X-Files Essentials
Reviewer: Tom Leins
Issue 106 August 2008
(No Ratings Yet)
click on the stars to submit your rating
Loading …
The truth is in here!
The Lowdown: FBI agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) are in charge of investigating the X-Files, a baffling selection of unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena. Scully is initially assigned to debunk Mulder’s unconventional theories, but it soon becomes apparent that darker forces are at work!
Review: Chris Carter’s seminal X-Files TV series may have been overtaken in the public’s affections by new-fangled mystery shows like ‘Lost’, but the unexpected arrival of a long-rumoured new movie has definitely set tongues wagging and reignited interest in the long-dormant franchise. This two-disc package features eight episodes that have been handpicked by creator Carter and producer Frank Spotnitz. Spanning the first six series of the show, these episodes are designed to prepare viewers for the upcoming movie, X-Files – I Want To Believe. Although I Want To Believe is stand-alone proposition, it is unthinkable that it won’t tie in with the show’s over-arching mythology. As such, you better pay close attention to these eight episodes before venturing to the cinema…
Condensing the magic of a show like the X-Files into just eight episodes is a tough call for anyone. At least the involvement of Carter and Spotnitz should reassure sceptics that this package isn’t just a lazy cash-in…! Hardcore fans will almost certainly gripe at the episode selection on offer, but in truth, this package isn’t actually aimed at them. It kicks off with the horribly dated but undeniably absorbing ‘Pilot’ episode, offering a chance to trace the show right back to its roots. Next up is ‘Beyond The Sea’ (Series 1, Episode 13) a thrilling episode, which sees Scully tangle with Luther Lee Boggs, a death row inmate who claims that he is psychic and can lead Mulder to a serial killer in exchange for a lesser sentence. Unusually, the episode sees true believer Mulder doubting the reliably sceptical Scully, and remains one of Gillian Anderson’s all-time favourites. ‘The Host’ (Series 2, Episode 2) was penned by Carter himself and concerns a decomposing corpse inhabited by a deadly parasite! Disc one is rounded off with ‘Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose’ (Series 3, Episode 4) an Emmy-winning episode which ‘TV Guide’ proclaimed “the 10th greatest episode in TV history”!
The second batch of episodes begins with ‘Memento Mori’ (Season 4, Episode 14), which probes Scully’s ailing health. Carter’s black ‘n’ white ‘The Post-Modern Prometheus’ (Series 5, Episode 5) is one of the most memorable, stylised episodes in the show’s history, re-telling the story of Frankenstein’s monster in a small mid-western town! ‘Bad Blood’ (Series 5, Episode 12) sees Mulder kill a Texan teenager whom he mistakes for a vampire, and is another of Gillian Anderson’s favourite episodes. The final episode in Carter’s ‘essential selection’ is another one of his own: ‘Milagro’ (Series 6, Episode 18), which concerns a writer who becomes the prime suspect in a grisly murder case. The underwhelming special features consist of optional episode introductions from Carter and Spotnitz and a sporadically interesting half-hour comic convention Q&A that reunites Carter with Duchovny and Anderson.
The arrival of X-Files Essentials offers a timely reminder of the X-Files’ remarkable gifts, and as such is well worth checking out. If you have lost touch with the show, or if you were crazy enough to miss out on it the first time around, then this is a welcome primer ahead of the new movie. Then again, you could just go ahead and invest in the mammoth X-Files box set instead, and enjoy all nine series…!
FILM: 8
EXTRAS: 4
DVD Info:
Certificate: 15
Starring: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi, William B. Davis
Directed By: Various, 1993-1999
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0
Visuals: 4:3 Fullscreen, 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen
Running Time: 344mins
Price: £19.99
Special Features:
Episode Selection
Optional Episode Introductions From Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz
Wonder-Con Panel Interview (With David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz)
