The National Post ran a story today about the press conference the X-Files cast and crew held on Wednesday. (Minus Gillian Anderson, who seems to be practically absent from this whole circus in general.) The cast and crew thanked Vancouver and revealed that those photos of Mulder and Scully kissing were fake.
"We staged that," David Duchovny told reporters. The article mentions the photo causing "breathless speculation about the characters' are-they-or-aren't-they romance" which makes me wonder what sites they visited. Only the most diehard sites could be breathless about it -- and only fans who completely forgot the whole offspring element.
Director Chris Carter complained about the attention focused on the production. "It's been a two-way street. To tell you the truth, I would like to make the movie secretly and put it out there on July 25, have everybody get a gift they could open." Is that why your movie still doesn't have a title?
This is going to run the risk of sounding like a fan rant -- but Carter's attitude really rubs me the wrong way. I understand the disdain for paparazzi, and the disappointment of your film being spoiled and judged from a few leaked photos or snippets. But the fledgling Internet made The X-Files the sensation it was, and to turn your back on the media machine it has become is patently absurd. Why not take a page from Peter Jackson, Joss Whedon, and Christopher Nolan, and give fans a little something? There will still be those pesky spy photos, but there won't be as much of a demand for the cheap shots if you're giving your audience something official to talk about. We dig that sort of gesture. Instead, Carter wants it both ways -- he wants to be the conquering hero at WonderCon, but he doesn't want fans bugging him the rest of the time.
And maybe it is because in Carter's mind, this isn't exactly a movie for the fans. "We're not doing an exercise in nostalgia to appeal to the fans of the show," said co-writer and producer Frank Spotnitz. "We saw this as an opportunity to introduce the characters to people who may have been too young . . . It has a reason for being, even if there'd never been a television show before." (Translation: We're going to ignore everything on the show because it was such a garbled mess, so those of you remembering that Mulder and Scully had a child should shut up now.)
All I've got to say about that is if you're taking the "This is for a new audience" tack, then you really cannot continue with the Ashton Kutcher media pranks. You have to start building positive buzz for this new audience you imagine is out there. Those who were too young to watch X-Files the first time around have only heard fans argue with lines like "LOST won't become the flaming train wreck The X-Files did, we learned from their mistakes." So what are you doing to establish excitement? You're faking out (and annoying) writers like myself who can give you that. This movie opens July 25th, 2008. You don't have much time left.
I realize now that I probably sound like a blogger upset over the fact that she was punked. Maybe I am, it was a stupid prank. But as I wrote before, I adored this show back in the day, and I felt horribly cheated with the way it ended. I'm a fan that Carter needs to win back with this movie -- and I recognize that I'm probably in the minority. But I genuinely feel he's snubbing the excited fans too, and moreover, that he is being stubbornly stupid about what the online world has become since X-Files went off the air.













Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
3-13-2008 @ 9:11PM
D said...
This article sounds like it was written by a whiny brat. Get over it. You don't want to see the movie, then don't. You hate the x-files, then don't write about it. Carter won't care. And for the record, you misquoted this:
"We're not {JUST} doing an exercise in nostalgia to appeal to the fans of the show." But you're not a real journalist, so what do you care.
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3-13-2008 @ 9:40PM
black said...
daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang gina, "not a real journalist," thats cold. Misquoting something like that is very questionable though, and undermines credibility. I agree with Rappe though, because if the movie doesn't even center on where the show left off, I have no interest in watching it.
3-13-2008 @ 9:26PM
Elisabeth said...
For the record, I copied and pasted the quote from the National Post story. If it was edited, THEY made the change, not me. You might want to check out the article being linked to. If you ripped the quote from someplace else, you should know that a word in [brackets] means it was added by the journalist.
And I write about the X-Files because it's my job. I never said I hated the show. I believe I said the exact opposite. Try reading carefully instead of flying off the fanboy handle.
And name call all you like, but I get paid for this, thus making me a real journalist as opposed to some punk bitching on a comments board. You don't like my stuff, don't read it. Go find a news source more worthy of your readership. There's plenty out there.
And you're right. Carter doesn't care. That was the point of the article, that he NEEDS to start caring. He'll start when his movie opens to an empty theatre. Secrecy and pranks don't sell tickets.
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3-13-2008 @ 9:27PM
Rufus said...
::sighs:: First off, you sardonic smartarse, Mr. D., Liz is the one writing for Cinematical, the one who's article I am reading. Because despite the fact that she may not write for the New York Times or The Guardian, I am here reading this because it is what I choose, and enjoy, to do.
So as far as I am concerned, she, and any that write for Cinematical, are as journalistic as any 'pro' out there.
It's unfortunate someone has to turn a comment (as this section is called) into a little poke because we disagree. Go read your Facebook or your LiveJournal.
And moving on... I agree that Carter is acting somewhat 'cake and eat it' on this one. Despite the fact that I enjoyed the end to the X Files to some degree (come on, Doggett was OK) it does seem like he's oblivious to the media of the online world and what he could do to emphasize and push the film's exposure. I'm guilty of not looking, but is there even an official movie site for this one?
