Convoluted, but appealing

Since there are more detailed reviews for this set in the site, I'll just give basics.

This is the complete X-Files set minus the more recent 2008 movie. You get every episode and the late 90s movie which is set halfway between season's 5 and 6.
The movie doesn't have many extras, the season boxset's however do. Ranging from deleted scenes to behind the scenes features. The sound and picture is excellent and even shows how things progressed from the first episode up to the final episode in terms of make up, camera and light use and acting.

The box sets are done in an odd way though and you have to be gentle to avoid any damage to the discs, it would have been nice if they had gone with the excellent slim line cases that are being used for box sets now. But other than that, this is a worthwhile box set to get, especially if you loved X-Files.
I have to admit that I'm not as fond of X-Files as I am of Star Trek, but I was satisified with this box set and was gripped by several episodes. Though I'm still more fond of Star Trek even after watching all of X-Files, this is still a good thing to be watching and saves having to switch on the TV to the mindless junk that passes for prime time TV these days.

Recommended? Yes and no. Yes because it's every episode and the 90s movie, no due to the box design that risks damaging the discs if you're not gentle.
If you love the X-Files, go for it. If you're looking for something to watch that isn't the same old rubbish reality tv shows, go for it. If you like a very convoluted story with a lot of plot twists, go for it. And if you like gruesome, weird and unusual story's, go for it.

Just remember to be gentle when opening the boxs. Oh, and I forgot to mention that you also get a small booklet that gives a brief description of each episode and the 90s movie.

TV at it's weirdest and best.

Not a movie just a feature length episode

Mulder and Scully return in this disappointing big screen tale.We find that Scully is now working as a doctor and is visited by agent Whitney (Amanda Peet) to find Mulder and help assist a search for a missing agent.

Enter Mulder with a ridiculous beard in a vain attempt to make it look as if he has lived in isolation. Not only that he spends the first quarter of the movie walking around like a hobo. I would have thought that the FBI would have told him to clean up his act. Only Mulder it seems has the expertise to investigate this tedious case rendering all other agents useless and also Scully spends most of the movie trying to talk him away from the case. This despite the fact it was she who asked him in the first place.

To me the x files worked because it dealt with the incredible fantastical stories.And the excellent interplay between Mulder and Scully. The fact that Scully is no longer in the FBI destroys it for me; she is on the outside looking in. And her and Duchovnys acting are average and at times Scully seems to overact almost trying to breathe life into the film.

And the supporting cast are weak Xzibit another rapper appearing to act spends the movie rubbishing the psychic links from Billy Connolly. One phone exchange between Scully and him sums up the movie, despite a dead agent and escaped killer on the loose he appears to have lost interest in the case and does not know where Mulder is. And in a vain attempt to refresh a struggling plot Skinner is introduced to assist. Billy Connolly feels tacked on and the whole movie just felt disjointed broken with a weak plot leading to gruesome experiments.

That being said at least the scenery is beautifully shot snowy landscapes, which give the movie a haunted look but it's all wasted on a weak plot with a poor supporting cast and bored expressions from Scully and Mulder.I even wonder if they wanted to appear in this movie at all. Maybe an extension of the plot in the first movie which was much better would have been stronger than this weak effort. X files fans may still like it at least for the pairing of Scully and Mulder again.

It's been a while.. but they're back!

If you haven't seen this yet then I suggest you watch it, as it is very good. Don't listen to the critics who have said this is crap because it isn't. And it doesn't matter if you haven't seen all the seasons of 'The X-Files', as it stands well as a movie on it's own. Obviously there are some elements that reflect back to the series but that's more of an addded bonus to the X-Files fans.

One of the main things I liked about this movie was the way the writers have decided to go more into Mulder and Scully's relationship which they didn't really bother with too much in the last film. I also liked the fact that it stayed very true to the tone of the TV show and is just as intense as a lot of the episodes were.

