REVIEW: Autumn's "Dreamland II" Review - SPOILERS
Autumn T
"Dreamland II" Review
(c) 1998 Autumn Tysko
"Now how do we get things back to normal?"
I liked "Dreamland II" significantly more than "Dreamland". Still, I've been
wrestling with something about this two-parter. Trying to pin point exactly
why, on the whole, I seem to have come down with a big case of "coulda,
shoulda, woulda" in reaction to it. I think the key lies in what we have known
all along: the X-Files really succeeds on the interaction of its stars. You
know when "Dreamland" and "Dreamland II" worked? When Duchovny and Anderson
shared the screen. Unfortunately, for a two part episode those times were too
few and far between. Try as they might Duchovny/Dunn or Anderson/McKean don't
have that magical undercurrent. It is just not as interesting.
Case in point is that wonderful meeting between Mulder and Scully towards the
end when they lament about getting things back to normal. Funny, but it is this
scene and not all the silly goofing for laughs that I'm sure looked good on
paper, that makes sitting through these episodes worth it. Anderson and
Duchovny pushed the UST pedal to the metal as Scully and Mulder said goodbye to
what they had. When they work it they can even make sunflower seeds seem like
the most touching gift in the world. A beautifully acted scene perfectly lit in
a wash of headlights.
As much as I enjoyed the bedroom tour scene I couldn't help but once again
hunger to see this all through Scully's point of view. The few shots through
the mirror served only to tease us with what could have been. Still, hats off
to Anderson here. I delighted in the way she played the scene on the edge of
uncomfortable at Faux!Mulder's touches, and the forced seductiveness as she put
her plan in place. There was also a certain wistfulness in her "No, I don't
hate it" that made this a very layered scene for Scully.
I think a big factor in making this episode more successful was we were not
forced to endure a clueless Scully running about the whole time getting her ass
slapped and looking shocked. Scully once again shows her willingness to go with
the unbelievable once she's gathered enough evidence to convince herself, and
she's going with the evidence of her heart on this one. She's still a bit
afraid as she has to ask more than once if it is really Mulder inside of
Morris' body. Even the Lone Gunmen seem more than a little taken aback as she
tries to explain. I really thought it was funny how it was Scully providing
them with all the direction and answers here but they kept asking "Mulder" the
questions. They just aren't used to Scully seeking their help yet, but I have
to say I find her willingness of late to use them as a resource delightful.
The corruption of Scully to the ways of Mulder it seems has neared total
completion. You can hear her chastising herself when she says "I've been
telling you for years you should play more by the book, haven't I?" It is
finally to the point where she is categorized as "willful, insubordinate, and
not a team player" and she continues that behavior until she is fired.
This was also our first exposure to the new guy on the team: director Michael
Watkins. I was impressed with his touch in this effort. Especially the way in
which he handled the previously mentioned "goodbye" scene and the lovely little
phone conversation at the end where Scully is genuinely sorry for Mulder at
what she thinks is a lack of paranormal phenomena and Mulder actually *thanks
Scully* (excuse me I feel faint) for giving up normal life for him. Watkins
obviously has a keen emotional handle on how these characters interact and
highlighted it nicely.
Despite all the good points about "Dreamland II" it was once again the over the
top, trying too hard to be funny moments that brought this
Gilligan/Spotnitz/Shiban script down. The X-Files has always had a natural
humor to it. However, too often here you could see them working for it. The
bedroom joke for one. I'd buy a messy bedroom sure, but the old closet joke?
Give us a break. They could have also toned down Morris a notch or two on the
letch-o-meter and still found a lot of humor. Or perhaps not gone for the
obvious throwing all the belongings in the front yard gag. When you take away
the small window of believability you lose the natural humor of circumstance
that Darin Morgan was such a master at. It's easy to go for the obvious laugh,
like telling us that Saddam is a low rent Tulsa dinner theatre refugee, but in
doing so you cheapen the effort on the whole.
I've always been a fan of experimental episodes. I enjoy the forays into humor.
I adored "Post Modern Prometheus" and "Triangle". However, at this point even
though "X-Files Lite" may taste great, it is less filling. Timing is
everything, and right now I'm in the mood for a good old fashioned spooky tale.
Yes, and I'm even pining for a little angst. How twisted is it that I've
reached the point where I want the X-Files to depress me? God, I hope it
happens soon.
Random Musings
--------------
-Lot's of interesting info from "Field Office Criminal Investigative and
Administrative File" # X-71009. Mulder's Social Security Number: 123-32-1321,
his place of birth is listed as Chilmark, MA, he's moved back to his almost
identical Alexandria digs after that movie Arlington booboo (maybe this means
Scully's apartment will be back to normal soon too), his start date with the
FBI is listed as 10/24/86, and even though in the credits her name appears as
"Tena" here we learn his mother's maiden name is Teena Kuipers. Plus he won an
"Award for Public Service" from the FBI at some point.
