"He's but one man. One man alone cannot fight the future."

That may be true, but team one man with his wonderful "you made 
me a whole person" partner and it looks like the future may be 
in for a brawl. 

I'll admit I was concerned. I worried that we'd be served up a 
summer action flick full of leaping lizard aliens and explosions, 
Victim!Scully and bees - a glossy grab bag of mythology madness 
and character exposition for the masses with no emotional core. 
I'm glad to say I was wrong. Director Rob Bowman and writer Chris 
Carter can generate eye-candy fireballs to their heart's content 
and I'll eat it up with a spoon as long as they realize the real 
story, the real fire, is in the hearts of Scully and Mulder. 
Thankfully, they did and the heart and soul of these two characters 
carry this film farther than one bee can travel. In the end, when 
the credits rolled I had a smile on my face, and the second time I 
saw it I enjoyed it more. When push comes to shove that's really 
what it is all about after all isn't it? I thought it was a good 
flick. I had fun.

Good, but not great. However, I really don't know how they could 
have done it much differently given the constraints the film was 
under. From a serious fan perspective you can't help but be 
disappointed that after all those hollow promises of answered 
questions *these* are the "answers" they come up with. I really 
didn't see any grand leaps here that gave me pause - just more 
oilien background and the gestating lizard alien addition. Oh, and 
for some reason, really big spaceships are buried about. Smallpox, 
bounty hunters, Samantha - all too complex for the average moviegoer. 
I've got to say though that all this corny oilien hocus pocus doesn't 
matter much to me as I've all but given up trying to make logical 
sense of the mythology anymore. Sometimes it is best just to accept 
it and move on. Less headaches. Trust me. Let it go. As for the
character exposition, it worked for me. They managed to get a nice 
introductory snapshot for both leads without boring we fans (the 
only mystery for the uninitiated must have been the Lone Gunmen). 
All in all, I fear that in order to make this a great film for the 
hardcore fans the rest of the movie-going audience would have had 
to be left in the dust, so I'm content with what we were given.

The main reason for my contentment was the theme of the movie: that 
together Mulder and Scully are a force to be reckoned with. After a 
season of famine - too often lacking what makes the X-Files really 
work - that amazing Yin-Yang partnership - this movie was a veritable 
feast. The character moments were so true that for the first time in 
a long time I loved Mulder. (Maybe in part because he vocalized what 
we Scullyists have been saying for years - that he needs Scully for 
who she is and actually admitting, "I owe you everything Scully and 
you owe me nothing").  This is the Scully and Mulder I enjoy. How
fun to see them actually playing with each other at the start ("I 
saw that face") and to see them working together. Take that simple 
scene in the car. Scully says right. Mulder says left. So they meet 
halfway and go forward to the answer. That summed up the movie for 
me perfectly. We see this bond again illustrated in two other 
defining moments - Scully using her science to examine the fossils 
needs only look at Mulder and he knows, and, in the end, Mulder the 
believer sees the proof of his quest and a weary Scully sees it in
him as she mutters "I saw it" into the snow.

As a person who has been occasionally critical of Duchovny's acting 
I think he was at his absolute best in this film. From little things 
like that drunken swagger to his beautiful heartfelt confession of 
feelings, his performance worked for me the entire time. Anderson, 
as usual, excelled in the quiet moments (though I think you'd have 
to be dead not to cheer Cranky!Scully ordering folks about like 
someone twice her size). The inner turmoil Scully was suffering was 
radiating through her performance. The little touches like the moment 
where Scully hands Mulder his jacket and watches him leave or the way 
she leaves the room after handing over the evidence that reopens the 
X-Files at the end are the reason I simply adore this actress. Well, 
all that and her "what are you not telling me" moment where we can 
see how many times she's been down this same in the dark path with 
Mulder. The dynamic created by these two actors as they struggled 
with their emotions about being split up is a shining example of why 
the X-Files is as popular as it is: the "you and me against the world" 
truth that feeds their emotions for each other. Mr. Carter you can 
blow things up until the cows come home, but this is what keeps your 
audience watching and invested.

The single most frustrating thing in the film for me was the cop-
out in the hallway, which went some way toward marring this film's 
character and acting highlight. I'm really not sure exactly what 
Carter thought he was getting away with here. It was obvious to 
anyone who watched the scene that Mulder and Scully were intent on 
kissing each other so I don't know how in the world anyone who hates 
that idea could be happy with this turn of events. All it did was 
show that they do think of each other "that way" and were willing 
to act on it. Having the sleeping stunt bee wake up at just that 
moment when both their heads were already buzzing was not clever 
writing, it was manipulative foolishness. It brings to mind the 
Chris Carter I saw in the MSNBC interview practically cackling 
childishly "Beware Diana Fowley" in reference to season six. Gee, 
I can hardly wait to see that. Not.