So whether your an X-Files fan or not this film is definitely worth checking out because it's very intriguing and gets you thinking. And I'm sure it will look really good on blu-ray. I'm curious to see what kind of scenes they will add in to this director's cut of the movie so I will be getting this soon.

New x files movie- worth renting

The new x files movie is certainly worth renting whilst there is a paranormal connection in Billy connolly's psychic 'powers' the rest of the movie is routed in 21Sst century scientific issues this means it doesn't descend into the usual Hollywood hokum.

Mulder and Scully's relationship has moved on but it's a shame that the script doesn't see them interact a little more as for a lot of the movie they inhabit different spheres and they don't share much screen time together. The movie is good and whilst I was afraid the performances might be wooden I was proved wrong. Entertaining.

New - Old Fan

I watched the whole of the original X Files when they were first on TV and loved the series. I have just purchased (and watched) the X Files movie and have to admit that it has re-kindled my love for this series. The film is as good, if not better than I expected and I suspect I will now start buying the whole TV series. So, if like me, you haven't watched the X Files for a few years, I can recommend this film. I loved it.

science fiction at its best

when this first aired on BBC 2 I was hooked from the start ,I absolutely loved it . Aliens and creepy monsters have always got my full attention so this was perfectfor me just loved it .

Not as good as some might suggest

I've watched The X Files from the beginning, and series somehow stands out for some wrong reasons. I'll admit, it has a fair share of fantastic episodes, but while the series starts off good, and ends very well, it dips in the middle with a selection of dark and bland devoted to murder. And after seeing the way The X Files progressed, this is deffinately not the best direction they went in. These episodes are based loosely around crazed family members, or characters influenced by strange powers that makes them go out on murderous rampages, and I have to say, its just not as satisfying as the Mulder and Scully who'll uncover more paranormal/extra-terrestial mysterys.
Whereas these mythological and more paranormal plots have always entertained better with puzzles, interesting characters, and humour, these darker episodes just make you feel moody after watching them.
Having said that, their are some brighter and more entertaining plots in this series, but whether or not its worth buying just for them, is debatable. Either way, its pretty much 50/50, but the previous serious was alot more devoted to what The X Files is all about.

Favourite episode

I'm not particularly a fan of shows of this genre, but x files is a classic and so an exception to that! This is not my favourite season neccesarily- but contains my favourite episode (D.P.O. aka episode 3) which remains untouched as the best in my opinion even after all these years! So I would recommend this season just on the strength of that, and a few other absolute gems contained. Thing with the x files is that there isn't a definitive 'best season' as all tend to have some really strong episodes and then some not so much- all down to opinion I hasten to add, as all our well scripted and enthralling but depends on what interests you to an extent and what really makes you think. Some say start at season 1 and work your way through, and although there is a sense of continuity re: Mulder and Scully and their personal lives; diving in at any point is an absolute treat and the start of what will probably be wanting to see as many as you can! I enjoy trying to figure stuff out as it goes along, and for me this series was the best for that.

x-files

x-files season 4 has to be the best season of x-files i have ever seen bear in mind i have seen 5,6,7,8 or 9 yet but of the 4 seasons i have seen this is the best of all.

Not quite as good asseason 4

A very strong series but not quite as good as 4.

The conspiracy moves along well and the individual episodes are good with scares, monsters, aliens - the usual. Not that the usual is a bad thing in this case.

Impressive

I think this season is grossly underrated. It renews the main characters, gives us plenty of new ones to explore, and resurrects the ailing mythology with a vengeance (there's what's basically a four-parter mid-season). Doggett and Reyes work extremely well as new additions, and the mythology episodes are actually exciting again. Petulance drove many fans to reject the show without Mulder, but I think they made a mistake.

Stand-alones have a fresh feel with Doggett involved, though Mulder's eventual return reminds us how profound his absence is. I would rate this season above some earlier ones, if I had to compare them.

