As much as I loved The X-Files: I Want To Believe (and I absolutely adored that film), it didn't exactly set the box office alight, did it? No. Barely at all, really. Its low budget, subdued storyline and low-key action didn't grab audiences by the throat, despite it remaining true to the characters and reintroducing them to the general public in style. I can understand this, even though it irritates the hell out of me. That film was a tiny production lost in a sea of blockbusters, and really would have probably fared better had it been a TV movie instead of a full-blown cinema release.This is why a third X-File movie needs to be made. The X-Files was a cultural phenomenon, something that the world was fascinated by for several years, before it petered out with those weaker final seasons. It deserves a proper ending, one that will satisfy the fans that have stuck with it, and one that will finally do justice to the major arcs of the franchise.
There were rumours when the sequel came out that it was a low-key precursor to a big budget third X-Files film, which was said to deal with a full-scale alien invasion. That may be a bit over the top for The X-Files, but perhaps a story concerning proof of an impending invasion being discovered, and the subsequent chase to prevent it, could be just what the franchise needs to go out with a real bang. The characters and the idea behind the X-Files is too strong and too important to be left to fade away, and a third film would cap it off perfectly.
A problem that many people had with I Want To Believe was the small scale. With an almost complete lack of special effects, no alien or supernatural involvement, it played much more like a mid-season episode than an event film, which was a shame, but I guess this was necessary when taking into account the (comparitively) miniscule budget that the makers had to play with. Mulder and Scully need one last hurrah. Give them torches, trenchcoats and a few clues, and let them save the day once and for all.
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