As far as the movie's hype was concerned,1013 took great pleasure 
in informing us that season five was this twenty-episode trailer 
for the film. To their credit there was a galvanizing moment at the 
end that really stood out. Scully telling Mulder "I can't. I won't" 
in reference to leaving him that directly echoed her lines from "The 
Red and the Black" where she told him she could not follow. I found 
this a huge and touching character moment perfectly played with a 
wonderful payoff. The X-Files are reopened and Scully is as invested 
in their success as Mulder - wanting to fight, to find a cure, to save 
as many people as she can. Beyond that there were a few references to 
dialogue we'd seen such as "fellow travelers" from that episode 
everyone is still trying to block. Perhaps they were referring to 
Scully's belief journey or her emotions in "The End" towards Mulder. 
Who knows? Oh, and they trotted out that old weak reason why they 
can't kill Mulder as if repeating it will make it seem more logical.

>From a technical standpoint I was particularly taken with the art 
direction and cinematography. The eerie cerulean reflections of the 
ice cave, the stark metallic interior of the jiffy-pop hives, and 
the panic-laden corn chase were all a visual treat. I especially 
liked the shot from above the domes where Mulder and Scully emerge 
like ants from the corn in the bottom right corner of the screen. 
Actually the thing I was most unimpressed with was probably what
they spent the most money on - the spaceship. It was just a dark 
and dank mass of green glowing pods. At once so huge Mulder is 
dwarfed in it yet the second he puts binoculars to his face he finds 
exactly where Scully was taken. There were also a couple of editing 
moments that worked very well - the quick transition from the primitive 
man who finds out the hard way that tracking lizard aliens is not a 
good idea moving to that great shot of Stevie falling down the hole. 
There was also the nice cut from the syndicate talking about taking 
away from Mulder what he holds most valuable to a lingering shot on
Scully. I have to admit I found Snow's score for the most part 
unremarkable. I did like hearing the theme woven throughout and 
really liked the music playing as Mulder and Scully drove through 
the middle of nowhere Texas, but other than that little stood out.

I also have to give a big nod to the special effects in the end. 
The film's most spectacular moment for me was that stumbling dash 
across the cracking ice flow and then watching Mulder and Scully 
fall into the crater only to be lifted out on top of the UFO before 
falling off onto the ice below. A great visual moment.

If you start to think too hard about this movie the questions 
become overwhelming. What if Scully had not wanted a drink? Why 
even blow up the building in the first place - surely there's an 
easier way to dispose of bodies? What if Mulder hadn't gone to that 
bar to get drunk? What if Scully had changed clothes? And so on, and 
so on. To enjoy this movie you've got to let that all go and focus 
on what the film really was about. In the end I saw the Mulder and 
Scully I want to believe in. Not fighting each other, but fighting 
together. Finally both on the same page. Realizing they are in this 
until the end together, equally and echoing the same sentiment - "If 
I quit now, they win" - and we can't have that now, can we?

Random Musings
----------------------

-Retread alert (just so the movie still felt like home): Gary 
Grubbs who played the sheriff in "Our Town" was the fire chief 
in the beginning of the film, and of course Terry O'Quinn as the 
S.A.C. blown to bits was in "Aubrey".

-Nice touch making Scully's first line in the film "Mulder, it's 
me" - I know it gave me a chuckle. That and the fact that she 
immediately launches into a lengthy oh so Scully speech about 
terrorism.

-As suspected the movie's code name came from the Texas county 
seen on the fire trucks - "Blackwood".

-You know, I couldn't help but be a little disappointed that there 
was no Lariat bumper sticker on the back of the snow cat Mulder was 
driving. I'm certain they must have a rental counter in Antarctica.

-Scully's cell phone: 555-0113. And who didn't enjoy that lovely 
little cell phone dance we got to see when she was hiding out in 
the freezer. From the looks of it she was keeping that thing in 
the small of her back along with her gun.

-I could have done without the growing razor nails on the lizard 
alien - it made it a little too sci-fi cheesy when they threw in 
that effect.

-Isn't Dr. Kurtzweil just the model OB/GYN? He lurks about in 
alleys, writes books like "Countdown to the Apocalypse", has 
"Nazi Gold" on his bookshelf, and keeps four year old copies of 
"Gynecology Today" on his coffee table (wouldn't that make it 
"Gynecology Quite a While Ago"). The guy spent so much time 
flitting amongst the dumpsters that I think it is far more likely 
that Al was short for Alley rather than Alvin. 

