The X-Files opening theme

   There are many memories from the early 90's. Especially for people like me, only children at that time, these memories are precious nowadays. One among them, one I remember clearly, is the opening theme from "The X-Files". Back then, I thought it was just something extraordinary. Now I know: it is a masterpiece.

   First of all, it's the music itself. It is eerie, creepy and -at the same time- uplifting. It makes you want to know. Personally, it urges me to go out there, discover hidden truths and stuff. Maybe that's because I've connected the music with the essence of the show. So I've tried to ask myself: what does the music alone say?
   The answer I'm getting to is that this shrill sound, the one that gives the tone of the song, has something alien in it. I mean, it reminds me of aliens and paranormal activity. Not because it reminds me of The X-Files, but because it has this weird vibe in it, one that provokes mystery. So, the conclusion is that this genious Mark Snow has nailed it with his work.
  Let's delve a bit deeper. I will seperate the pictures one by one. Of course I start with the famous UFO flying saucer:

   A flying saucer, not of human technology, flies peacefully in the sky. The idea of picturing it during daytime and not at night is brilliant. It's like a cloud, a bit blurred and hazy, exactly how it should be. It provokes the viewer to imagine things, to be there, to be the first one to see it: the one who will run in the city screaming and all think he is crazy!

   Also, the low quality of the footage makes it better. It makes me think: somewhere in the past, in an abandoned place in the countryside, some random stranger managed to get a footage of this thing. Also, the idea of zooming it so many times escalates the mystery tone even more.  

   After that, it's a weird picture of an alienlike script:

  A dark hand (whose could be it???) is doing unexplained things to a circle, one that has probably alien symbols written on it. What comes to mind? Deep down, in an underground lab, someone tries to figure out a message from aliens, a message never public shown. Or, even better in my opinion, this is the hand of the one who wrote the message... Again, mystery and tension in mere seconds.

 While in tension, the audience has to face this: 

   Can I figure out what this is? Probably not. Still, it intrigues me. It makes me wonder: what does it have to do with? Hypnosis? Time-space travel? Communication? Navigation in space? Whatever this may be, it is not human. 

  Afterwards, the most terryfying picture of all:

   I know: everyone who has ever watched the show has been stuck with this picture in mind. A distorted face of a helpless man. It's probably from a brutal experiment that causes... what? Unimaginable pain? Untamed fear? Maybe a crack between reality and fantasy? Or some illegal experiment on human brain? The worst thing of all is that, although the first thing that comes to mind is alien abduction, it's not impossible for humans to have done this...

   Things get weirder by the second:

   What's this now? Is it in macrocosmos? Is it nanosised? In the background, in a two-coloured font, one can imagine faces staring at him. While the message "Paranormal activity" hits the center, these I-cannot-explain-what-are blue balls start to pour a strange liquid. Is it cell reproduction? Partition, dichotomy? The picture is just two halves, the one reflecting the other, that much I can tell. Still, it's creepy as hell.

   After the presentation of our first agent, Fox Mulder, comes the next picture, a picture that I totally adore:

   

   An invisible manlike thing walks silently in a dark corridor. What could it be its purpose? Information? Assassination? Meanwhile, the second pop-up message fades in and out almost immediately: "Government denies knowledge". Each and every conspiracy theorist should have hugged the screen because of this miniclip. 

   Also, after the second agent is revealed, by the name of Dana Scully, comes a framed action scene: 

   The two agents enter a dark room. Mulder has his gun at the ready, while both of them light the inside of the room -which of course isn't shown. What could they be investigating? Mulder's face is zoomed and an expression of total surprise can be tracked in his eyes...

   After that comes my personal favourite:

   

   A strange hand -a handprint to be exact- in a strange blue aura has an unexplained red light in a joint of its index. Probably a microchip, but wait... A human figure, helpless and fading, with stretched arms and legs, is pulled towards the hand... Oh no!

   This could bear so many messages: 1) the hand symbolizes the aliens who control the human race with microchips.

2) the hand is the government, which silently grasps our impression of reality, with us not even noticing. 

3) the hand is ourselves, who destroy the humanity inside us with our ignorance nad cruelty.

4) The hand means... oh, whatever...

   I think the white human who is absorbed while in a pose that implies helplessness and a two-dimensional reality is the thing that captivates my imagination the most.

   Last but not least, a zoomed eye opens. Is it about awakening? Knowledge? Someone who finally discovered the hidden truth? I don't know. Before my eyes, there it is: the last image, with the iconic message of the show:

   In a stormy valley, with mountains in the background, the third and clearer message is shown: "The truth is out there". Go there and find it. Forget your safety, your anonymity, the security of your room and go there, look for it, do whatever it takes, but find the truth. Share it with the world. 

   This message is the motto of the entire series: a motto that captivates the attention of the viewer. Whatever it takes, the two agents must go forth, ignoring the signs, the warnings and the danger, because the truth is above all. Is it aliens the ones who control our planet? Is it a secret organization? Who knows...

   After this detailed presentation, I have to say that this opening theme is my favourite. It's pure genius. If there is a clip that makes people wonder about the hidden reality, then it's this one. Too many images and miniclips, with each one staying only for mere seconds before the next one takes place. Hidden and cryptic messages, darkness and obscurity, conspiracy theories: everything is in this 43 second video. What could stimulate the viewers more than this clip? Oh, these guys knew what they were doing...

   In this article, I pose too many questions. They are the questions I ask myself each time I see this clip. In the end, this quest for hidden knowledge is foremost targeted towards the viewer himself. This theme gives no answers: by showing weird and unexplained stuff brings out tension, curiosity and the right mood before the episode.