Wed, April 23, 2003

I was not a fan of The X-Files on television. I enjoyed the show, very much in some episodes, and for a period of about two years I watched it regularly. But I was never a fan, in the sense that X-Files fans were fans. The X-Files: Fight The Future, however, I'm very much a fan of.

For starters, how magnificently visualized! This is the result of five years of practice at developing situations for these characters and putting them on film, coupled with a long-overdue chance at a larger budget. The scenes at the dig site, the scene at the federal building – that gorgeous sequence with bees, corn, and helicopters! This movie bleeds cinematography from every frame. It's a tremendous accomplishment in marrying Chris Carter's vision with those of director Rob Bowman and his art directors and cinematographer. In order to accomplish the stated goal of opening the series up on the big screen to delight the fans and attract new viewers, it was necessary to approach the bigger screen, wider aspect ratio, and expanded budget with an eye toward maximizing each. This is achieved superbly. The film has an elegant, stylish look that does service to its intricate mythology. The cinematography remains true to the palette of the TV show while taking full advantage of the benefits of feature film.

The script, by series creator Chris Carter, is just as carefully constructed to complement the cinematic treatment. Carter's story is expertly woven and, with the exception of one all-too-convenient exchange between Mulder and the Well-Manicured Man, perfectly engineered. Carter was up against the challenge of appealing simultaneously to X-Files viewers and newcomers and does quite a job of keeping the film's plot self-contained while addressing ongoing story lines from the series.

The film opens with the X-Files closed and Special Agents Mulder and Scully reassigned. It is, however, impossible to keep Mulder from the truth and the truth from finding him. The intervention of an old friend of his father's forces Mulder to remember his time-honored credo of looking deeper than the surface. Things are not always what they seem, and events lead Mulder and Scully on an investigation of their relationship, the true meaning of the X-Files, and the answer to the real motivation of many of the events that they've witnessed over their years together.

The chemistry between David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson is magnificent. They've had a few years to practice, too. Mulder and Scully's working relationship, their personal relationship, and the wisecracking friendship that spans the two are engaging and believable. Their mutual respect and admiration drives the focus of the story – indeed the series – and it's a testament to these two actors that such an important core can be incorporated so subtly into a story that unfolds on such a massive scale. I've been made to understand, by the way, that there are those out there who don't believe that Duchovny is among his generation's finest actors. I don't know what they're missing. Watching him as Fox Mulder and as himself on The Larry Sanders Show, I have always been impressed with his effortless charm and his ability to weave playful cynicism realistically into any character. He delivers the paranormal dialogue of The X-Files with the same intensity and precision as Dan Aykroyd but without the comic context. He holds the screen with contemplative strength and crackling intelligence and provides an excellent foil to the graceful balance of delicate vulnerability and skeptical independence that Anderson brings to Dana Scully.

The X-Files stands as a tidy package that encapsulates all of the strengths of the television series in a tighter, stronger, more cohesive unit which delivers the goods over and over in every scene and through repeated viewings. Suspenseful, engaging, and thrilling, there's absolutely nothing to improve upon.

Initially, I understand, the film was expected to launch a franchise of X-Files movies, something Duchovny expressed interest in even after leaving the show. The concept being, the two would exist as separate explorations of the same characters and universe, in a manner not unlike the James Bond franchise. This is a venture which most likely has been discarded now that the television show is no longer running, but I hope someone will revive it. It would be a great way for the series to live on in another form, one altogether easier to maintain and to profit from. Carter's creation was brilliant in its simple balance (guts vs. logic; paranormal vs. science) and grand scale (worldwide government-alien conspiracies) – this is not the sort of creative venture that can be contained in just one film (and a few years of television).

One tiny pedantic note of contention, though. (What film review is complete without at least one?) At the end of the film, there is a telegram, which reads "X-Files re-opened. Stop. Please advise. Stop." Now, unless I'm mistaken, isn't the whole point of using "Stop" in telegrams because originally they were transmitted by Morse Code? They didn't have a code for "period," so they just dropped the word "Stop" in between sentences. But now, telegrams are transmitted much more quickly via that newfangled Internet which is so evolved it not only supports periods but even exclamation points and – yes! – umlauts. This telegram has periods! In fact, it has twice as many as it would have if they'd just conveyed the original message without using "Stop" and four times as many as if they'd said "X-Files re-opened Stop Please advise Stop." It's like they're showing off the abundance of freely available periods! Shouldn't those friendly little dots signal the ends of sentences? Why is it necessary to still feature the word "Stop," in such a way that the message essentially reads "X-Files re-opened [stop] Stop [stop] Please advise [stop] Stop [stop]"? Not that it ruined the film or anything, but come on!

© onebee · all rights reserved