I, as a fan since it started, would love to see something more meaty than a badly copied cellphone trailer.
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3-13-2008 @ 9:40PM
Elisabeth said...
Why, thank you Rufus!
I really liked Doggett too. I was actually very hopeful and optimistic that they could continue the show with him and Scully -- but the writers treated him so shabbily. All those silly T2 references!
I loved the show right up until the last episode. And then I died a little inside. I still love the episodes that preceded it, though.
But no, there's no official site for the movie, as far as I know. There's nothing. Not even an official still. At this point in time, we've got more on Watchmen (opening in 2009) than we do on a movie opening this summer. It's ridiculous. Instead, they're spending their time sending us fake stories -- the werewolf spy photo was fake too. Those of us who didn't attend WonderCon haven't even seen the teaser. What gives?
3-13-2008 @ 9:55PM
Jordan said...
i honestly don't mind all this. i like being surprised by a film. it seems like this day and age everybody wants to be so completely spoiled so when they sit down to actually watch the film, there won't be any surprises. i just don't understand that mindset. i mean, i'm salivating for the dark knight, and i purposely avoid all spoiler reports...because i want to be surprised. what's so wrong with that?
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3-13-2008 @ 11:07PM
Rufus said...
re: Jordan,
While I'll concede I don't want to drown in spoilers and all the new tricks and gizmos and banners and viral advertising, I do like something to wet my appetite. Just a little something...
...like a marinated chicken sample, y'know, from Trader Joe's.
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3-13-2008 @ 11:13PM
D said...
For the record, I put the brackets in there. I took at look at the actual press conference ( I can provide a link if you like)and it comes across very different from your quotes. But whatever, it's semantics.
I agree with Jordan. Why must everyone be spoiled for movies nowadays. Remember the days, before the internet, when we actually went to a movie without really knowing what to expect? Perhaps this is more of a societal criticism than anything else but everything is about "gimme, gimme, gimme." that's my main problem with this article. I have interest in this movie so I clicked the article. Instead, I was treated to a diatribe against the "lack of information" we've been given". Um, isn't the point of a suspense/thriller( which i'm assuming this will be)...to suprise and thrill us?
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3-13-2008 @ 11:33PM
D said...
Oh and the producers of Indiana Jones just started to heavily promote their film a mere two months before it is released. Were you similarly outraged in that case?
3-13-2008 @ 11:28PM
Andy said...
No offense Elisabeth, but you're not a journalist. Being paid doesn't make you one nor does writing on a blog owned by a major corporate entity like AOL.
You're a paid blogger. Two different things.
I should know, I'm studying to become a journalist in college and there is a whole debate going on about whether bloggers should be considered journalists.
However, there is no arguing that you're giving your highly biased opinion on a story that you admit was copied from somewhere else. Not stating fact nor letting people make up their own minds.
If you don't see a difference, go to any local or national news publication or magazine and show them that you blogged here and see how they react to your credentials.
Sorry to go off on you like that, but when people pretend they're something that they're not, it really bugs the hell out of me.
On the new movie, I think it will be good considering that everyone involved on the show had a little break since the end of the series and had time to recoup and come up with an interesting idea separate from the alien mythology crap that got all weird by the end.
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3-13-2008 @ 11:29PM
Adrienne said...
Hi, Elisabeth,
I was directed to your article through an XF fan site and have to say, overall I agree with you. The one thing I don't think you're aware of (and a lot of newspapers seem to have missed this fact, too) is that Duchovny was kidding when he said the pictures were staged. If you're interested, you can watch the entire press conference here:
http://www.cbc.ca/mrl3/8752/bc/ondemand/video/bc-080312-xfiles-CLIP.wmv
As you can see, he laughs when he says they were staged, then says, "... maybe." I think he was caught with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar and was trying to fake his way out. I'm pretty sure the pictures were real. I doubt a film that's behind on its schedule would take that much time faking something that simplistic. If it were fake, they could have really gone for it, snogging the hell out of each other. But they didn't. Anyway, great article. I completely feel ya. :)
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3-13-2008 @ 11:45PM
Eleanore said...
I can understand taking quotes from an already poorly botched article (i.e. the National Post -- I was sorry to see one source create such confusion and poor reporting across the board so quickly), but still, there's a full video of the conference out there. Were I reporting on a conference and had access to such a resource, I'd use it first.
As to those not having been to WonderCon (and who haven't been browsing YouTube) not having seen the teaser, bear in mind that was nothing more than a teaser. It was about 45 seconds of rough cut footage strung together to have something to show for the fans at a rather last minute visit. That's not a trailer, so why release it more widely? That would only generate confusion, and suddenly everyone would be calling it the movie trailer -- which some people already (wrongly) are. Stupidity reigns supreme, and moves extremely fast, on the Internet. I don't blame Carter and co. for attempting to avoid that.
