THE FILM:
The X-Files is a television icon-a series that redefined what it meant to make a show about conspiracies and aliens. It also contained countless award-winning, memorable monster-of-the-week episodes that scared viewers on a weekly basis. Lasting nearly a decade, the only show that has come close to matching its intrigue has been Lost. It has been years since viewers have joined Mulder and Scully, and their memories have begun to fade. The X-Files: I Want to Believe is an admirable attempt to resurrect the franchise for a broader audience, but ultimately lacks the "wow" factor that made the series so popular. Still, this doesn't stop it from having an impressive, stacked Blu-ray.

The film picks up six years after the end of the series. Former FBI Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) are in vastly different places. Scully has continued her medical career at a hospital, and is particularly involved in the case of a young boy suffering from a fatal brain disease. Meanwhile, Mulder has holed himself up close by in a house, tacking various supernatural clippings to a board and sporting a vicious beard while hiding from the FBI. Actually, Mulder hasn't changed that much at all. FBI Agent Mosley Drummy (Xzibit) approaches Scully because they want to find Mulder. They need his help. An Agent has disappeared and the FBI is using the services of an ex-priest pedophile, Father Joseph Crissman (Billy Connolly), to help locate her. He claims to have psychic visions and they want Mulder to verify or deny his psychic ability.

Scully talks to Mulder, but he only agrees to help if Scully joins him. They meet up with Special Agent in Charge Whitney (Amanda Peet) and check on Crissman. Scully is repulsed by the man and is convinced he is a hack. She wants nothing more to do with the case and would rather focus on helping her patient. She cannot be around "the dark" that comes out of working on these cases and cannot be with Mulder as long as he is doing that type of work. Unfortunately Mulder becomes consumed with the case, and wants to find out for certain whether Crissman is psychic. As more victims pop up and Crissman helps them find various body pieces, Mulder uncovers a horrific plot and has to rely on the help of Scully and an old friend before he becomes the next victim.

I Want to Believe has nothing to do with aliens or conspiracies. It is basically an elongated, self-contained episode. This both helps and hurts the film. On the positive side it is fantastic to see Mulder and Scully back together again. Duchovny and Anderson haven't missed a beat, and still retain their undeniable chemistry. Likewise, Connolly is fantastic as the priest struggling for redemption. The case is generally creepy as well, but it isn't meaty enough for feature-length, making the pacing too plodding. This cuts out much of the suspense associated with the series. Scully's subplot involving her sick patient is excellent character work, but it is also distracting and again hurts the pacing of the story. The end of the film is freaky, but it takes far too long to get there with too few legitimate scares. As great as it is to see this world and these characters again, I couldn't help but feel like they deserved something more.

HD SOUND + VISION:
The video is presented in a 2.40:1, 1080p High Definition transfer. Fine detail looks awesome in close up shots. It could have been slightly improved for the environments, but there is still a good amount of depth to the image. Black levels, which are very important due to the many dark scenes in the film, are strong throughout and show a lot of clarity in the shots. Likewise, white levels don't blow out detail, letting you see fine textures in the snow, etc. Colors are natural. It is not the brightest palette, but when a bold color does pop up, it is very rich. I did not notice any compression artifacts or print damage. Overall the image is very strong while still retaining a film-like quality through a minor layer of grain.

The audio is offered in an English DTS 5.1 Master HD Lossless audio track, as well as Spanish/French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound with English, Spanish, Korean, Mandarin and Cantonese subtitles. This is a track of subtlety. The score is definitely the star of the show, displaying a great dynamic range through deep bass rumbles, and crisp highs heard in the classic X-Files theme. The front channels are the most active when it comes to panning effects, but they aren't used that often. Atmosphere comes from the rear channel when necessary, but again it is not something that is active throughout. Most importantly the dialogue is pitch-perfect and balanced. The mix is very unassuming, never drawing much attention to itself, but it is still a good complement to the video.

PACKAGING/ LAYOUT:
The two-disc set came packaged in a standard Blu-ray hardcase featuring artwork lifted from the SD DVD. Out back there is a brief plot synopsis and an overview of the special features. The disc itself loaded quickly and featured a slick animated menu that was easy to navigate at all times.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
The Blu-ray has a strong selection of bonus features. Everything from the comparable 2-disc DVD edition is here, consolidated onto a single disc (the Blu-ray's second disc is for the Digital Copy).

