Disclosure
A probing documentary traces Hollywood’s transgender images and asks what representation costs, enables, and still owes to the people depicted.
Overview
A powerful exploration of representation and its consequences in American media.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- thoughtful
- urgent
- intimate
- film history study
- social justice discussion
What critics said
Critics broadly praise the documentary as an engrossing, historically informed examination of how transgender screen portrayals shape transgender lives while arguing that substantial progress remains necessary.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Interviews and archival examples connect Hollywood's portrayals of transgender people with transgender lives and American culture.
The film surveys the development of transgender representation in Hollywood and television from earlier portrayals through contemporary actors.
Participants discuss why marginalized characters should be played and interpreted by marginalized people, centering transgender voices.
The documentary combines historical film and television excerpts with interviews featuring actors, writers, historians, and filmmakers.
Films like Disclosure, and why
The Celluloid Closet
shared focus on media representation, queer history, and the cultural consequences of screen images
The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson
shared documentary examination of transgender identity, visibility, and lived experience through personal testimony
Paris Is Burning
shared focus on marginalized communities, self-representation, and the politics of cultural storytelling
Movie Details
- Director
- Sam Feder
- Release Date
- 2020-06-19
- Runtime
- 108 min
- Rating
- 7.8 / 10 (151)
Cast
- Laverne Cox
- Bianca Leigh
- Jen Richards
- Alexandra Billings
- Susan Stryker
- Yance Ford
- Lilly Wachowski
- Brian Michael Smith
- Tiq Milan
- Nick Adams
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Disclosure about?
- A probing documentary traces Hollywood’s transgender images and asks what representation costs, enables, and still owes to the people depicted.
- What is Disclosure like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Disclosure as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Disclosure violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Disclosure.
- What did critics think of Disclosure?
- Critics broadly praise the documentary as an engrossing, historically informed examination of how transgender screen portrayals shape transgender lives while arguing that substantial progress remains necessary.
- Which films are like Disclosure?
- Films with a similar feel include The Celluloid Closet, The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson, and Paris Is Burning.
- How long is Disclosure?
- Disclosure runs 108 minutes.
- Where can I watch Disclosure?
- In United States, Disclosure streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.
