This is a weird one for me... I didn't especially care for this one when I saw it the first time, but when I saw a few years later it was an ok distraction. Now? Well...after just finishing season nine of the series, this is actually quite good, but that isn't really the truth since the ninth season of the X-files is a shit show of preposterous dimensions. When the show was at its prime, I Want to Believe is a mediocre episode at the worst and a filler at best. Yet...It has its moments, and Gillian Anderson is as lovely as ever, so it's not a total disaster. If you are a fan of the series it's required viewing. If not you can safely skip it.

The movie itself isn`t that bad. It just isn´t that much of an x-files movie. And this is not because it hasn´t got any of the mythology of the series. The story would have worked with two generic FBI Agents instead of Mulder and Scully. But I liked the scenes they both had together this did something for the whole story of the charasters and their relationship.

"X-Files: I Want To Believe" was received poorly by many because it didn't advance the popular "aliens are here" story line. This movie is a one-shot story like many of the episodes were during the original run of the TV series. The X-Files TV series successfully merged the anthology format with a continuing story-arc like no other had or has since. "I Want To Believe" is an example of the "monster-of-the-week" approach to the X-Files. The movie itself is pretty good with an interesting story and of course, strong characters that most have become familiar with. It gets pretty morbid by the end of the film and displays some patented X-Files creepiness. The problem for me though was the Scully story. She has become a surgeon at a Catholic hospital and has to fight their administration to save a terminally ill boy. This doesn't really add anything to the film other than to give her a demon to fight and a point of irritability that is more easily reached when Mulder falls into one of his fits of believing everything kooky. Mulder's character has become isolated and is basically staying away from the FBI. He is reengaged by the bureau when they hit a dead-end in dealing with a paranormal. His story works because it really builds on his character's rocky past. The Scully story offers up an unfamiliar struggle and it distracts. The movie looks good. I was always struck by the X-Files' use of color and this movie offers more cold blue and silver hues. Fans of the series should enjoy the extras on the Blu-Ray, especially the "X-Files Timeline", which is a great episode guide encompassing all nine seasons. It also includes clips from many of the episodes and offers a year-by-year event timeline explaining much of the X-Files story in the order it occurred.

It just didn't feel like an X-File.