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Movies / Upcoming / The X-Files: I Want to Believe
The X-Files: I Want to Believe

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The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)

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Reviews Counted:160

Fresh:51

Rotten:109

Average Rating:4.9/10

Consensus: The chemistry between leads David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson do live up to The X-Files' televised legacy, but the roving plot and droning routines make it hard to identify just what we're meant to believe in.

Australian Rating: M [See Full Rating] Violence and themes

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Australian Theatrical Release:
Jul 24, 2008 Wide

US Box Office: $20,847,266

Synopsis: THE X-FILES(TM): I WANT TO BELIEVE is a new motion picture based on the phenomenally popular, award-winning series The X-Files. Long-anticipated, the film reunites series stars David Duchovny and... THE X-FILES(TM): I WANT TO BELIEVE is a new motion picture based on the phenomenally popular, award-winning series The X-Files. Long-anticipated, the film reunites series stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson under the direction of series creator Chris Carter, who co-wrote the screenplay with Frank Spotnitz. In grand The X-Files tradition, the film's storyline is being kept under wraps, known only to top studio brass and the project's principal actors and filmmakers. This much can be revealed: The supernatural thriller is a stand-alone story in the tradition of some of the show's most acclaimed and beloved episodes, and takes the always-complicated relationship between Fox Mulder (Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Anderson) in unexpected directions. Mulder continues his unshakable quest for the truth, and Scully, the passionate, ferociously intelligent physician, remains inextricably tied to Mulder's pursuits. Months after shooting had wrapped, Carter remained as circumspect about the story as he was during its development and production. "Mulder and Scully are drawn back into the world of the X-Files by a case," is all he'll add about the plot. Perhaps more clues...to something....can be found in the film's title. "I Want to Believe" is a familiar phrase for fans of the series; it was the slogan on a poster that Mulder had hanging in his office at the FBI. "It's a natural title," says Chris Carter. "It's a story that involves the difficulties in mediating faith and science. It really does suggest Mulder's struggle with his faith." Carter is much more revealing about his goals for the film. "Simply put, we want to scare the pants off of everyone in the audience," he says. While the scale and scope inherent in the medium of film allowed the filmmakers to take the story and characters where the show couldn't go, Carter says THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE also marks a return to the series' roots, when it was the lone beacon on television for fans of thrillers, supernatural tales, and of horror stories. "The film encompasses all the best things people loved about the show. It's scary, creepy, and has a good mystery. With The X-Files, we often scared people by what they didn't show, and we use that device for the movie." Adds writer-producer Frank Spotnitz: "I think the best part of The X-Files was that it could make you afraid of anything. They didn't tell typical horror stories or adhere to popular genre conventions. And this movie is in that tradition of showing things that you would not see in most scary movies." Unlike the first The X-Files motion picture, released in 1998, Carter and Spotnitz's story for THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE does not require audiences to understand the series' complex mythology that stretched across its nine seasons on the air. "The first movie was kind of an epic episode of the show, but THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE is a real, stand-alone movie," explains Carter. "If the show hadn't existed, this is a story that still would have found its way to the big screen." --© 20th Century Fox [More]

Starring: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Amanda Peet, Billy Connolly

Starring: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Amanda Peet, Billy Connolly, Callum Keith Rennie, Adam Godley, Nicki Aycox

Director: Chris Carter

Director: Chris Carter
Screenwriter: Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz
Producer: Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz
Composer: Mark Snow
Studio: 20th Century Fox

[See More Credits]

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1 - 4 of 10

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Reviews for The X-Files: I Want to Believe

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
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Cheaply shot, discernibly under-written, decently acted, unimaginatively directed, and ultimately pointless.

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
07/24/08
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The fans will lap up this thrilling new feature that has gestated in the belly of the hugely popular series for years.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
07/21/08
Andrew L. Urban
Andrew L. Urban
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Superbly made with an edge of the seat tension that lingers, X-Files fans will be more than satisfied as the credible and incredible sit side by side in an explosive melee.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment 8 Comments
07/21/08
Louise Keller
Louise Keller
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A sloppy, second-rate entry in the catalog of standalone X-Files adventures.

Full Review Source: Washington Times | comment Comment
08/30/09
Sonny Bunch
Sonny Bunch
Washington Times

Leaves a trail of affecting impressions in its wake

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
08/26/09
Fernando F. Croce
Fernando F. Croce
Slant Magazine

It was darker and murkier, and I didn't enjoy spending time with the characters, as I had on Friday nights more than ten years ago.

Full Review Source: 7M Pictures | comment Comment
01/15/09
Kevin Carr
Kevin Carr
7M Pictures

A handful of TV series have moved from lengthy small screen runs to the big screen; few can match The X-Files in consistent quality and ability to engage its audience.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/14/09
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

Only a fan would be inclined to tolerate this dunderheaded mystery.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
12/09/08
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader

Unfortunately for this movie, television has evolved well past this degree of silliness and spoon feeding, leaving our beloved X-Files in the vault. I wanted to believe it would be fun movie, but this was definitely time spent.

Full Review Source: Cinerina | comment Comment
09/08/08
Karina Montgomery
Karina Montgomery
Cinerina

X-Files: I Want to Believe %u2014 it's almost like a mantra that Chris Carter is trying to get the audience to hear. Say it enough times and they will believe. Well, that's not the case.

Full Review Source: The Scorecard Review | comment Comment
08/27/08
Jeff Bayer
Jeff Bayer
The Scorecard Review

The X-Files 2: I Want to Believe isn't a groundbreaking film by any stretch %u2014 but that it challenges the viewer to consider certain moral imperatives in a season devoted to films revolving around explosions and fart jokes makes it a daring pie

Full Review Source: Illinois Times | comment 2 Comments
08/17/08
Charles Koplinski
Charles Koplinski
Illinois Times

If you are going to go back to the 90s for source material, it had better come juiced with some modern day action.

Full Review Source: Spectrum (St. George, Utah) | comment Comment
08/11/08
Bruce Bennett
Bruce Bennett
Spectrum (St. George, Utah)

Carter has with The X-Files: I Want to Believe created a mediocre mystery that relies too frequently on coincidence and screenwriting convenience to elicit genuine interest, much less "belief" in its twists and turns.

Full Review Source: IGN Movies | comment 1 Comment
08/08/08
Todd Gilchrist
Todd Gilchrist
IGN Movies

There's a very strong spiritual underside to The X-Files: I Want to Believe. It gives the story a lot of emotional weight, while also making the creepy stuff that much more disturbing.

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment Comment
08/06/08
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

Mulder and Scully are finally back on the case, but after six years apart, they could use a little platitude adjustment.

Full Review Source: Sci-Fi Weekly | comment Comment
08/02/08
Staci Layne Wilson
Staci Layne Wilson
Sci-Fi Weekly

It's like an especially gloomy episode of the series, stretched a bit too long. And we miss the ad breaks.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
08/01/08
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

This is essentially just a bog-standard (if slightly gruesome) thriller, but it's a treat to see Anderson and Duchovny together again and fans of the show won't be disappointed.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
08/01/08
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

The best thrillers dig deeper than this one does, as did the best of The X Files on TV before the series ran out of steam.

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
08/01/08
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
This is London

There seems to be several scenes missing from the final cut - all the ones that make sense.

Full Review Source: Mansized | comment 1 Comment
08/01/08
Chris Laverty
Chris Laverty
Mansized

A plot dug out of the serial-killer deep freeze.

Full Review Source: Financial Times | comment Comment
08/01/08
Nigel Andrews
Nigel Andrews
Financial Times
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
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