DARKMATTERS - The Mind of Matt

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Saturday, August 02, 2008

X-Files: I Want to Believe - competition and review



X-Files: I Want to Believe - Darkmatters Competition... UPDATE...

To celebrate the new X Files movie (review below) - the lovely folks at FOX have given Darkmatters some cool X Files swag which you can win!

All you have to do is complete this sentence in 7 words:

I want to believe that.... (your seven words go here)....

Email you answers to: Darkmatters@another.com (this one should work - apologies to those who tried the last one - aliens seemed to have tinkered with it)!!

Editor (whose decision is final) will choose best entries by the end of Aug - the swag is out there...



The X-Files: I Want to Believe (15)

Dir. Chris Carter

Reviewed by Matt Adcock


“I think maybe the darkness finds us…”

There’s a weird guy outside, says he wants to tell you something he’s seen. I know the chap, he’s a one time priest named Father Joe (an over the top but convincingly odd Billy Connolly), mumbling about having visions of missing people, oh and he’s weeping blood. Think it’s time to call Agents Mulder and Scully – who have witnessed almost every conceivable freaky “unexplainable” situation and surely the best suited individuals to sort out this kind of strangeness.
You see The X-Files: I Want to Believe feels like the perfect closing episode of the long running and much loved TV Series (and sequel to the one not quite loved as much X Files film from 1998). This time the story picks up years after Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) have left the FBI, each still holding true to their unshakable world views - his quest for the truth that is ‘out there’ and her passionate, intelligent scepticism, which she has channelled into being a brilliant doctor. Carter directs exactly like he’s making an extended extra episode for TV and for every interestingly well shot scene, like a snowy auto abduction, there are several po-faced expositions filling in the blanks for those need to be spoon fed the plot.
But before you can say ‘mysterious abductions’ the dynamic duo are thrown back into the dangerous and kooky /sinister investigative world of cases the FBI can only shrug their shoulders at. Fortunately for everyone the now civilian heroes haven’t lost their knack for cracking horrific crimes which are complicated by paranormal elements and The X-Files: I Want to Believe spins a nicely freakish puzzle for them to try and solve. Just in case a dodgy psychic priest and shadowy illegal body part nabbing conspiracy who have more than a passing interest in swapping heads around isn’t enough – there’s also a tear jerking medical case of a young boy facing an incurable disease which Scully can’t accept defeat over. It’s all very cheesy, the supporting characters are barely interesting and the format feels very retro but if you’ve ever been an X Files fan (and I was such a fan back in the day that my two cats then were named Mulder and Scully) – it might just make you believe again and will probably shift quite a few X Files Series DVD box sets!

DARKMATTERS RATING SYSTEM (all ratings out of maximum 10 but '-' is bad whereas '+' is good):

Endorphin Stimulation: ööööööö (7)
+ Like a really good episode but no better

Tasty Action: öööööö (6)
+ Nice in places but could have done with more

Gratuitous Babeness: ööööö (5)
+ Scully isn't all she used to be...

Mind Blight / Boredom: ööööö (5)
- Some slogging through the cheese to be done

Comedic Value: öööö (4)
+ Not much except for some visual references

Arbitrary final rating: öööööö (6)
Solid but not spectacular

Liable to make you:
"wonder if the truth might not actually be out there after all"

DM Poster Quote:
“who you gonna call?"

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