Subject: Review: The X-Files (1998)

From: James Berardinelli <[email-masked]>
Date: 29 Jun 1998 04:29:27 GMT

THE X-FILES

A Film Review by James Berardinelli

RATING: *** OUT OF ****

United States, 1998
U.S. Release Date: 6/19/98 (wide)
Running Length: 1:58
MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Violence, gore, mature themes)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Cast: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Martin Landau, Blythe Danner, 
      William B. Davis, Armin Mueller-Stahl, John Neville, Terry O'Quinn
Director: Rob Bowman
Producers: Chris Carter, Daniel Sackheim
Screenplay: Chris Carter
Cinematography: Ward Russell
Music: Mark Snow
U.S. Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox

     There are two kinds of viewers for THE X-FILES movie:  those have 
seen at least a few episodes of the TV series and those who have never 
watched it.  I am a member of the latter group, so that's the 
perspective from which this review is written.  As a result, I cannot 
assess how the film will appeal to a die-hard follower of the program.  
But, for the "uneducated" movie-goer, THE X-FILES offers two hours of 
solid entertainment.  (Of course, one unanswered question is how many 
non-X FILES aficionados will exhibit sufficient interest to venture into 
a theater showing this picture.)

     Transferring a television program to the big screen has become a 
routine procedure for a film industry starved for ideas, but this is a 
rare occasion when the movies continue the adventures begun on the small 
screen, with no re-casting involved.  To date, the only TV-to-motion 
picture series to successfully make the transfer is STAR TREK, which 
brought the tales of Captain Kirk and his crew to the theaters, then 
eventually transferred command to Captain Picard after STAR TREK: THE 
NEXT GENERATION went off the air.  Twentieth Century Fox is hoping THE 
wrinkle:  the television series is still going strong.

     In interviews, writer/producer/series creator Chris Carter has 
stated that his goal with THE X-FILES was to make a movie that could 
stand on its own.  There's no question that he has succeeded.  The 
script can be followed by someone with literally no previous knowledge 
of the characters or situations.  FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David 
Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) are introduced as any 
motion protagonists might be, and we're presented with bits and pieces 
of information about their background through cleverly constructed 
dialogue.  (By "cleverly," I mean that these passages don't cry out, 
"Character exposition!")  Although I'm told that the storyline picks up 
where the last season of the TV program left off, there's no sense that 
new viewers are entering in the middle of things.  The only obvious 
concession to the ongoing series is the ending, which includes several 
hooks that can be used to launch stories in the upcoming season.

     As the film opens, the X-Files special unit of the FBI has been 
disbanded.  Mulder and Scully have exchanged their investigations of 
things paranormal and extraterrestrial for more mundane matters such as 
terrorism.  But, when an Oklahoma City-like bomb explosion destroys a 
$45 million building in Dallas, Mulder and Scully appear to be the FBI's 
first choice for fall guys.  Their research to clear their names reveals 
what could be the tip of a massive cover-up of alien activity on Earth.  
And, as their search stretches from Texas to Washington D.C. to 
Antarctica, they come face-to-face with the dark secret that endangers 
the future of the human species.

     Plot-wise, THE X-FILES bears more than a passing resemblance to 
1996's alien invasion/conspiracy movie, THE ARRIVAL.  (In fairness to 
THE X-FILES, the TV program preceded THE ARRIVAL by several years, and 
the latter probably owes more to the former than the other way around.)  
Although things get sloppy near the end, when several story holes are 
ignored or ineffectively plugged, the script as a whole exhibits an 
uncommon intelligence for this type of movie.  In addition, director Rob 
Bowman (who has helmed a number of the TV episodes) maintains a fairly 
high level of tension as the complexities of the multi-layered plot 
mount.  The movie is perhaps a little too long; cutting ten or fifteen 
minutes would have made for a better focused adventure.

     It's not hard to understand the appeal of Mulder and Scully.  Both 
are competent, intelligent, and resourceful, and their different 
approaches to their jobs (he's a believer; she's a skeptic) enable them 
to compliment one another.  It also doesn't hurt that they're both 
likable and neither is hard on the eyes.  Actors David Duchovny (who's 
no stranger to movies; his most recent foray being PLAYING GOD) and 
Gillian Anderson (who is more familiar to viewers of the small screen 
than the large one) are both accomplished and entirely believable in 
these roles.  Of course, we would expect no less of them, since they 
have been inhabiting these fictitious shells for five years.  The 
chemistry between them is palpable, blending camaraderie and respect 
with a little subtle romance.  

     The supporting cast is comprised of faces from the TV show, such as 
William B. Davis' mysterious cigarette-smoking figure and John 
Neville's "Well Manicured Man", and movie actors who are around 
for one-off appearances.  These include Blythe Danner as the by-the-
book FBI assistant director who is looking into the Dallas bombing, 
Martin Landau as a conspiracy theorist who occasionally feeds 
hints to Mulder about what's going on, Armin Mueller-Stahl as the leader 
of the cartel behind the global betrayal, and Terry O'Quinn as Mulder and 
Scully's (temporary) boss.

     Having seen the movie, it's easy for me to comprehend why so many 
people are enamored with the series.  Although a lot of the material 
explored in THE X-FILES isn't new or revolutionary, the style of 
presentation and the quality of the writing set this above most other 
conspiracy theory/alien invasion pictures.  I won't claim that the 
experience of having watched this film will suddenly convert me into a 
weekly viewer of the TV show, but at least now I'm aware of what awaits 
if I choose to catch an episode.  In a summer that has been 
characterized by over-hyped and largely pointless big-budget films, THE 
offerings.

Copyright 1998 James Berardinelli

- James Berardinelli
e-mail: [email-masked]

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