Review X-Files: I want to Believe

Today I saw the new X-Files movie. Before I say anything about the movie, I feel I should preface with my relationship with the franchise. On September 10th, 1993 I watched the very first episode of The X-Files at my grandparent's house. I was only eleven years old at the time and I was completely hooked. Now, this was the days before DVR so I didn't get to see every episode, but I caught a bunch of them over the years. Now with the wonder that is DVD Sets of television shows, I have seen pretty much all the episodes at one point or another. I have always been, and always will be, a fan of this show. Period.

That being said, I was pretty excited to see this movie. I went in wanting to see what has happened to some of the most interesting characters to ever grace the small screen over the 6 years since we saw them last. I wouldn't say I was disappointed, but this movie just wasn't what it needed to be. If this was an episode of the TV Series, it would have likely been a stand out for it's season but as a feature film it was just missing something. I mean, there was nothing epic or grand about this movie. With the exception of the claims of a former priest that he is having psychic visions, this story almost could have been a typical generic serial killer movie. There's no monsters, aliens or angst filled teens that use their power over electricity to kill Jack Black.

It was a well written story though. The acting was everything you would expect from a cast of this nature, though the focus is always on either Scully or Mulder. The film looks brilliant with some stunningly beautiful snowy night time scenes.

Now, to go back to my little story about my history with this show... I am now 26 years old. I think the odds of anyone younger than myself being much more than a casual fan of this show are very remote. I mean, when this show first hit the air-waves Kurt Cobain was still alive, the economy was balanced and the first MP3 Player was still almost 5 years away. All this being said, it is no surprise that I was the youngest person in the theater tonight. Along with the older skewing audience, I thing it's important to factor in that we haven't seen anything from Chris Carter's beautiful universe in over five years. These two factors will be reflected in the movies box office takings, but with one of the smallest budgets of any of the movies on the market right now, we might not have seen the last of the X-files. I mean, I certainly hope not.

So over all, a good movie, but not great. It could have easily been longer and made into a TV mini-series so we were given more time to actually explore how Fox and Dana's personal relationship went after the series ended. So I have to give this one a seven out of ten.


Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Beloved characters that are still well written, dramatic thriller to rival any recent movies
Cons: Not epic enough for the big screen