Favourites:
Medusa, Invocation, Per Manum/This is Not Happening/Deadalive/Three Words, Vienen, Alone, Essence/Existence

Episodes I remember not liking, but enjoyed this time round:
Roadrunners, Badlaa (yes, I was surprised), Empedocles

Weak points:
Within/Without - introduces Doggett well, but spins out quite a lot of nothing over two episodes.

The funny episodes are funny...

...which is a good thing as they seem to take up half the season. In previous seasons there have been a few attempts at funny episodes but I haven't enjoyed many (if any of them). They seem to have worked it out for season 6 though so they don't detract from the overall quality.

The spookier episodes are very good too. The only real disappointment was the one written and directed by David Duchovny.

Looking forward t the arrival of season 7 through my door as I work my way through.

one of the best of the series

Ive been trying to keep some kind of record of each episode of the x-files (of which there were nine seasons) for some time now but with little success. This is a geeky thing for me to do firstly because of the series itself (sci fi, alien abductions anyone?) and also just trying to provide a summary for a show that had some 180 plus episodes is a little bit obsessive. The problem seems to be that I put on an episode (I have alot of time because I am now unemployed yes?) and then I potter around, fix a coffee, my hair, my lunch and have no idea as to what's gone on with the aliens. I can just about remember whether what Ive seen is either a 'mythological' or 'stand alone' episode. Mythological tales begun with Fox Mulder's sister being abducted by non- humans when he was a child and then general alien related stories which always effect Mulder and Dana Scully is some emotional and physical way. Stand alone episodes are about everything elses and can be silly, funny, ironic, frightening, complicated, dull; you get the point. They are always resloved in the same episode.

I'm currently watching Season 7 and have worked my way here starting with season 1 in season order. I watched the first 5 seasons when they originally aired. Looking at them now they seem dated and crude; the chemistry between Mulder and Scully which is really the defining point of the show, undeveloped. By season 6 I'd begun to actually stop experimenting with my hair and was sitting down watching the show. When I took out season 7 from the box I realised that I already knew many of the episodes from title and was very familiar to the plots and had enjoyed many of the episodes already. See our heros had really begun to fully inhabite their charaters and the emotional dynamic between the two had well truly taken off. I think this season is also the one in which Mulder leaves, to come back only for those 'Myth' episodes and the series final. So a beautifully acted season, funny and engaging and fully realised.

Not A Fitting Finale to Such a Great Show **Spoilers Included**

The problem with Season 9 of The X-Files is that it tries so hard to answer the questions raised in previous seasons, that paradoxically it seems to answer nothing at all! The last two episodes"The Truth pt 1&2" promise so much from a series that had such a great production team and cast, but they just do not deliver. As an avid fan you may have spent a decent chunk of your life watching every episode in order, just waiting to see the finale... So when you find out that the only answer revealed is a date for the final alien invasion (that nothing can be done to change!), you can't help but feel that you have ben conned into a serious anti-climax. You are not alone here and you can be forgiven for this because most of the final double-episode is spent in a Military court room anyway, not exactly explosive!

Another negative element of series 9 is that three of the best characters in the show (The Lone Gunmen) are killed off in an episode that really does not need them to die! Chris Carter's spin off series"The Lone Gunmen" only survived one series, but it was an original and highly entertaining series that now cannot be taken any further... Ok you might argue that the two shows could be promoted mutually exclusively, but for true fans the continuity would NEVER hold.

Having said all this, I have given this season 3 stars for a few reasons. Firstly, this series does have some first-rate"Stand-Alone" episodes... the problem is that because it advances too quickly towards a conclusion there are not enough of these episodes. Similarly, although I feel that Robert Patrick is a fine actor and takes on the role of Agent Doggett very effectively, I also feel that his best performances and episode storylines were in Season 8. Annabeth Gish does her CV no harm in season 9 either, but again her character really peaked with Patrick's in season 8.

