The X Files

Plot

Mulder and Scully must fight the government in a conspiracy and find the truth about an alien colonization of Earth.

Release Year: 1998

Rating: 6.8/10 (48,727 voted)

Critic's Score: 60/100

Director:
Rob Bowman

Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, John Neville

Storyline
With problems appearing between FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, a dangerous conspiracy is starting to appear. A deadly virus, which appears to be of extraterrestrial origin has appeared, which could destroy all life on Earth. With the help of a paranoid doctor, Alvin Kurtzweil, Mulder and Scully must act fast in order to save everyone on the planet.

Writers: Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz

Cast:

David Duchovny
–

Special Agent Fox Mulder

Gillian Anderson
–

Special Agent Dana Scully

John Neville
–

The Well-Manicured Man

William B. Davis
–

Cigarette Smoking Man
/
CGB Spender

Martin Landau
–

Alvin Kurtzweil, MD

Mitch Pileggi
–

Assistant Director Walter Skinner

Jeffrey DeMunn
–

Ben Bronschweig, M.D.

(as Jeffrey De Munn)

Blythe Danner
–

Jana Cassidy

Terry O'Quinn
–

Darius Michaud

Armin Mueller-Stahl
–

Conrad Strughold

Lucas Black
–

Stevie

Christopher Fennell
–

Boy #2

(as Chris Fennell)

Cody Newton
–

Boy #3

Blake Stokes
–

Boy #4

Dean Haglund
–

Richard 'Ringo' Langly

Taglines:
One man alone can not Fight the Future.

Release Date: 19 June 1998

Filming Locations: 380 South San Rafael Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $66,000,000

(estimated)

Opening Weekend: $30,138,758
(USA)
(21 June 1998)
(2629 Screens)

Gross: $189,198,313
(Worldwide)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Did You Know?

Trivia:

After consuming much alcohol and finding the bar's bathroom locked, Mulder relieves himself on a movie poster for
Independence Day. A line in Independence Day, spoken just after the first shot of the cable station, is "Yeah, I love X-Files too. I hope I get to see it." However, the feeling wasn't mutual: Chris Carter loathed ID4 and had Mulder piss all over the film's poster to express his disdain for it.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes:
Scully hides in the mortuary cold chamber, closing the metal door behind her. She still has a mobile phone signal and takes a call from Moulder.

Quotes:

Mulder:
Is this Dr. Kurzweil's residence?

Detective:
You got some business with him?

Mulder:
I'm looking for him.

Detective:
Looking for him for what?
[Mulder shows his ID]

Detective:
Hey, the Feds are looking for him, too. Real nice business he's got, huh?

Mulder:
What's that?

Detective:
Selling naked pictures of little kids over his computer. You looking for him for some other reason?

Mulder:
Yeah, I had an appointment for a pelvic examination.

User Review

Not just for X-Files followers.

Rating: 7/10

To start off with, I do not watch the TV show, so I'm coming from a place of
ignorance when it comes to The X-Files: Fight the Future. However, even
without knowing anything about the characters or story lines, I found that I
enjoyed this movie a lot, and will probably now start watching the shows
reruns.

The movie starts off tens of thousands of years in the past, where an alien
life form is roaming in underground caves. Fast forward to the present, and
that same life form is unearthed by some kids in Texas. No one knows what
killed this boy, and the firemen sent down to save him. Or maybe, someone
does know. Enter Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully
(Gillian Anderson). A seemlingly unconnected terrorist bombing is linked
with the mysterious deaths in Texas, and lead Mulder and Scully all over the
world to figure out this global conspiracy. Who knows about this alien life
form? And why are they trying so hard to keep it a secret?

From what I've been told, a lot of the regulars on the TV show make an
appearance in the movie. But as I said earlier, even without knowing who
these people are, the movie itself is good enough to stand on its own. What
I found I liked the most, and the reason I'll start watching the show, is
the interaction between Duchovny and Anderson. After 5 years together, these
two work perfectly as a team. They know each other so well; you feel the
chemistry and tension between them. The supporting cast was strong, and I
liked the idea that an entire alien race is being hidden from the world by a
bunch of old white men. The story itself, while again from what I hear
doesn't really conclude any plot points from the show, nor start any new
ones, manages to stand by itself. The scenery was terrific, especially the
opening sequence in the underground caves.

What I was disappointed with was it seemed as if Duchovny was in the movie a
lot more than Anderson. It was as if he was the star of the film, and she
was a supporting member. The story seemed to revolve around him, and she was
there to play off of. I wish that Chris Carter (the series writer and
creator, and screenwriter for this film) would have made her more of an
equal. The other problem I had was that while the plot was good, at times it
wasn't explained as much as it could have been. The reason for the cover-up
wasn't made as clear as it could have been, at least in my mind.

Whether you're a fan or not, The X-Files: Fight the Future is a good way to
spend a couple hours in a nice air conditioned environment.