. We see big things ahead for this amazing young actress.

While the film’s character development and story are lead by the amazing performances of Rylance and Barnhill, special mention must be given to the wizards at Weta Workshop, who have expertly brought to life this whimsical world. The artistry is so superb that it is an easy place to want to disappear into, especially when The BFG and Sophie go dream hunting and enter a beautiful dimension filmed with sparkling colour.

The BFG is a grand achievement on Spielberg’s behalf, and whether old or young, audiences will get swept up in the magic of dream country, and the adventure that awaits.

Image source: Walt Disney Pictures. 

The post ‘The BFG’ – Review appeared first on SpicyPulp.