So what of Mulder and Scully? Well, Mulder is in hiding for the whole of season 9 until the last 2 episodes and Scully's character is completely destroyed. What made Scully great wasn't her scepticism throughout the series but her strength; this strength (in my opinion) was burned out half-way through season 8. Overall I think it is a shame because season 9 pretty much falls apart, which is something that has never happened in previous seasons. Having said that, producing an exciting and definitive conclusion to a show as dominant and complex as the X-Files was always going to be a tall order and this season should still be watched once. Disappointing and anti-climactic but not quite a total disaster... you'll probably still enjoy it.

a shame to begin season 9

this was an o.k episode, one of the average type ones you saw more in season 7, when some bad or moderate directing was displayed. whilst it remained a little interesting, and certainly a strange performance from lucy lawless, i felt the lack of mulder really let it down. i mean what happened after the kiss!? he just up and left! with monica and john dashing around back and forth complaining about a erased tape. i wasnt hooked.

A 'must buy'

For any X Files fans, this is a must buy - all the platitudes in the world could not adequately describe how good this series is. And for the price it is well worth it.

You will either buy none, or buy them all, and at this price, it is an absolute bargain.

Ridiculous

The earlier episodes of the x files were by far the best. Towards the end it got a bit to hard to believe. The truth was so far fetched even the die hard believers of the alien phenomenon would find it hard to believe. At the end of the day i was really disappointed. Thank god for X Files repeats on Sky One!

Another X-Cellent Year

Season 4 is kind of a season of two-halves, the mythology is fantasticthroughout while the stand-alones, when their good they are at a higherquality the most other seasons but there also seems to be a higher amountof poor episodes, El Mundo Gira and Synchrony should definetly beavoided.
The year kicks of exactly to the point where Season 3 ended with thebrilliant if not confusing Herrenvolk, although Zero Sum later on in theseason clears alot of things up. Tunguska/Terma delves deeper into themysteries surrounding the black oil and shows us that a cold war of sortsis underway to create a vaccine for the alien virus. In Memento Mori wesee Scully facing her terrible illness, Mulders search for a cure andSkinner making a deal with the devil. Tempus Fugit and Max serve no realpurpous to the on-going mythology rather they seem to simply be a showcaseof how"big" The X Files had become. Finally in Gethsemene Scully's healthdeterirates and Mulder hears a shocking revalation that leads to one ofthe most sensational cliffhangers ever.
Some of the finest stand-alones this season that are worth a mentioninclude,"Home", the stroy of an incestuos family whom Mulder and Scullyinvestigate when a severly deformed baby is found to have been buriedalive, this episode is worth the money alone."Unruhe" is a terrifing andamazingly intellegent episode,"Paper Hearts" sees Mulder tormented by aserial killer he caught years before who claims that his sister was one ofhis many unkown victims,"Unrequited", when a top ranking general ismuredered inside his locked limosine Mulder and Scully are called in tofind a killer who seems to be able to vanish into thin air and"SmallPatatoes", an hilarious case involving a janitor with the ability todiguise himself as anyone, even Mulder!
This is a truly x-cellent year, from the ongoing mythology includingScullys cancer acr, the most contrversial episode in TV histroy - Home andclassic comedy in one of the funniest episodes ever- Small Patatoes. Thisbox-set has a surprisingly large amount of extras including a 30 minutedocumentary, TV-Spots, deleted sences, interviews, behind the sencesfottage and episode commentaries that make this well worth a buy.

to complete season 5

season 5 is somehow too short for me, apart from redux-like myth episodes, the lone epis are not that exciting, a bit of filler really. however, when you see this, you are gonna like season 5, the movie maker did a good job in that at a right time, chose the right form, to hit two target with one stone, the backgrounds of two characters are revealed through conversation in the hearing, this is the one of the few ways to acheive this in movies, and it suits perfectly the temporal story line right after the burning of the office, so, for both movie audiences and tv audience, this is a allound job. the only pity is, the movie is too important for the conitnuation of season 7, without seeing the movie, it’s hard to feel comfortable in season 7u first epi.