-You can tell how thrilled Mulder is with the new assignment. 
While all the other agents are in ties he is wandering around 
in a T-shirt. I guess that brings us to…

-Frank's Fashion Spot: Mmmmmmm. Mmmm. Love that Scully movie 
wardrobe. That long slit skirt combo was just gorgeous. Perfectly 
capitalizing on that 40's flair that Gillian has always had going 
for her. A fabulous choice. I hope we see that one again on the 
small screen. Though for future reference boys, the Scully we love 
is the one that came in rushed and rumpled and tried to quickly tame 
her errant hair in a picture's reflection not MovieStar!Scully who 
has taken to wearing lipstick and a pushup bra to bed.

-Well, it seems that while recreating Mulder's apartment (except 
with the fact that it once again moves location in the hallway and 
1013 can't remember he lives in Alexandria not Arlington) was no 
problem they just decided to move Scully to upscale new Georgetown 
digs. Apparently instead of having that big wood armoire in her 
living room she decided to put her fridge there instead.

-When discussing this apartment change with a friend she managed 
the most creative reason for the move. You see, during "The End" 
when Mulder and Scully were in the smoldering basement, a stray 
ember somehow snuck its way into the folds of Scully's clothes. 
It then rode home with her and approximately eighteen hours later 
suddenly popped out and flared up landing on that striped couch of 
hers and burning her apartment to the ground. Scully was then able 
to use the insurance money to buy her new wardrobe and move into 
the new apartment. Hey, I've heard these things can happen…

-You know, you can't get much more quintessential Scully than that 
scene where she diagnoses herself as she reacts to the bee sting. 
That's the Scully we know and love.

-Just how long does it take 911 to get to Mulder's apartment? It 
is daylight through his window when he looks through the picture 
album and then presto-stingo it's night as Scully is taken away 
from SpeedBump!Mulder (who took a blow to the left temple that I'm 
sure would make Scully proud had she been conscious).

-Our Little Sailor: Not! Don't even start with me. I don't 
no-longer-movie-wording believe they cut that out. For those of 
you who, like myself, harbored an unexplainable desire to see 
Agent Scully finally get to say what we know she thinks, there 
was nothing but disappointment here. Sure, Mulder gets to finish 
what he started in "Bad Blood" like three times, but the great 
Scully line (which was uttered in her supreme frustration at the 
end of that road in the middle of the night) was edited out by a 
quick cut to the train crossing lights and a whistle. 
Sure. Fine. WHATEVER.

-As much as I enjoyed Pranky!Scully I have to say that perhaps 
the best time to crack a joke is not when just resuscitated on 
the floor of an alien spaceship while lizard aliens are all about 
trying to burst out. Perhaps she felt if she said "I'm fine" Mulder 
would've never believed her.

-Maybe it was a complete coincidence but I couldn't help getting 
a chuckle out of the large stuffed moose head adorning Casey's - 
our Moose's favorite pub. I didn't see any squirrels, but there 
was that rat that scurried across the alley just before Well 
Manicured Man became Well Done Man.

-With all the obvious care given to the creation of the film I 
was quite surprised to see an obvious editing flub during the 
bee all that you can bee scene. Scully can clearly be seen untying 
her jacket and covering her head in two different shots in this 
segment.

-I'll admit I have a deep seated fear about season 6 that Carter 
will think he has to find a way to once again level set Scully 
back to the start. I hope and pray this does not happen because 
I just won't be able to take it. My head will surely explode 
quicker than you can say "Quit staring at me, I'm fine". Yes, 
please keep her a skeptic and a scientist about most things, we, 
like Mulder, need that "goddamn strict rationalism and science", 
but don't let her discount the alien angle anymore. I mean really, 
did we have to have Scully head down in the snow when it took off? 
Did she really see it? Hell, she rode the damn UFO bareback (talk 
about your Space Mountain) and ended up next to a crater the size 
of some small countries. Mr. Carter, please don't damage this
wonderful character by miring her in further denial.

-Date stamp: The telegram in the end reads September 6, 1998.

-Note to boys at 1013: Would it be possible to allow Scully to 
have some sexual feelings at some point in the series without 
having to suffer afterwards? No homicidal maniac or monster-of-
the-week setting their sights on her? No lacinating chest pains? 
I'd like her to be able to experience temporary loss of motor 
control for a good reason.

-Anyone else find it amusing that Mulder started bashing that 
canister against the pod right where Scully's face was? I kept 
thinking if he swung too hard he'd smash her face as well.

-One thing I did find of interest about the mythology angle is 
the possibility that given the injection Scully is now immune to 
oiliens. Once again the truth is in her.

-Oh, and one last thing. Goddamn bee. If you thought I hated 
those flying plot devices before you can only imagine my opinion 
of them now. What fence?

Autumn
"I had you big time."