-OK, I'll admit it. Mulder as little Spock was pretty damn funny. And it was
interesting to hear another person's take on Mulder's life. Even if you drop
out the whole alien abduction scenario, there was a real impact to just hearing
about his sister disappearing overlapping a goofy home movie. It's a family
tragedy no matter what the circumstances.
-I did like the effect of the champagne ejaculation complete with the confused
"Baby?" - which we learn is NOT the endearing phrase to use around Ms. Scully,
especially when she has a gun.
-Speaking of that gun, I found Scully's continued threats of using it ("Still
got my gun") quite entertaining - especially at the end when Morris tries one
last shot and even calls her "Danes". (I know the closed captioning reads
different here, but I swear that is what he said. Then again what do I know,
I'm one of those who still hears "I saw it" every time I watch the movie...)
-Frank's Fashion Spot: Apparently, after the movie Scully has a new fashion
plan code named "Detective Decolletage". Not that there's anything wrong with
that.
-I keep hoping they will back off a little, but they never do. Apparently the
writers at 1013 just think Mulder's porn habit is so damn appealing that they
need to share it with us as often as possible. So, now we know Mulder's bedroom
was filled with boxes containing back issues of "PlayPen" amongst other things.
What was that scary fuzzy dice collection?
-I couldn't help but wonder how much this "Little A'Le'inn" establishment
resembles the original in Nevada.
-Enough with the self-referential John Gillnitz jokes guys. We get it already.
-Breakfast with the boys was fun, and I have to admit "back off Sneezy" was one
of my favorite lines this episode.
-So just who is picking up the tab for these little unnoticed "field trips" now
that the FBI is onto their expense reports? Seems ghostbusting has gotten a
little more expensive for Our Heroes - plus Mulder has all that new furniture
to pay off now.
-While I mentioned earlier the chemistry problems inherent in this body switch
I will say that Dunn and McKean did a very nice job of showing us that they did
connect on some level. Both the scene where he sees his upset wife at the bar
and Morris convincing her at the end what happened were nicely done by the
actors despite the cliche of the script.
-Some fun details from "The Lone Gunman: The Newsletter For Those Who Want to
Stay Informed and Alive". The Saddam issue was Vol. X No. 11, November 1998
(the closest thing we get to a date this episode). It's also published monthly
at a buck an issue, ten bucks a year or the bargain rate of twenty five bucks
for three years. Pretty cheap way to find out if Monica is a mandroid or not.
-Speaking of, I do wish both Lone Gunman covers we saw had not featured the
mandroid. Surely those boys write about other things.
-Our Little Sailor: "The son of a bitch confesses to Kersh even more than I do
to my priest."
-Our Little 'Planet of the Apes' Sailor: "I'd kiss you if you weren't so damned
ugly."
-Kudos to Julia Vera AKA "Grandma TopGun" for doing such a number with that
role. Her spread-leg macho Maverick bravado was great fun. I laughed out loud
at "You're my bitch now pencil neck."
-When we got to the "dude" kids I have to admit I missed our favorite stoners.
I wish that the duo had decided take a turn through Nevada after their time in
"Quagmire" and "War of the Coprophages".
-If Mulder thinks his "new" apartment is frightening (and I loved that look at
the door number at the end) just wait until he gets to the office and finds
that scary car model on his desk and Tiger Woods on his PC.
-I will admit there certainly is some humor to be found in the whole idea of
"Special Tramp Dana Scully". That and Scully being called a "home wrecker" is
pretty damn funny.
Autumn
"Baby me and you'll be peeing through a catheter."
Autumn Tysko
Sister of OBSSE / "I owe you everything Scully and you owe me nothing"
My episode reviews available at (email me for mailing list info):
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Vault/1411/main_rev.html
Peg Yacobucci
> -When we got to the "dude" kids I have to admit I missed our favorite stoners.
> I wish that the duo had decided take a turn through Nevada after their time in
> "Quagmire" and "War of the Coprophages".
Whoa, Autumn, you're making me doubt myself. Wasn't the couple (at
least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
to watch the "light show"? You know, the guy with the curly reddish
hair, sitting in the diner, eyes bloodshot, giggling, making UFO motions
with his hamburger? That's one of my all-time favorite scenes...I like
those two better than the WotC/Quagmire duo. And it's impressive
continuity to bring them back after all these years.
Daisy
Autumn T
In article <366C3C...@fas.harvard.edu>, Peg Yacobucci
<mmy...@fas.harvard.edu> writes:
>Wasn't the couple (at
>least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
>"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
>to watch the "light show"?
No.
Maybe you should watch Buffy a little more closely...
RSharma007
>>least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
>>"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
>>to watch the "light show"?
