Movie: The X-Files I Want to Believe
The creative team was clear from the beginning that this was going to be a stand-alone story. They were going to leave the unwieldy mytharc behind. That means no aliens, no bees, and no conspiracies. Which suits me just fine.
I’ve read a lot of comments that say the movie feels like an extended episode. I disagree. I think the style and the case file makes it seem like Mulder and Scully are very much removed from the XF world. They are six years past their FBI assignments. To me, the movie felt as if the agents I knew stepped into someone else’s world—really, into reality.
The X-Files series usually had three main plot threads: the case file, the unexplained phenomenon, and character development. Due to the hour time limit of the TV show, one or another of these threads may take center stage. Every so often, all three will progress together, as in the episode “Memento Mori.” If movie goers are not expecting these three plot elements, the movie may seem very pedestrian (except for the gross out factor).
If you read most commercial reviews, they’ll mainly talk about the case file—There’s a missing FBI agent whose disappearance is a part of a greater serial kidnapping case. A psychic, a confirmed pedophile priest, has come forward to help. The FBI agent in charge makes the unpopular decision to bring Mulder back for his expertise.
And it is this thread that may let people down. Personally, I thought it was done well. I didn’t know what the resolution was going to be, and the reveal horrified me. It’s also more rooted in reality than the typical XF case so it scared me more. No, it’s not ghosts whoo scary, but it scared me as a thriller would—filled with danger and violence. It, however, does feel like something I may have seen before. Overbearing? Heavy-handed? Sure. But consider the creative source.
This case file, however, is just the framework. If you became a fan of The X-Files, it’s probably due to the other two threads. As long as the criminal investigation doesn’t suck lemons, I’m willing to overlook it provided that it is buoyed by, quite frankly, choice characterization.
But first, the second thread. The question of Father Joe’s psychic ability plays out like in the episodes “Beyond the Sea” and “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose.” Mulder works through whether to believe or not and tries to convince others accordingly. Scully struggles with the phenomenon, but I don’t think we, the viewers, are meant to question as much as they do. Besides, this was not the main draw of the series for me either.
So I’m over-the-moon for the movie based on the third thread alone. This makes its appeal to the general public very weak, but I’m a Phile, and Philes have special needs.
This movie gave me a chance to revisit characters I love very much. I got to hear them banter, interact, challenge and support each other in ways that are much improved from the last few seasons of the TV show.
The relationship feels mature. Mulder isn’t the petulant victim. Scully isn’t the long-suffering partner. They feel as if they live in this world. That makes me happy.
Both their journeys were to find themselves again. Mulder’s task is to regain belief in himself and re-own his passion for exploring the unknown. Scully’s always been an advocate and a protector, for Mulder, for victims, for children. They’ve both hidden away and became removed from these and other traits they employed with such fire while working on the X-Files.
So as they found themselves again, I did too.
I stayed through the credits and waved. Hello. Good-bye. Thanks. Love you, too.