Star Trek: First Contact [Special Collector's Edition]

It also helped that the film was more action-oriented than Star Trek VII. Sure, the last battle of the NCC-1701 D was impressive and the brief meeting of Captains James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Picard did provide Trek fans with some exciting and moving moments, but what fans really wanted was a muscular...action movie with a mission (and antagonists) worthy of the Next Generation crew and the new, top-of-the line Enterprise E.

Star Trek: First Contact brings back the Borg, a race of half-organic, half cybernetic beings whose goal is to destroy other races by assimilating their technology and transforming the survivors by injecting microscopic nanoprobes that turn humans, Vulcans, El-Aurians -- anyone, really -- into unfeeling, relentless drones. As fans of the 1987-1994 syndicated series know, Capt. Picard was once captured by the Borg and transformed into Locutus, a Borg strategist/spokesdrone whose intimate knowledge of Starfleet technology,its tactics and its officers nearly spelled certain defeat for the Federation at the Battle of Wolf 359.

Now, several years later, the Borg are back and meaner than ever. Having been thwarted more than once in the 24th Century by Picard and his crew, the Borg Queen (Alice Krige) leads a single-cubeship invasion force into Federation space, hoping to defeat the Federation by either conquering Earth in a battle against Starfleet...or tinkering with the timeline and going back to the 21st Century to prevent humanity's first contact with another spacefaring race.

Actor Jonathan Frakes (Cmdr. Will Riker) makes his feature film directing debut in this eighth installment of the Star Trek movie series, and although he would only direct the weaker Star Trek: Insurrection, he does a great job at helming a very high-octane action flick that involves time travel, space battles, a strong Picard/Data storyline and elements from The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and the then-still new Voyager.

Guest stars James Cromwell (The Sum of All Fears, Babe) and Alfre Woodward join the cast of TNG as warp-drive inventor Zefram Cochrane and his friend and assistant Lily, who add a certain mixture of edginess and wit to the film. Cromwell fares particularly well as Cochrane, a character first seen in The Original Series episode Metamorphosis. While Cromwell doesn't remotely look like the then-30 or 40-something Glen Corbett, he portrays the legendary "father of warp drive" as a very human and flawed genius -- he is cranky, cynical and drinks way too much -- who is bemused by the hero-worship he receives from the Enterprise crew. He also gets some of the best lines. (My favorite: "You're astronauts...on some kind of star trek?")

Also contributing to the excitement is Jerry Goldsmith's score, a mixture of a lovely new main theme and such familiar touchstones as Alexander Courage's fanfare for the Original Series theme and Goldsmith's own "Main Theme" for Star Trek's first feature film (and later adapted as The Next Generation's main title).

Although First Contact does require some familiarity with the Star Trek universe and its history, it's clearly among the best of the 10 in the series.


Easily the Best TNG Film   August 16, 2004
Stephen Kaczmarek (Columbus, Ohio United States)
32 out of 39 found this review helpful

While "Star Trek: First Contact" rewrites too much of the original TV series' history--a debilitating addiction the current production people can't seem to shake--it delivers a rollicking adventure that is more in keeping with Captain Kirk's episodes than any other "TNG" film. That's really good because on TV, talky Captain Picard and crew often seemed better suited for Monday morning board meetings than the intergalactic perils of space opera. In this one, a race of cybernauts called the Borg decide to revise Earth history by stopping the first human excursion with warp drive. Picard and crew follow the aliens back in time, meeting with a cynical, drunken inventor (a laconic James Cromwell) who revises their assessment of his place in history. Unlike the other TNG films, this one's plotted more like a film than a TV show, meaning that the pace is less likely to put you to sleep, even if Star Trek still can't quite escape cornball humor or pure cheese. (How many times does Data have to discover his humanity or Worf be told he's a warrior worthy of respect? Why do characters rely so often on a pregnant pause and one last line before exiting? Just how much technobabble can we really take?) The regular cast is as good as it's always been--which is to say, adequate--but Alice Krige stands out as the creepily sexy Borg queen and though she's frequently bug-eyed with excitement, Alfre Woodard deserves more screen time as Picard's potential love interest. The real stars here, though, are Jonathan Frakes as director, who seems to actually understand and respect the material he's working with, and Jerry Goldsmith, whose score is among the better in the series. When the humans meet up with a surprise alien race at the end, the moment might actually give you goosebumps.


