----------------------------Original message----------------------------

 

Martin Jukovsky writes:

"I was very disappointed in the 1/13 episode of X-Files.  The series is

supposed to be about investigating occurrences of the paranormal and

supernatural.  This episode was nothing but an inept ripoff of Silence of the

Lambs.  Complete with woman in peril.  Is this the new direction for the show?

 Freaks, stalkers, and all sorts of sleazy what-have-you?  I was doubly pissed

because I allow my 10-year-old daughter to watch the show, since she likes

science fiction and supernatural horror.  I wouldn't let her see Silence of

the Lambs (an excellent adult film), so I was distressed that she had been

drawn into watching this episode."

 

I didn't see this particular episode, but I quit watching X-FILES last year

partly from similar concerns--that the show seemed to emphasize paranoia and

gore for their own sake, rather than any deeper questioning, whether of

politics or ontological existence of the paranormal.   One of my turning

points was the one about the brain-eating creature at the North Pole, which

did nothing that the original THE THING did 45 years ago (and even Carpenter's

remake had more artistry!).

 

--Don Larsson, Mankato State U., MN