"The X Files" 731 (1995)

User Rating:

8.6/10   

Director:

Rob Bowman

Writers:

Chris Carter (creator)
Frank Spotnitz (written by)

TV Series:

"The X Files" (1993)

Original Air Date:

1 December 1995 (Season 3, Episode 10)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

While Mulder remains on the passenger train he believes is holding an alien captive, Scully is led to a disease research facility in Perkey...

Plot Keywords:

Character Name In Title | FBI | FBI Agent | Alien | X Files

Cast

David Duchovny	...	Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson	...	Dana Scully
Stephen McHattie	...	Red-Haired Man
William B. Davis	...	Cigarette Smoking Man / CGB Spender
Michael Puttonen	...	Conductor
Robert Ito	...	Dr. Shiro Zama
Steven Williams	...	Mr. X
Colin Cunningham	...	Escalante
Don S. Williams	...	Elder #1
Brendan Beiser	...	Agent Pendrell

Runtime:

Argentina:60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Certification:

Argentina:13

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Trivia:

"731" refers to Unit 731, a real Japanese chemical and biological army unit that performed horrific experiments on Chinese civilians during World War II, which forms a central aspect of the plot.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Mulder instructs the train conductor to stop the box car in the most remote place possible, but as the train pulls up you can see in the bottom left of the shot a red parasol and some equipment. This is not there when the train pulls away leaving the box car on its own in the middle of nowhere.

Quotes:

Scully: Don't you see Mulder, you're doing their work for them. You're chasing aliens that aren't there, helping them to create the story that covers the shameful truth. And what they can't cover they apologize for. Apology has become policy.
Mulder: Maybe. Maybe you're right, Scully. But I don't need an apology for the lies. I don't care about the fictions they create to cover their crimes. I want them held accountable for what did happen. I want them to apologize for the truth.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "El comisario: Secreto a voces (#8.15)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

On a Train

Why did I study French in high school?

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

731 is the first complete episode I saw of the X-Files. It's as good today as when I saw it for the first time. Wonderfully written by Frank Spotnitz and directed by Rob Bowman, this episode is a rip-roaring adventure. The suspense is kept at a maximum throughout the entire episode as Mulder is aboard a train with a bomb on it. The music by Mark Snow in 731 is excellent, especially when Scully views the pit of bodies at the research facility. With Bowman's superb direction, you feel as if you are on a moving train with Mulder. A great guest star appearance is given by Stephen McHattie as the assassin Red Haired Man. Ruthlessness exudes from him. Stephen Williams as X, Don S. Williams as First Elder, & Brendan Beiser as Agent Pendrell are all worthy of mention here. The first hints of Agent Pendrell's crush on Scully are shown in this episode. The show keeps you guessing whether Mulder and Scully are seeing aliens or just lepers being used as test subjects. When I saw Nisei, I knew I had to see the continuation of that episode 731, to find out what happens. But after viewing 731, I was officially hooked on the x-files and the rest is history.