The X-Files: I Want To Believe

***contains spoilers***

This is a real curiosity.

The publicity states that you don't need to have seen the TV show in order to watch this film, which would suggest that this is aimed at the general public, rather than fans.

And yet, The X Files 2 has quite definitely been made for enthusiasts.

For while there are precious few references to the TV storylines, this instalment is a talky character analysis of Mulder and Scully – something that you would likely need to be a fan to have enough interest in.

There's very little action, I only spotted one special effect, and the whole thing is extremely slow. You really have to decide beforehand that you're in for the duration, because it makes little to no effort to hold your attention.

This is not a Hollywood blockbuster, a revival, a reboot, or even a reunion movie. This is one of those spin-off novels you come across in Borders.

And yet, that's the absolute beauty of it. Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz have made the movie that they wanted to, and the creative team's undiluted vision of what became of Mulder and Scully after the TV show ended is exactly what they should be allowed to show us.

Me – I am an X Files fan. I've seen every episode, and I watched the last movie, both at the cinema, and then again on VHS when the UK TV episodes caught-up with that point in the story. (yet to see the Lone Gunmen spin-off though) As a result, I was hooked by this film from start to finish.

Sure I have my own opinons, in fact horror really isn't my sort of thing, but I wouldn't swap a single frame of this under any circumstances. These people told me a strong, enthralling tale over nine years, so of course I'm agog to see whatever they tell me happened next.

Finally, as the closing credits rolled, everyone else in the cinema left.

Let me let you into a secret – nearly every film these days has a post-credits tag scene. Yep, nearly every one. Don't believe me? Okay, sure.

Just before the end of the closing credits to I Want To Believe, there's a shot of Mulder and Scully in a boat. We're looking down at them from a huge distance above, I assume from the helicopter. Then they actually look up, see us, and wave at us.

Alone in the cinema, I couldn't resist waving back.

It was so nice to see them again.

(available here)

Related Posts:

1. The X Files (TV series)
2. The X Files (1998 film)
3. The Lone Gunmen (TV series)
4. The X Files: I Want To Believe (2008 film)