>
>No.
>
>Maybe you should watch Buffy a little more closely...
>
>Autumn Tysko
Yeah and the stoner kids from War of the Coprophanges are on that GOD AWFUL
"Breaker High" show...yuck....
Ruby:)
Sanjiv Sarwate
>"Dreamland II" Review
>(c) 1998 Autumn Tysko
>-Speaking of that gun, I found Scully's continued threats of using it ("Still
>got my gun") quite entertaining - especially at the end when Morris tries one
>last shot and even calls her "Danes". (I know the closed captioning reads
>different here, but I swear that is what he said. Then again what do I know,
>I'm one of those who still hears "I saw it" every time I watch the movie...)
Of course, she did leave Morris unattended several times. He had several
great opportunities to bolt, and never took them. I mean, she didn't even
handcuff him to the steering wheel of the car or anything.
>-While I mentioned earlier the chemistry problems inherent in this body switch
>I will say that Dunn and McKean did a very nice job of showing us that they did
>connect on some level. Both the scene where he sees his upset wife at the bar
>and Morris convincing her at the end what happened were nicely done by the
>actors despite the cliche of the script.
I thought it was interesting how Morris "treats his family like strangers"
Fletcher was able to reach down and pull up a whole well of shared
experiences to convince Joanne that the improbable body switch had
occurred, and the best that Mulder could come up with was bee pollen.
>-Our Little Sailor: "The son of a bitch confesses to Kersh even more than I do
>to my priest."
Which made me wonder how much Scully confesses to her priest. I mean, she
lives like a nun, so how many sins could she have?
>-If Mulder thinks his "new" apartment is frightening (and I loved that look at
>the door number at the end) just wait until he gets to the office and finds
>that scary car model on his desk and Tiger Woods on his PC.
I'd love to see his look when he gets his VISA bill. Betcha this little
redecorating thing is forgotten about after this point. In fact, I'll bet
the whole original mess will be reinstated so all will be well in X-files
land.
--
=============================================================================
Sanjiv Sarwate | "Do you think I'm spooky?" - F. Mulder
http://www.enteract.com/~ssarwate |
ssar...@enteract.com |
Redwingzms
>end when they lament about getting things back to normal. Funny, but it is
>this
>scene and not all the silly goofing for laughs that I'm sure looked good on
>paper, that makes sitting through these episodes worth it. Anderson and
>Duchovny pushed the UST pedal to the metal as Scully and Mulder said goodbye
>to
>what they had. When they work it they can even make sunflower seeds seem like
>the most touching gift in the world.
I have to agree. I really enjoyed Dreamland I and II, but the scene mentioned
is bar far the best of the bunch. It was absolutely beautiful and very well
acted.
Maria
A Cravens
> I couldn't help but wonder how much this "Little A'Le'inn" establishment
>resembles the original in Nevada.
It didn't in most ways -- Rachel is smack in the middle of NO WHERE -- no trees,
no bushes, no well-paved neighborhood streets -- just desert, desert, more desert
and mountains (but a lovely desert it is).
Rachel is also made up primarily of trailers, not houses, and what houses are
there aren't anything like what was on last night.
The Little A'Le Inn is a double wide trailer serving as bar ("We got all kinds of
beer, honey -- Coors, Miller, Bud..."), pool hall (two tables, if memory serves),
restaurant, gift shop and general center of town. And the cooler behind the bar is
covered in right-wing bumper stickers. I have fond memories of sitting at the bar
with my then-boyfriend, trying not to laugh outloud as we listened to one of the
well-sauced locals explain to two housewives from Minnesota where the black mail
box was.
The "feel" of the show's version was close to the real thing, however. And the
bathroom was right on the money.
;-)
It's a must see if you are ever anywhere near Southern Nevada.
Another great review, Autumn!
______________
jcravens "at" onr "dot" com
Charlotte Waldo
Sanjiv Sarwate wrote in message <74hhkc$at$1...@eve.enteract.com>...
>aut...@aol.com (Autumn T) writes:
>
<snip>
>>-Our Little Sailor: "The son of a bitch confesses to Kersh even more than
I do
>>to my priest."
>
>lives like a nun, so how many sins could she have?
>
Well, ever seen Never Again? Maybe Scully takes a walk on the wild side a
little bit more than we think. I can now see Scully confessing to her priest
every week and making him nearly have a heart attack each time.
Charlotte
Debra Reynolds
be. The chemistry between these characters is just too precious to waste. I admit
to liking Dreamland (II more so than I) but the goodbye scene and the telephone
call at the end made it all really worthwhile.
I find it interesting that even with the "rubberband" effect, everything does not
remain unchanged. Mulder, Scully and, yes, even Morris seem to find themselves the
better for having the experience even though they don't know that they had it!
