THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE

 

 

"Mulder?"

When an FBI agent goes missing in Virginia, investigating agents Dakota Whitney (Peet) and Mosley Drummy (Xzibit) are approached by Father Joseph Crissman (Connelly) who claims to having visions of her abduction. When he leads them to a severed arm in the middle of a snow-covered field, Agent Whitney believes that Father Joe might actually be a real psychic but she does have the experience in dealing with cases like this and she know only one person who does. She sends Agent Drummy to see Dr. Dana Scully (Anderson), who is now working as a surgeon, to ask her to find the one former agent that believed in phenomena like this, Fox Mulder (Duchovny).

In its heyday, 'The X-Files' was the biggest TV show on the planet but can Mulder and Scully's return to the big screen make us want to believe all over again?

Since the last episode of 'The X-Files' was transmitted in the US in May 2002, fans have been left wondering what happened to their heroes Fox Mulder and Dana Scully. Even though they have already visited the big screen in 1998, at the height of the show's popularity, the second big screen adventure for the pair has been a long time coming. Series creator Chris Carter, who saw all this follow up series 'Millennium', 'Harsh Realm' and 'The Lone Gunmen' all be cancelled on TV, has also been very quiet since the series end but now, in 2008 Mulder and Scully return but unfortunately Carter seems to have forgotten what made the show so popular in the first place.

What drew people into 'The X-Files' was the continuing conspiracy theory story about how people of power were collaborating with extraterrestrials for a planned invasion and covering up everything that could be connected to it, much to the annoyance of Agent Fox Mulder and his sceptical partner Agent Dana Scully. When this wasn't reoccurring, the storylines dealt with everything from the supernatural to myths and legends, making the show a hit with a large cross section of fans from horror to fantasy and UFO spotters to government conspiracy theorists. When it was announced that the new movie would be a standalone story, much like some of the best episodes from the series, fans were happy but unfortunately by making the film accessible to a new audience they have alienated the audience that made the show so successful in the first place.

The story is a simple one, a thriller given the slight 'X-Files' twist. An FBI agent has gone missing in Virginia and a local for Catholic priest, Father Joseph Crissman claims to be having visions as to her whereabouts. The supervising FBI Agent Dakota Whitney, is suspicious of Father Joe's motives, especially given the reasons as to why he left the priesthood and if he is telling the truth but she doesn't have the experience to read the man but she knows a former FBI Agent who does, Fox Mulder. Now living in the Virgina countryside, Agent Mosley Drummy asks his former partner Dana Scully to locate him and ask him to bring him in on the investigation, with all past indiscretions wiped clean. This is an excellent way of bringing Mulder back into the fold and of course it isn't long before he gets that 'spooky' feeling all over again but it is the story itself that lets the rest of the movie down.

The main emphasis of the plot is very cliched. Father Joe's criminal background is very stereotypical. The use of homosexuals as the main villains of the piece is very early 90s but it is the simple premise of a psychic providing information to the FBI that has been done many times before and unfortunately much better. The lack of any real examination of what happen to Mulder and Scully after the final episode of the series is also a huge let down, making this extremely frustrating to fans and nothing new to the new audience they are trying so desperately to attract.

The real shame is that the performances are very good. David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson slip easily back into their roles of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, making you feel that you are spending time with old friends. Seeing the glint return Mulder's eye is a treat for all fans and seeing Scully face her personal demons again shows how well these actors know these characters. Unfortunately the story doesn't give them the scope to really explore them again but the chemistry is there to see. Billy Connelly proves again that he is much more than just one of the best comedians to ever grace the planet. As Father Joe, the man suddenly possessed by visions of women suffering, he provides a deep and at time chilling portrayal of a man riddled by guilt and the belief that it is God that is sending him the visions. Callum Keith Rennie is underused as the main villain however and Amanda Peet and Xzibit only seem to be their to bring Mulder and Scully back into the FBI fold.

'The X-Files: I want to Believe' is a disappointment, especially to fans of the show. While it is fantastic to have Mulder and Scully back, creator Chris Carter's decision to make this a stand-a-lone story and not really address any of the questions that fans have since the end of the show. The cliched storyline, the over use of religion, the unoriginality of the use of psychics and homosexuals as the bad guys mean that the main emphasis of the original show has been forgotten because this film certainly doesn't want to make you believe.

Not Available

The X-Files: Fight the Future

---

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2008