The X Files: Fight the Future
The X Files: Fight the Future is Dana Scully and Fox Mulder’s first movie foray trying to uncover the government conspiracy behind what has been going on.
Film making 22/25
Cinematography 22/25
Audio 23/25
Bonus Features 20/25
Total 87/100
Following the story behind a global conspiracy David Duchovny as Fox Mulder and Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully dig deep to find answers. The X Files is the ultimate government conspiracy thriller that adds all those great themes of aliens, conspiracies at the highest levels of government and the little guys trying to find the answers.
Showing the start and the entire premise of the movie that was released in 1998 we see two Neanderthal men from 3500 BC in Texas chasing an alien into a cave. One man dies from the attack that ensues and the other survives only be taken over by the black blood oil stuff that comes out of the dead aliens wounds and takes over the man.
A quick scene switch to modern times in Texas shows a boy fall into a hole, finding a skull and then being infested with the same black oil stuff as the Neanderthal man did some centuries ago. The alien infestation is among us and Fox Mulder has to find the answers with Dana Scully getting dragged along behind in his search for the truth.
With the help of a doctor that had worked with Fox Mulder’s father while his father was experimenting with alien human hybrids Mulder seeks to find some answers. This experimentation was part of an outrageous scheme involving an alien virus that has been part of the X Files investigation in the past series.
They start with finding out why another agent allowed himself to be blown up instead of diffusing a bomb that Mulder finds in the wrong building. The bomb was planted to cover the boy that had been infected from Texas and some firefighters who first tried to rescue the boy from the hole.
Mulder and Scully are searching a building close by to the one that had a bomb threat called in and actually find a bomb in that building instead of the one that was supposed to have it. At the last minute during the evacuation Mulder tries to go back in when he figures out that something is wrong and wants to go back for the agent left behind to diffuse the bomb.
After the ensuing blast destroys part of the building Scully and Mulder are sort of blamed for the blast as they were searching in the wrong building and did not follow orders. This of course makes no sense but we can live with this for now, it just goes along with the whole conspiracy theory and how everyone is out to cover up the truth.
The slightly crazy old friend of Mulder’s father tells Mulder that the bomb was to destroy evidence and the bodies of the boy and men and not a terrorist bomb. Mulder and Scully go and check out the bodies of the firefighters and the boy that are in a morgue to find the bodies have a cellular breakdown and are devoid of pigmentation.
The Syndicate is behind the dealings trying to create and keep the virus a secret with Scully and Mulder trying to find out the truth behind this and anything linking it to our government. Many of the series episodes leading up to the 1998 film has contributed greatly to the behind the scenes plot and story so it does help some if you are a fan and have kept pace with the show.
The movie can be enjoyed and watched as it is but you do not get the full background and many of the sub plots behind what Scully and Mulder are doing so it does not make quite the same impression if you have not watched the X Files series. While I enjoyed the X Files in the beginning seasons with its mini monster movie type episodes the later seasons tended to miss something by being out of the loop so to speak.
When the show started going more to the government conspiracies and one episode tying into another I lost interest until this movie came out. The movie does bring back the shows more original drama and interplay between the two characters that I feel brings more to the show and story.
With the additional funds and Chris Carter’s great production and writing the film does a good job of telling a story and keeping the action fast. The X Files I think is such a good show due to the interplay between the lead characters with how Scully is the solid scientist and Fox is the wild haired theorist.
Both FBI agents do a good job on their own but together they find the truth and get answers even if its answers they cannot comprehend or explain to their bosses. Fight the Future is a good overall movie and can be appreciated by new comers as well as X Files fans with the same amount of zeal and movie entertainment value.
The fans may understand the story and background of the characters and what they are after while the newcomers have all the thrills of the two agents chasing the truth and finding only more mysteries. The Blu-ray release does follow quite a bit after the film released but was in anticipation of the new movie release I Want to Believe in July 2008.
The Blu-ray Edition of Fight the Future does contain the usual picture in picture commentary with Chris Carter about filming and producing the movies as well as several other additions. You get an alternate scene, oh la la, of Scully and Mulder kissing instead of being interrupted by a bee sting, visual effects and scoring featurettes as well as the making of the film.
There are a few audio commentary tracks to choose from, one from the original filming done in 1998 and a new updated one with not only Chris Carter and Rob Bowman but with Frank Spotnitz and Daniel Sackheim. There are also a few still galleries including storyboards of the film, concept art and actual stills during the filming.
There are plenty of additional features in the Blu-ray version to give you enough on the film and what happened back in 1998 with the filming as well as how they look at the film and such now. It is very interesting to get a viewpoint of a film from a few years after they created it to give you even more insight into the process, the actors and the film as a whole.
The X Files Fight the Future on Blu-ray does give you plenty for your money and you do not have to be a solid fan of the series to enjoy the movie. Fight the Future does a great job on its own as a drama sci-fi thriller and gives plenty of value for a Blu-ray version of the film.