DebR
misty snow
Thanks for your fantastic review of "Dreamland II"... As always you a deep
understanding of the xf and it's characters... After reading most of the negative
posts of "Dreamland II" it was refreshing to read something by someone who truly
understands what the files are all about....
Keep them coming (-:
misty
MHWoman
>least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
>"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
>to watch the "light show"?
No it wasn't them...at least it wasn't the same guy. He happens to look
exactly the same as he did when he was in "Deep Throat." He was recently in a
movie this summer called "Can't Hardly Wait" with Jennifer Love-Hewitt and some
other teenagers.
Tiffany M.
MLopez5385
Sara A. Laipis
>On 07 Dec 1998 19:33:43 GMT, aut...@aol.com (Autumn T) wrote:
>>-Lot's of interesting info from "Field Office Criminal Investigative and
>>Administrative File" # X-71009.
><snip>
>> and even though in the credits her name appears as
>>"Tena" here we learn his mother's maiden name is Teena Kuipers.
>I was going to ask about this. How can we hope for continuity from
>episode to episode when they can't even spell the character's name the
>same way twice in *one* episode?
>--
>Tara-----Super!Bitch
Darn. And here I was going to point out that Kuipers is a Dutch name,
as is Mulder. In the right light, at an angle, that could almost have
looked like continuity. And I was looking forward to all the fics
about Mulder's parents meeting in the old country...
Sara
Peg Yacobucci
>
> In article <366C3C...@fas.harvard.edu>, Peg Yacobucci
> <mmy...@fas.harvard.edu> writes:
>
> >least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
> >"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
> >to watch the "light show"?
>
The actors aren't the same, but the characters are, or are meant to
immediately make you think of them. In both Deep Throat and Dreamland
II we have a young pothead couple, sneaking around an Air Force base
known for UFO activity, looking to watch the show, get high, and fool
around. In both shows the young man has shoulder length wavy red hair
and a small goatee and the young woman has very long blonde hair and
darker eyebrows. They are wearing standard grunge-wear--plaid shirts in
Deep Throat and that Mexican-blanket-striped-pullover-thing folks wear
when they aren't wearing flannel in Dreamland.
Explain to me why you think this is just a coincidence. And, if
coincidences are just coincidences, why do they feel so contrived?
> Maybe you should watch Buffy a little more closely...
Are you suggesting I should watch it at all?
Daisy
Autumn T
In article <366D3F...@fas.harvard.edu>, Peg Yacobucci
<mmy...@fas.harvard.edu> writes:
>The actors aren't the same, but the characters are, or are meant to
>immediately make you think of them.
I disagree that we are supposed too think of Deep Throat. The characters have
different names. If they were paying attention to Deep Throat they should have
recalled that Scully knew about the Aurora project for the sake of continuity.
>> Maybe you should watch Buffy a little more closely...
>
>Are you suggesting I should watch it at all?
I would. It is a very entertaining show. And Seth Green the guy that played
Emil, the stoner kid in Deep Throat is on it.
bele...@my-dejanews.com
In article <19981207143343...@ngol03.aol.com>,
aut...@aol.com (Autumn T) wrote:
>
> "Dreamland II" Review
> (c) 1998 Autumn Tysko
>
-----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==----------
http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own
Konrad Douglas Frye
>Well, the Dutch part could still be fine, it just the Tena/Teena thing
>which grates on my nerves.
>I mean, is it so hard for them to decide on the spelling of a name and
>go with it?
I have visions of Scully spelling it wrong the next time the writers
pen a 'Kitsunegari' scene.
-----
Konrad Frye (umfr...@ccu.umanitoba.ca)
Computer Engineering IV
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"Or what? You'll release the dogs? Or the bees? Or the dogs with the
bees in their mouths and when they bark they shoot bees at you?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Maureen Goldman
> Well, the Dutch part could still be fine, it just the Tena/Teena thing
> which grates on my nerves.
>
> I mean, is it so hard for them to decide on the spelling of a name and
> go with it?
If I understand the situation, this is a matter of a different spelling in
the credits (Tena played by ActressName) and in the file shown on the
screen - "Teena". Rather than indecision, how about a typo by the person
responsible for the credits?
Meg, the pale chick.
T) muttered...
>
>In article <366C3C...@fas.harvard.edu>, Peg Yacobucci
><mmy...@fas.harvard.edu> writes:
>
>>Wasn't the couple (at
>>least the guy--I didn't get a good look at the woman) the same one as in
>>"Deep Throat," the stoner kids who snuck onto the Idaho Air Force base
>>to watch the "light show"?
>
>No.
>
>Maybe you should watch Buffy a little more closely...
Seth!
*thud*
I love that guy. I really do. "An evil petting zoo?" "You always DO
THAT!"
I am not who I am-
Meg
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