"The X Files" Dreamland (1998)

Director:

Kim Manners

Writers:

Chris Carter (creator)
Vince Gilligan (written by) ...

TV Series:

"The X Files" (1993)

Original Air Date:

29 November 1998 (Season 6, Episode 4)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

An anonymous tip finally brings Mulder and Scully to the mecca of all UFO lore, Area 51. But when the agents witness the flight of a mysterious craft, their lives are profoundly and perhaps irrevocably altered.

Plot Keywords:

Swapped Identity | Body Swap | Body Switching | Sex With Coworker | FBI

Cast

David Duchovny	...	Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson	...	Dana Scully
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tyler Binkley	...	Terry Fletcher
Fuad C'Amanero	...	FBI Agent
Scott Allan Campbell	...	Jeff Smoodge
Nora Dunn	...	JoAnne Fletcher
Dara Hollingsworth	...	Christine Fletcher
Laura Leigh Hughes	...	Kersh's Assistant
Eddie Jackson	...	Co-pilot
John Mahon	...	General Wegman
Michael McKean	...	Morris Fletcher
Freeman Michaels	...	Guard
James Pickens Jr.	...	FBI Assistant Director Alvin Kersh
Michael B. Silver	...	Howard Grodin (as Michael Buchman Silver)
Greg Smith	...	Soldier
Christopher Stapleton	...	Pilot / Capt. Robert McDonough
Julia Vera	...	Mrs. Lana Chee
Ted White	...	Attendant
James Yaker	...	Cashier

Runtime:

Argentina:60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Certification:

Argentina:13

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Quotes:

Man In Black: [tapping on window] Please, step out of the car.
Mulder: [to Scully] You think if maybe we ignore him, he'll go away?
Man In Black: [tapping on window] Please, step out of the car.
Mulder: [to Scully] Guess not.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Fringe: A New Day in the Old Town (#2.1)" (2009)

Area 51, at last!

One good thing about the move from Vancouver to L.A. was that they were able to explore a few more locations for episodes, namely, the American southwest, e.g. California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah, where the terrain is more desert-like. 'The Beginning' took us to Arizona, Drive from Utah through California, and now Dreamland in southern Nevada, namely Area 51. Area 51 is the motherland of UFOs. It's where some of the U.S. public believes that the cover-up of UFOs and aliens began back in the later 1940's. So, it's cool that the x-files is finally able to visit the home of UFO lore. I find it interesting that when the time warp is passing over them that only Morris and Mulder are switched and not anyone else. It's almost as if the UFO chose Mulder. Unrestricted access to Area 51 was the perfect opportunity for Mulder to find out about UFOs. I have commented on David Duchovny's comic ability before, but it needs reemphasizing here. He is a natural at it and it helps the episode so much. Dreamland features two great guest stars, Michael McKean as Morris Fletcher and Nora Dunn as JoAnne Fletcher, his wife. The two are comic gold, McKean as the sleaze-bag and Dunn as the nagging wife. Even though this episode has a lot of humor in it, it does deal with a serious x-file of UFOs and body-switching. And it surprisingly ends with a cliff-hanger leaving you with doubt as to Mulder's future. Dreamland mixes a traditional x- file with a good dose of humor to make for a very excellent episode.