mikko-sandt Reviews

The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)

Not as bad as I had feared but still not very good

[4/10 · 23 August 2008]

Two days after seeing the movie the feeling I've now is that it was great to see Mulder & Scully again, to know that they're alive and that Carter didn't completely screw things up. However, my worse fears were not for nothing. The worst elements of the last two seasons were still there. Religion, which started gaining ground in the show during the sixth season, is heavily present and it makes me sick especially hearing Scully, once rational and independent, shout things like "Don't ya quote scripture!". There are tons of references to religion and to God. What I liked about the original series was the fact that it dealt with things that could happen in the real world. The paranormal events always had some scientific, reasonable explanation (although even with this things got a bit sloppy during the last few seasons). But religion cannot be explained and it should've therefore remained out of the show. Carter didn't just introduce it - he made it a central issue (see Existence, Providence, the whole baby William plot and so on). Then there's Scully. As mentioned above, Scully once was a rational, independent, maybe even a bit cold human being. During the last two seasons of the show Carter destroyed the character. She became stupid, whiny, dependent and overly emotional. She had her eyes in tears in every mythology episode during these two seasons. She was incapable of functioning as an independent human being. She no longer knew what to do, instead trying to do what Mulder would have done. And this element is heavily present in the movie. First she asks Mulder to help the FBI and then she asks him to give up. She cannot make up her mind. She's whining, crying and being defeatist the whole time, ranting about God and his love life with Mulder. Sickening! Morgan & Wong wrote some of the finest Scully-centered episodes during the first four seasons (Beyond the Sea, Never Again, Home etc.). They should have written the movie instead of Carter who lost touch with his creation after the second season.

Mulder wasn't bad. He was like he's always been: smart-ass, sarcastic, cool, smart and intransigent. Mulder makes his own decisions, Scully makes decisions based on what Mulder and a pedophile priest have got to say. Mulder consults reason, Scully consults what she thinks is God.

Therefore I have mixed feelings concerning any future X-Files movies. The aliens are still on their way to Earth so I'm sure most fans need a conclusion of some kind but with the last two seasons of the show Carter pretty much ruined any chances of the invasion film being what it should and could've been.

The X-Files: Per Manum (2001) Season 8, Episode 13

Prelude to Destruction

[1/10 · 18 April 2008]

I'm in the middle of re-watching the whole series and today I watched Per Manum ("By Hand" - get it?).

When Scully first uttered "I'm pregnant" in Requiem, the mythology was destroyed. This episode is the first one to deal with the "new mythology" that revolves around Scully's Jesus boy and supersoldiers. It's awful.

First we have Scully acting like an idiot, ignoring the obvious and treating Doggett like scum. Now I know that pregnancy is a personal issue but if it's causing so much trouble and not just to you then please, princess Scully, tell your partner about it so that he doesn't have to guess what's eating you.

The scene where Scully is staring at her reflection in the mirror with that awful music playing in the background is just so laughable that I, well, bursted to laughter.

And we're supposed to believe that suddenly Scully wanted to have a child, and not just maybe some day in the future but pretty much immediately after learning that she can't have children? I mean, the flashbacks took place BEFORE the whole Emily thing so what is it that suddenly triggered her to want to have a child right now? I hate when writers re-write history. The whole flashback thing was a stupid excuse to bring Mulder in anyway (not that they found much use for him in The Gift either).

What a glorious way to celebrate the destruction of the character Scully once was!

Coronado (2003)

Straight to the bottom

[1/10 · 15 July 2005]

So we're supposed to find it funny that this woman travels all the way to the jungle - to the warzone - just to find out why her fiancée didn't travel to Switzerland? Or are we supposed to take it seriously? It's not even remotely funny, clever or entertaining - it's stupid - and so is the movie. The lead actress is one of the most annoying characters I have ever seen in a movie - even worse than Jar-Jar Binks. Dialog tries very hard to be funny (almost all the time) but it never is. The number of funny jokes is somewhere between zero and nothing. And as for the plot - did they even once bothered to explain to us what are the rebels fighting for (other than being anti-government)? I guess that didn't matter to anyone - neither to the rebels nor to the characters who just blindly flew to the battlefield. Don't waste your time. "Coronado" is neither funny nor entertaining.

The X-Files: The Truth (2002) Season 9, Episode 19

What truth? - It's all about whiny & depressed Scully

[1/10 · 4 July 2005]

I didn't want to believe it but seeing is believing. The finale to the best show ever turned out to be crap. First of all at least half of the episode is wasted on talking about things we already know. The Mulder trial is unrealistic in every sense, it's childish and poorly executed. We learn nothing new. In non-trial scenes you have Mulder & Scully hugging each other all the time - the most unfortunate fact about this is the total destruction of Scully's character. She used to be strong, independent and smart - now she's depressed, whiny and helpless who can't do a single thing alone. Bringing CSM back felt a bit forced but William B. Davis saved a lot. And at least he had a few good lines.

Mulder's quest for the truth turned into something childish and uninteresting during the past two seasons. That's the biggest mistake the writers did along with the fact that they destroyed Scully and what she used to stand for.

Can't think of a worse way to end a show.

Profiler (1996–2000)

It started off well

[18 May 2005]

When Profiler first got aired it felt fresh - its fast pace and neat cuts fitted well for the needs of the new MTV generation. In many ways Profiler made room for all those psychic thrillers that followed and series like "C.S.I.". The characters were well written and their separate story lines and personalities all had something to offer. The mystery surrounding Jack's identity (whose face was never revealed until the 3rd season) kept people hooked. The writes really managed to make Jack appear dangerous - you never knew what he'd do next. The cliffhanger in the end of the second season was powerful - no one could wait for the 3rd season...

Then the writers, the producers and the directors changed and the show started to go downhill. The show had no dynamic anymore. Everything went wrong - the new mythology storyline surrounding Jack's trial was uninteresting. The writers made a poor effort in trying to convince the audience that the person they caught in the beginning of the season was the real Jack - but who believed them? The writers never did their homework - one plot-hole followed another and the standard "nutjob of the week" episodes were uninteresting and boring.

The fourth season came and couldn't save the show either (except the great "Reunion 1 & 2" episodes where both Jack - played by the superb Dennis Christopher - & Sam appeared for the last time). Jamie Luner - the new profiler - wasn't really any worse than Ally Walker - it was just the writers who were unable to write anything good for her (and the same happened with Walker during the 3rd season). The new conflicts surrounding the lives of the main characters - George's drug addiction, the issues with Rachel's brother, romances etc. all felt forced and artificial.

During Profiler's excellent seasons 1 & 2 the show was at times even better than my favorite show The X-Files. It's hard to understand how the new production team managed to ruin everything good the show had and offer nothing interesting in return.

The first two seasons are without a doubt worth having on DVD. Once you have them I suggest that you pretend that the last two seasons never existed.