Friday, September 4, 2015

"SKumm’s Thoughts" - THE X-FILES


"SKumm’s Thoughts"
THE X-FILES ( 1998, PG-13, 121 Minutes, TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX)

Yes, this is where Season Six would be.  However, Fox went and pulled a fast one on fans after the fifth season—they went and made a big production out of things.

Originally titled THE X FILES: FIGHT THE FUTURE, which, if you ask me, is a stupid sounding title, the film made almost a hundred million worldwide in its theatrical release.  Not bad for a hit TV show’s first foray into Hollywood, but probably not as much as the studio was hoping.


Yet you shouldn’t judge a movie by its returns, I always say (which is probably the main reason why I don’t have a job in the industry) (besides the obvious reason of location).  The film itself is a tight, engaging tale.  Several themes are revisited from the show, Mulder gets to cuss, and the gore-factor is amped up a bit.  Season six starts off with a “previously on” bit that flashes a few scenes from the film, but not enough to tell you what happened.

The movie is an important watch because of the story—events from the film are mentioned in the first half of the season, and you don’t want to be totally lost.  Normally, I don’t do spoilers.  Yet the fact that I wound up having to rent this online shows you that that is probably the only way you are going to have access to the film.  It isn’t on Netflix, and I could not find it at Best Buy, Target, or Movie Stop.

Therefore: SPOILERS.

There is an alien borne of the black goo in the ground, unearthed by some kids. Government types swoop in and take over the area.  Mulder and Scully are on a homeland security case that goes horribly wrong.  They are investigating that when they get wind of the alien conspiracy having something to do with the destruction of the building they were trying to protect.  From there, we get more bees, more of “the X-Files is shut down,” more of The Smoking Man, more conspiracy, a moment when Mulder and Scully ALMOST make out, a bee-infected Scully, a clandestine cure, a trip to the Antarctic, and a giant freaking UFO.

That’s the major stuff, anyways.  A good film, well-paced and well told.  And you really should watch it before you start on the sixth season.

T.S. Kummelman

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