• Audio Commentary - Chris Carter and co-writer Frank Spotnitz discuss the challenges of revisiting this material several years after the TV show ran its course. Carter also points out some of the subtle references to the series that litter the movie. The commentary can be listened to on its own, or viewed with picture-in-picture video (see below).
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 6:00) - Three scenes with poor audio. None of the scenes are bad, but nor were any needed.
• Trust No One: Can the X-Files Remain a Secret? (SD, 86:00) - A very good feature-length documentary that explores the difficulties of getting the project started, keeping the script a secret, and returning to the 'X-Files' mindset. The piece also covers the usual making-of topics such as the photography, costumes, editing, music, and visual effects.
• Chris Carter's Statements on Green Production (HD, 6:00) - Some sanctimonious preaching from the director about how he is single-handedly saving the planet by recycling water bottles on set and using hybrid cars to drive the cast and crew around.
• Body Parts: Special Makeup Effects (HD, 8:00) - A look at how the icky gore effects were created. Considering how few of these items are visible on camera, it's very amusing to learn about the production's wasteful expenditure of plastics, silicone, and latex immediately after listening to Chris Carter preach about the importance of sustainable conservation practices.
• Gag Reel (HD, 10:00) - Flubs and slip-ups. 
• "Dying 2 Live" by Xzibit (HD, 4:00) - Surprisingly, this is not a music video. It's a slide show of production photos played to a song that has absolutely nothing to do with the movie, other than that the rapper in question has a role in it.
• Trailers (HD, 3:00) - One domestic and one international trailer.
• Still Galleries - Collectibles, concept art, storyboards, and on-set photography.

In addition to the above, the Blu-ray has a few exclusive features.

• The X-Files: The Complete Timeline - By far the most fascinating feature on the disc is this interactive database that allows you to explore the entire history of The X-Files. You can search the storylines in episode order (with plot summaries and video clips), in chronological order of the events (from the prehistoric first appearance of aliens right up to the current movie), or by theme. The Timeline is incredibly thorough. You can lose yourself for hours in it. Great stuff.
• D-Box Motion Code - Viewers with D-Box equipped furniture can load the disc into a PC drive to synchronize the shaking and jostling movements with the action on screen. The codes are also available for download from D-Box directly if you don't have a Blu-ray drive in your computer.
• Digital Copy - Disc 2 contains a portable video version of the movie compatible with either Windows Media or iTunes. The file can be downloaded from the disc with an activation code provided in the packaging

Bonus View: Requires Profile 1.1

• Picture-in-Picture - The Bonus View features on this disc have the same frustrating design as those on the 'Fight the Future' Blu-ray. There are four PiP options, each accessible by the colored buttons on the Blu-ray remote. The primary content is a Video Commentary available from the Green button, which is nothing more than video from the recording session of the commentary mentioned above. The Blue button pauses the movie and branches off to Behind the Camera segments, which are really just excerpts from the featurettes available elsewhere on the disc. The Yellow button gives you pop-up Storyboards and Concept Art (also available elsewhere). Finally, the Red button is a running text index to what's happening on the other buttons. You'd think that you might want to leave the index up at all times to keep track of when you should switch between the various options, but the text is actually positioned right on top of the video commentary PiP box. The only one of these features worth watching is the video commentary. Don't bother with anything else. It's just awkward and frustrating.

BD-Live: Requires Profile 2.0 

• Agent Dakota Whitney's Files - By using the Blu-ray player's BD-Live connection, you can access text documents supposedly created by the Agent Whitney character (played by Amanda Peet in the movie). According to a note at the start of disc playback, "By downloading this experience you can create an agent ID for yourself, discuss The X-Files: I Want to Believe with other fans, and work with other fans to solve new cases found in the Agent Mosley Drummy Files." It also states that you need to have 2 MB of memory available to download the program. At the time of this writing, I read through the case files but wasn't much interested in playing the online game (which requires a log-on process using an agonizingly slow keypad emulator). Some users will undoubtedly find this more entertaining than others.

Easter Eggs

• Animated Promo (SD, 1:00) - Select the "X" logo in the Audio menu to find a bizarre animated promo for the movie. 
• Isolated Score - In the Theatrical Version's Special Features menu, there's an extra option for an isolated score in Dolby Digital 5.1.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
The X-Files: I Want To Believe doesn't represent the best of the franchise, but it's not the bomb critics suggested either. With a solid technical showing, and plenty of in-depth and unique special features, the disc is a worthwhile purchase for Mulder and Scully fans.

FILM GRADE: B+
HD SOUND GRADE: B+
HD VISION GRADE: B+
PACKAGING/ LAYOUT GRADE: B-
SPECIAL FEATURES GRADE: A+
OVERALL DISC GRADE: B+