I'm as gun-shy as the next fan, but I think the cynicism could be toned down a tad. Carter doesn't owe anyone anything if he doesn't feel like sharing, and he's certainly not conducting his business any differently than he did back in '98. I'm surprised anyone is surprised by this anymore.
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3-13-2008 @ 11:50PM
kathy1013 said...
I must say when I was referred to your article on one of the X-Files fansites, my first reaction was, "Did she see the same press conference I did?" There were two significant misquotes in your article, the one where David laughed when he said the kiss was staged and then added...maybe. It was obviously David teasing us and he was laughing when he said it. The other was, as D pointed out in his/her comment about Frank saying the movie is not "JUST" for X-files fans, but for new fans as well. When I watched the conference from beginning to end, I felt they were all three very gracious and friendly with the media there in the room. The tone of the conference was diametrically opposed to the tone you set in your article. Did you watch the conference before writing the article? Just saying...
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3-14-2008 @ 12:40AM
spook said...
Thank you, Kathy, and others, for correcting the inconsistencies in this article. The same misquotes of David and Frank have been appearing in a number of places around the 'net. To correct a couple of other details: Gillian was not present at the news conference because she was ill, however she did participate in WonderCon, so I don't see how she's absenting herself from the whole circus based on one event she couldn't attend. Also, as for "is that why your movie still doesn't have a title?" both Frank and Chris have said numerous other times (see especially their post-WonderCon interviews) that they do have a title and have had one for a long time, but FOX hasn't given them permission to release it yet.
3-14-2008 @ 12:59AM
Elisabeth said...
Ah, I thought this had probably been posted on a fansite. It explains the shrill hysteria, general rudeness, and familiarity with each other.
I was not sent the press conference video. My stories come through the wire. I picked up the same story that all the other news sites did. Are you going to shrilly flame them as well?
And "D" (aka "Gina") accusing me of misquoting, and then admitting you altered the quote? Nice one. And then I'm the one being accused of a lack of credibility and a failure to research! At least I'm not twisting the words of Frank Spotnitz to suit my argument. It's not an issue of semantics, it is an issue of accuracy -- next time, take your own words to heart.
And Andy, nothing bugs me more than pretentious students. I'm so glad your here to share your Intro to Journalism debates and enlighten us all. I didn't rip off the article. I cited where I received the news (thus allowing people to go there and read it themselves), reported on the article, and gave my own opinion. If I had denied people access to the original article, your finger-wagging would have some merit.
It's easy to babble when you've never worked in the field. Here's how it works--stories come in over the wire, or by tips, and one reports on them. In between the grunt work of the wire, you can develop and research your own stories. That's the reality. I sat in journalism classes too -- and I know they fill you with tales of hunting out leads and playing Woodward and Bernstein. You'll learn. Go back to class.
I'm a free-lance journalist. I specialize in entertainment, as attested by my portfolio. So, regardless of who I'm writing for, or what format they use -- that's what I am. And regardless of what you or your professor thinks, Sundance, Cannes, SXSW, San Diego ComicCon, TIFF, Tribeca, etc., regards us as journalists, and allows us the same access. So while you're in class studying newspaper world (which is quickly going the way of the dinosaurs), we'll be out there working.
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3-14-2008 @ 1:01AM
D said...
For the record, my name is not Gina. I'm a dude. And I didn't get this link from a "fansite". I often browse this website.
And I did not twist any words. I posted what i saw on the video. Look it up. Google is your friend.
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3-14-2008 @ 1:08AM
Elisabeth said...
My mistake. Someone called you Gina in the above, if you'll notice. That's what happens when you post anonymously.
You admitted you altered the quote, based on what you saw in the video. I can watch the video multiple times and come to a different conclusion. You might want to hit Google yourself, and search "writing ethics." Altering a quote, as you did, in a more serious context (say, a political article, or an academic journal) could literally get you fired.
But that's right -- I'm the one who's not a real journalist. Hmm.
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3-14-2008 @ 1:10AM
Kate said...
Elizabeth in comments said "And you're right. Carter doesn't care."
You're kidding, right? He flew down to WonderCon after filming all night long. They brought footage so that fans could get their first glimpse-- some of which they hadn't seen cut together yet. That was at the end of February. He did this press conference yesterday to thank Vancouver, and He and Frank are doing Paley for the fans on March 26. Does that really sound like someone who doesn't care?
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3-14-2008 @ 1:16AM
D said...
I was simply pointing out a very important word that you seemed to have missed. I wasn't really paying attention to the specifics of grammar and technicality. There's a big difference in what I did and what you did. I'm not putting my name and journalistic integrity behind a mistaken quote. You ( and the person who wrote the original article) are.
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3-14-2008 @ 1:37AM
kathy1013 said...
I don't really see any "shrill hysteria" in the comments, but some fans who are justifiably concerned that there was so much misinformation in the article. The problem is that this misinformation is being spread around by people like yourself who picks up the wire and runs with it without doing the homework and checking out these quotes or even watching the press conference before writing it up as gospel. That's disturbing to me and I feel like I have a right to make that statement without being told I'm being shrill or hysterical. Just my opionion.
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