I went into this SXSW 2025 documentary more curious than skeptical. After all, it’s not every day you get a film that promises revelations from over thirty senior U.S. government, military, and intelligence officials about a secret 80-year cover-up involving non-human intelligent life. The idea of a global race to reverse-engineer alien technology sounds like the stuff of science fiction—but this wasn’t fiction. It was pitched as urgent, authentic, and world-changing. And in many ways, it is… or at least, it could be.
Premiering in the Documentary Spotlight section and running 109 minutes, the film arrives at a time when conversations around Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs) are more mainstream than ever. The backdrop of recent bipartisan congressional hearings and proposed Senate legislation for disclosure gives the documentary a palpable relevance. There’s a sense that the tide might finally be turning—that secrecy is crumbling, and the public is finally invited into the conversation.
The interviews themselves are undeniably fascinating. Hearing high-ranking insiders speak so plainly—sometimes even emotionally—about things the public has long been denied access to was genuinely riveting at first. These aren’t shadowy conspiracy theorists; they’re decorated officials, former intelligence officers, and seasoned military personnel who’ve spent their careers guarding secrets they now feel the world has a right to know.
But despite the gravity of the subject matter and the credibility of its sources, the documentary struggles with pacing and structure. What begins as gripping and provocative slowly starts to feel repetitive. The same points are revisited multiple times, often with slightly different wording but little added insight. The weight of the revelations gets dulled by the lack of narrative progression. Instead of building to something, it begins to circle itself.
I drifted in the second half—not because the material lacked substance but because the delivery didn’t evolve. I wanted more context, contrasting perspectives, and tension in the storytelling. The tone often felt oddly flat for a documentary about humanity standing on the precipice of a truth that could change everything. It’s as though the film assumed that simply stating the facts would be enough to keep us glued to the screen, but it missed the chance to emotionally connect the dots.
That said, I’m glad I saw it. There’s a specific power in hearing the same message echoed across so many credible voices, and I don’t doubt that it will provoke conversation and push the discourse forward. But for a film about disclosure—a reckoning with decades of silence and secrecy—it ironically left me wanting more transparency in the storytelling itself.
In the end, the documentary opens a necessary door. I just wish it had taken us further through