El Mundo Gira (12 Jan. 1997)
"The X Files" El Mundo Gira (original title)

Scully and Mulder investigate the death of Maria Dorantes, a migrant farm worker who was found in a field near the shanty town in which she lived. There were reports of a very bright flash ... See full summary »

Director:

Tucker Gates

Writers:

Chris Carter (creator), John Shiban

Stars:

David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
David Duchovny	...	Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson	...	Dana Scully
Mitch Pileggi	...	Walter Skinner
Rubén Blades	...	Conrad Lozano
Raymond Cruz	...	Eladio Buente
Jose Yenque	...	Soledad Buente (as José Yenque)
Simi Mehta	...	Gabrielle Buente (as Simi)
Lillian Hurst	...	Flakita
Susan Bain	...	County Coroner
Robert Thurston	...	Dr. Larry Steen
Michael Kopsa	...	Rick Culver
Marcus Hondro	...	El Barbeiro (as Markus Hondro)
Janeth Muniz	...	Village Woman (as Janeth Munoz)
Pamela Diaz	...	Maria Dorantes
Fabricio Santin	...	Migrant Worker

Storyline

Scully and Mulder investigate the death of Maria Dorantes, a migrant farm worker who was found in a field near the shanty town in which she lived. There were reports of a very bright flash of light followed by a yellow rain just as she was killed. Scully's examination of the body reveals that she died as a result of a massive fungal infection. The locals however are certain that the culprit is El Chupacabra, a mythical beast from Mexican folklore. They're also sure the beast is to be found in Eladio Buente, Maria's brother-in-law who was with her when she died. While Scully looks for a scientific explanation, Mulder believes the fungus may be alien in origin. Regardless, they must find Eladio before the fungus spreads.

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Plot Keywords:

yellow rain | chupacabra | fungus | mythological beasts | mexican immigrant | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

12 January 1997 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Stage 2, North Shore Studios, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television, Ten Thirteen Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The chupacabra is loosely translated to mean "goat sucker". Its legend is that it sucks the blood from farm animals. Recent research suggests that the legend of the chupacabra may derive from coyotes with severe parasitic infections.

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Quotes

Dana Scully: 'Purple Rain'?
Fox Mulder: Great album. Deeply flawed movie.

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Connections

References West Side Story (1961)

User Reviews

All in the title

Being fluent in Spanish I got right away this episode would have something to do with soap operas ("(As) The world turns"). With this expectation in hand then, I took the over-the-top acting as part of the episode. But I must say the acting from the Hispanic actors outside of Ruben Blades really bothered me. Casting here I think was terrible. I know there must be Hispanic actors who are more fluent in Spanish than these people were, certainly one's who didn't speak Spanish with such terrible English accents...I mean I'm fluent and I had to read the subtitles to understand what they were saying at times. It was really distracting for me. I'm watching it again...wow the accents are terrible. Why?! Outside of this accent problem I thought the episode was entertaining, containing some of the elements that keeps me coming back for more of the show. The Mulder one liners, the subtle maybe sometimes unintended humor, the Mulder-Scully banter, the unexplained but remotely plausible phenomena. Just to be clear Ruben Blades was great here.