A great Star Trek and Sci-Fi Film   November 10, 2003
Matthew Edmundson (Winter Haven, Florida United States)
9 out of 10 found this review helpful

(...) I liked Star Trek First Contact and it's one of the best things Star Trek has ever done.

First Contact is the continuing adventures of the crew of the Enterprise from TNG series. The crew must go back in time and stop the cybernetic species The Borg. The Borg are trying to stop Zepryham Cochran. The man who developed warp drive and established first contact. If stoped it could be catostrophic to the futre of the Enterprise and of the federation.

The cast from The Next Generation is fantastic. They all had there specific talents that added to the show. They all shine in First Contact.

Patrick Stewart is great. He is one of the most underrated actors of all-time. He is a former Shakesperian actor and he can flat out act. He wasn't always given the best work in Star Trek and this is some of his finest work he has ever done.

Jonathan Frakes is great. Not only does he continue his role as Cmdr. Riker but he directed the film. He uses the suspense and unkown of the Borg well. He really does add to there race with what he does with them in the movie. He's funny as Riker and is less of the playboy that Riker is in the show.

Brent Spiner is great as well. It's a shame he hasn't done a lot more out of Star Trek. He really gets into his characters well and plays them well. Data is one of the most beloved characters in Star Trek and the film really shows why.

Levar Burton has a great role in the film. He plays Geordi well in what has become his signature role. He's argueably the most successful man ouside of Star Trek with his role on Reading Rainbow and from the hit mini series Roots. It's great to see Geordi without that stupid visor he had the show. I love his optical implants.

I love the score Jerry Goldsmith wrote for this film. I think it's the best work he's ever done. I think it got jipped at the Oscars. The woodwind and horns are beautiful in the theme. If your a classical music fan you should love the score.

Star Trek Fist Contact is one of the best Star Trek films ever made. Fans outside of Star Trek should like it. You don't have to be a trekkie to understand the film which really helps it a lot. It's a must for anybody that calls themself a Trekkie and I think all Sci-Fi fans should see it. It's a great movie that will do what movies are suppose to do: Teach us a lesson and Entertain us.


Assimilate This !   October 12, 2004
Craobh Rua (N. Ireland)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

"First Contact" is the eighth Star Trek film, and hit the movie screens in 1996. Directed by Jonathon Riker (Will Riker), it was the first in the series of movies to focus solely on the crew of the Next Generation. Following the events of "Generations", it was also the first to feature the Sovereign-class Enterprise-E.

The film opens in 2373, as the Borg launch their second invasion of Federation space. The Borg are a ruthless and highly adaptable enemy. Part organic, part machine, each drone is connected to a single hive mind - allowing for no individual reasoning, thought or action. Their quest for perfection has led them to assimilate thousands of other civilisations into their collective. Their first invasion - 6 years previously - had been covered in the TNG episodes "The Best of Both Worlds" Parts 1 and 2. During that invasion, Captain Picard himself had been assimilated and renamed Locutus of Borg. He was eventually freed from the Collective, though there are certain scars he still carries.

As a result of Picard's previous ordeal, Starfleet's top brass order the Enterprise to stay away from the battlefield. Picard, however, disobeys the order, and takes command of the fleet engaging the Borg Cube. The knowledge he gained as Locutus allows the Starfleet vessels to destroy the invading ship, though not before the launch of a smaller sphere-shaped vessel. This vessel creates a temporal vortex and disappears into the past, with the Enterprise following in its wake. The two ships emerge in 2063, close to Earth - the day before the legendary Zephram Cochrane's first warp flight. This flight led to the first meeting of Humans and Vulcans, which eventually led to the formation of the Federation. The Borg mean to prevent this flight - in doing so, the Federation will never have existed and will allow the easy assimilation of Earth. Picard divides his command crew - some, led by Riker and Troi, work on the surface to ensure the success of Cochrane's flight. Picard, however, leads the fight against a group of Borg who have invaded the Enterprise.

"First Contact" is my favorite of the Trek movies. There's plenty of action and humor - not only do the Enterprise officers have to battle the best 'bad guys' in the Star Trek universe, they also have to deal with Tequila, Rock 'n' Roll and a very different Zephram Cochrane to the one they learnt about in school. It also shows a very different side to the usually diplomatic Picard and a very clear route for Data to become more human.