

A Review From the Middle Seat Center

	THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE

	 F.B.I. special agents, Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana
Scully (Gillian Anderson), search for that elusive "truth" each week
on the hit television show, "The X-Files."  Week after week, millions
tune- in to see the two delve into the strange and bizarre cases that
the rest of the bureau won't touch. While most of the cases they
investigate deal with unusual, and even sometimes supernatural,
phenomenon, the "guts" of the series deals with Fox Mulder's search
for proof of the existence of aliens, and the mysterious group of men
that will stop at nothing to prevent him, or the rest of the world,
from finding out "the truth." And now, Mulder and Scully's quest for
that "truth" moves to the next level, because...
 
	THE MOVIE IS OUT THERE

	Series creator, Chris Carter, director Rob Bowman, and
Twentieth Century Fox, have brought the hugely popular television show
to the big screen with the release of THE X-FILES: FIGHT THE FUTURE.
It must have been a fairly easy task (although I'm sure they would
disagree with me). They already had developed characters, a
relationship and history between those characters, a recognizable
framework for a story to be woven around, and millions of fans as a
built-in audience base. The only real question was whether or not non
fans could follow the film and enjoy it. The answer to that question
is, "yes" and "no."
	 The film can be followed and enjoyed as a work standing on
its own, but, speaking as a fan, it must be like eating a bowl of
banana pudding after all the bananas are gone. You can enjoy the
pudding part, but you are kind of missing the whole point. Carter, who
wrote the screenplay, tries to let the uninitiated in on the fun with
bits of "background information" sprinkled throughout the dialogue,
but that really isn't enough. There are several situations throughout
the film that cannot be fully understood unless you are a fan. The
same is true with a handful of characters that pop up. Unless you have
watched the show, you will not know who they are, or what they are
doing there. 
 It may have been better to have had a script that dealt with a basic
"X-Files" story, instead of the series mythos. That would have pleased
the fans, and allowed X-Files "newbies" to get to know the characters,
and get a "feel" for the show. 
	Instead, the film opens where the season finale left off, to a
certain degree. None of the characters or the situations set up in
that episode remains except for the fact that the Cigarette-Smoking
Man has returned, and that the X-files have been shut down. The movie
starts with Mulder and Scully having been assigned  "normal" duties.
But as it often happens when this pair is involved, the "normal" has a
way of turning into something "paranormal," and soon the two find
themselves pulled into a conspiracy that threatens to wipe out life on
Earth as we know it. What follows is a two-hour television episode
with higher production values, bigger and more expensive special
effects, familiar supporting characters (to the fans anyway), and some
four-letter words that are not allowed on network television. 
	This film has the distinction of being the only movie based on
a prime-time television show  that will still be in production when
the networks start the new television season. But that is also its
greatest flaw. Since we already know that Mulder and Scully will have
new adventures this fall, we are not concerned with their well-being
throughout the movie, thus killing any suspense. In addition, we also
know that circumstances will only allow for just a small bit of that
"truth" that our heroes have been searching for to be revealed, and
that something will happen that will cause the X-files to be reopened.
Paramount may have had the right idea with its "Star Trek" features;
wait until the series finishes its t.v. run so you can have more
freedom with your characters and story lines.
	Another flaw is that the film doesn't play on its strongest
elements. One of the things that draws viewers to the show is its
creepiness. Some of the episodes are very scary. That comes from the
writing and the different, bizarre things that Scully and Mulder look
into. With a "mythos" script, you don't get to go explore those dark,
scary places. All you mainly have to deal with is intrigue. 
	But what really brings viewers back each week are the
characters of Mulder and Scully. Viewers want to see these two
characters react to situations and play off each other; they want to
see them interact, both professionally and personally. Sadly, there is
very little of that in this film. Make no mistake.  This is David
Duchovny's film. He is in nearly every scene, and by the middle of the
movie, Gillian Anderson's part has been reduced to that of
"damsel-in-distress." 
	Basically, THE X-FILES: FIGHT THE FUTURE is just a reward for
all its loyal fans; a chance to see Mulder and Scully do their stuff
on the big screen. Also, it is a chance to pull in some new fans, and
establish some new characters and situations for the up coming season.
New fans mean a bigger audience base for the next feature. Oh,
yes......

	A SEQUEL IS OUT THERE

Cast: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Martin Landau, William B.
Davis, John Neville, Mitch Pillegi, Blythe Danner, and Armin
Mueller-Stahl.
Rated: PG-13 for violence and some intense situations
I give it ** out of a possible four.

That was the view from The Middle Seat Center
                         -   John Collins
                        [email-masked]