Big screen bouts: ‘Step Brothers’ vs. ‘The X-Files’

Cool Factor

‘Step Brothers’

As middle-aged step brothers, Ferrell and Reilly still live at home, sleep late, eat horrible foods and watch too much TV. Funny, yes. But not cool. Not cool at all. Unless you’re 10 years old.

‘The X-Files: I Want to Believe’

Mulder and Scully were the epitome of ‘90s cool, but it’s been more than seven years since the series limped to a close. The semi-couple are older now and the culture has moved past their semidetached, ironic posture. But this time they have a lot of outside help: severed body parts, psychic pedophile priests and creepy Russian handymen.

Winner: Laugh all you want at Ferrell and Reilly’s sophomoric hijinks in “Step Brothers,” but not even the most immature adult would ever want to imitate them. Even though Mulder and Scully have long-since passed the point where their belief in this crazy stuff should ever be an issue, they still make it all seem cool.  (Diyah Pera / Associated Press)