I guess you could say that the title is almost a joke on many levels. It speaks as in an in-joke to the fans (it appeared as a line of dialogue in many episodes as well as the phrase on that UFO poster in Mulder's office) as well as being the feeling that many people wanted to have for this film, a film that everyone would by into. Sadly it wasn't to be. There are many people or aspects that one could blame for the supposed failure of this film, commercially or otherwise. One could blame Carter for not delivering the fast paced action packed film that one would expect to see in the summer. Another could be Fox for affording Carter a measly thirty million dollar budget and then opening the movie within a week of The Dark Knight, one of the biggest box office successes in recent years. For all the supposed faults and problems that have been labeled at this film, I guess I'm going to be very brave in saying the following; I love this film. I have awarded ten stars, not merely out of loyalty to the franchise (it's my favourite television series, so there), but to the fact that as a fan this is a film that did exactly what I wanted. It continued the story of Mulder an Scully, one of the great fictional partnerships of recent years, it presents a well thought and engrossing mystery, as well as one that is just plain gross without resorting to the exploitative pornographic violence that a horror film needs to have nowadays, instead presenting a wonderful Silence of the Lambs style mystery with places emphasis on plot and character set in a world that could still haunt your dreams.
I suppose in some sense nostalgia could blind me to the film (I practically grew up watching the series), but I am not blind to it's faults, which there are. First of all the script, like the script to the first X Files feature film, is almost structured like a two part episode of the series. The first half is all build up with a crushing plot development in the middle of the film after a well filmed chase sequence that could be the cliffhanger that leads into next week's episode which involves Mulder heading out into the snowy Virginian country to find the missing victim at the heart of the film's mystery. The characters of Agent Drummy and Whitney don't really add much and I can't see why these two characters could not have been Doggett and Reyes from the series who are never mentioned despite the series finale never explaining what happened to them after the climactic desert sequence.Hell, even their characters are similar, Whitney, the female, is open to believing, whilst Drummy, the male, although not as sensitive as Doggett, is determined in his skepticism.
Where the film works, and to me it does, is in the central relationship and its portrayal of Mulder and Scully in this day and age. David and Gillian are wonderful throughout, making us believe, once again, that Mulder and Scully are back. The idea that Scully has become a doctor and Mulder a hermit like recluse in the six years since we last seen them is wonderful as is their determination, or lack thereof, to step back into the darkness they have left behind. Carter as writer, along with Frank Spotnitz, and director crafts their scenes wonderfully, especially in the final moments when one realizes that The X Files can always be seen as the most honest and most platonic love story one could hope to see, one in which two polar opposites can find love and happiness with one another.
Of course I haven't mentioned Billy Connolly yet. An amazing portrayal of a fallen man trying to find some semblance of redemption for his disturbing crimes in the past, he strangely brings sympathy to Father Joe, a man, who like Mulder wants to believe despite the pull of darkness into is world. The scenes between Joe and Mulder and later with Scully (especially with Scully) are stunning and show a side to Connolly that I do not believe have been tapped by any other film he has been in. Trust me, you'll never be able to watch another one of his 'stand up' DVDs the same way again. Add to this a wonderful atmosphere where the film makes the most of its creepy Virginian, snowy locations (in actuality Vancouver, British Columbia) and a superb post credits moment that left me with a smile on my face for days, I just find it to hard to fault. I guess we have, as Gillian Anderson said at the film's British premiere, grown too accustomed to CGI and over the top action that when a film comes along that presents something more slower, thoughtful and glowing with two wonderful lead characters who react to events than merely standing around admiring the special effects most audiences turn away. It seems we'd rather watch the umpteenth Saw film or something where the explosions put in better performances than the leading actors.
So there you have it. Rant over. The X Files:I Want to Believe, a film that everyone seemed to have hated, except for a few hardened X Philes like myself, and got lost amongst the dark grandeur of Batman and the popularity of Mamma Mia. Shame because in the end I wanted to believe, and I still do, I really do.
I suppose in some sense nostalgia could blind me to the film (I practically grew up watching the series), but I am not blind to it's faults, which there are. First of all the script, like the script to the first X Files feature film, is almost structured like a two part episode of the series. The first half is all build up with a crushing plot development in the middle of the film after a well filmed chase sequence that could be the cliffhanger that leads into next week's episode which involves Mulder heading out into the snowy Virginian country to find the missing victim at the heart of the film's mystery. The characters of Agent Drummy and Whitney don't really add much and I can't see why these two characters could not have been Doggett and Reyes from the series who are never mentioned despite the series finale never explaining what happened to them after the climactic desert sequence.Hell, even their characters are similar, Whitney, the female, is open to believing, whilst Drummy, the male, although not as sensitive as Doggett, is determined in his skepticism.
Where the film works, and to me it does, is in the central relationship and its portrayal of Mulder and Scully in this day and age. David and Gillian are wonderful throughout, making us believe, once again, that Mulder and Scully are back. The idea that Scully has become a doctor and Mulder a hermit like recluse in the six years since we last seen them is wonderful as is their determination, or lack thereof, to step back into the darkness they have left behind. Carter as writer, along with Frank Spotnitz, and director crafts their scenes wonderfully, especially in the final moments when one realizes that The X Files can always be seen as the most honest and most platonic love story one could hope to see, one in which two polar opposites can find love and happiness with one another.
Of course I haven't mentioned Billy Connolly yet. An amazing portrayal of a fallen man trying to find some semblance of redemption for his disturbing crimes in the past, he strangely brings sympathy to Father Joe, a man, who like Mulder wants to believe despite the pull of darkness into is world. The scenes between Joe and Mulder and later with Scully (especially with Scully) are stunning and show a side to Connolly that I do not believe have been tapped by any other film he has been in. Trust me, you'll never be able to watch another one of his 'stand up' DVDs the same way again. Add to this a wonderful atmosphere where the film makes the most of its creepy Virginian, snowy locations (in actuality Vancouver, British Columbia) and a superb post credits moment that left me with a smile on my face for days, I just find it to hard to fault. I guess we have, as Gillian Anderson said at the film's British premiere, grown too accustomed to CGI and over the top action that when a film comes along that presents something more slower, thoughtful and glowing with two wonderful lead characters who react to events than merely standing around admiring the special effects most audiences turn away. It seems we'd rather watch the umpteenth Saw film or something where the explosions put in better performances than the leading actors.
So there you have it. Rant over. The X Files:I Want to Believe, a film that everyone seemed to have hated, except for a few hardened X Philes like myself, and got lost amongst the dark grandeur of Batman and the popularity of Mamma Mia. Shame because in the end I wanted to believe, and I still do, I really do.