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Summary: One of the best of the Star Trek movies
Review: In spite of a few elements that don't fit well this is one of the best of the Star Trek Movies. Patrick Stewart gives an excellent performance as do the rest of the "crew". The Borg stories were always some of the best and this one gets deeper into the Borg than any of the series episodes did.The picture quality and sound are excellent, especially on the DVD where the Dolby Digital 5.1 channel sound track is outstanding. The DVD uses the anamorphic widescreen format for the best possible resolution on a 16x9 widescreen TV and it is truly spectacular when displayed this way.
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Summary: The best star trek movie... ever.
Review: Exceptionally entertaining... everyone I know that has seen it loved it. The acting was excellent especially Alice Krige, who played the queen borg.
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Summary: EXCELLENT
Review: Patrick Stewart was excellent in this movie, the costumes made them all look like they were real. The graphics were great! END
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Summary: Star Trek First Contact: A Five Star Film
Review: What an amazing film. It takes your breath away. Look out for Data's emotion chip and the seduction and betrayal of the Borg Queen. Sounds like a soap opera. END
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Summary: Quite Possibly The Greatest STAR TREK Film Ever Made!
Review: STAR TREK - FIRST CONTACT (1996), being only the second film to feature the "Next Generation" characters---and the first one without any of the originals---is a masterpiece of suspense, drama and violence. Easily earning its PG-13 rating, this one deals with (as I'm sure all who are reading this know) the Borg attempting to conquer Earth by going back in time to prevent "first contact" between humans and Vulcans. Capt. Jean-Luc Picard (the wonderful Patrick Stewart), who had once been "assimilated" by the Borg, being renamed Locutus in the process, takes this particularly hard and makes it his professional duty as Captain of the Federation Starship Enterprise 1701-C, and his personal duty as a member of the human race, to stop the Borg from attaining its goal. This entry in the series, directed by Jonathan Frakes (Commander Will Riker), is a full step-up from the original series, employing dazzling visual effects and taking on a decidedly darker tone than previous STAR TREK films. It also ramps up the dramatic tension big-time, as Capt. Picard is so deeply affected by his previous experience with the Borg; his hatred is not just for what the Borg collective is, it's also a result of what the Borg collective had made of him, if only briefly. Meeting him head-on in his anguished tension are an unlikely stowaway (the equally wonderful Alfre Woodard) and the unlikely inventor of the Warp Drive Dr. Zefram Cochrane (the inspired James Cromwell). Of course, series regulars Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn), Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) and Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) are back in fine form, as are Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden). We even get a brief prize of a cameo appearance of The Doctor (Robert Picardo) from the "Star Trek: Voyager" series. But the one who really steals the show is the evil Borg Queen (Alice Krige), who slyly exudes mechanical sensuality even as she provokes danger and disdain (and perhaps disgust). Her kidnapping of the android Data and insinuation into his deep-seated desire to "become more human" makes for possibly the scariest scene in the entire movie. STAR TREK - FIRST CONTACT combines an immense amount of elements in order to make its unified whole. The result is a stark, darkly brilliant film that comes close to sensory overload at times. True, Capt. Picard's climactic head-butting scene with the sharp-tongued stowaway Lily goes dangerously over-the-top at one point (and eventually would be parodied in the hilarious "Fingerbang" episode of "South Park"), but it STILL works. Everything else in this film does, too. Jonathan Frakes did a splendid job in creating the highest-budget STAR TREK film yet (a reported $80 million) in record time, earning himself the nickname "Two-Takes Frakes" from his fellow cast members and the admiration of a new generation of STAR TREK fans. Also, he earned well over the magical $100 million mark for film studio Paramount, making the studio moguls happy in the process! Unfortunately, he couldn't quite match this success with the next series installment, the lighter-toned STAR TREK - INSURRECTION (1998); however, with this film, Jonathan Frakes achieved something of a series masterpiece, of which he should always be proud. Don't get me wrong; I loved STAR TREK GENERATIONS (1994), but in STAR TREK - FIRST CONTACT, the "Next Generation" crew hold their own, and our complete undivided attention, for the nearly-two-hour film. This would easily be the greatest of the "Next Generation" movies, and quite possibly, the best in the entire franchise. MOST RECOMMENDED
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Summary: The Origin of Warp Drive
Review: STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT is one the best of the Star Trek franchise. A nifty time travel story that includes an inventive origin story of humans first meeting with "Vulcans" (i.e. Mr. Spock) and using a major nemesis from the tv-series "the Borg". The "Next Generations" crew is on hand for an above-average adventure yarn along with a great character created as the point of origin, Zefram Cochrane played perfectly by James Cromwell (BABE, L.A. CONFIDENTIAL) along with Alfre Woodard (as Lily Stone) and finally a great villianous turn as the Borg Queen is Alice Krige (GHOST STORY). Director/starring Jonathan Frakes knows these characters very well and with many things going on at once, there is no sag in the storytelling and everything seems to be in sync. One aspect that the screen writers took into account was the toning down of Data's (Brent Spiner) "emotion chip" that was so annoying in the 'ST-GENERATIONS' film and the character is able to redeem himself as one of the heroes in the story. Enough can't be said of Patrick Stewart whose Picard is the glue that holds the movie/crew together. The scenes with he and Michael Dorn (as the Klingon Cmdr Worf) are some of the best. Overall, a Star Trek movie that holds its own to WRATH OF KHAN, THE VOYAGE HOME, and THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY due to some ingenious plot devices, great characters, good special effects, and excellent direction.
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Summary: "The Next Generation" Actually Made A Real Movie Once....
Review: This is my favorite "Next Generation" film (and 2nd favorite "Trek" film-"Star Trek 2" being my absolute favorite), especially as the other 2 films have merely turned out to be television scripts. Maybe there is something to that even/odd numbered curse after all. I really can't say enough positive things about this film. Seeing the Borg in a theatrical film is a real treat, and writers Moore and Bragga demonstrated that they were capable of writing a real movie script this time around. In addition (as a previous reviewer has already noted), they were actually able to create a real character out of Zephram Cochrane-instead of a meticulous, technobabble quoting, 1 dimensional character (as has been the case before with "Star Trek" so often) the audience actually gets to see a wild and crazy drunk who dances to Roy Orbinson tunes. In addition, the ever restrained Picard looses his cool big time after being forced to dwell upon his experience with the Borg in "The Best of Both Worlds" episodes from the TV series (which I highly recommend seeing)-the result is an ugly and well-acted confrontation with Worf. Be cautioned however-this film is not meant for younger children and well deserves its PG-13 rating. The Borg, as they have been redesigned, could give any kid nightmares for life. Other positive comments: composer Jerry Goldsmith turns in what is indisputably the best score of any "Star Trek" film to date-I strongly recommend buying the soundtrack to this film as well. The special effects, as done by Lucasfilm, were extraordinary (enjoy them-Paramount couldn't get Lucasfilm for "Insurrection" and may never again), especially during the spacewalk battle on the hull of the Enterprise. My only complaint: at the height of the film's climax, the audience really isn't on the edge of its seat,as they were in, say, "Star Trek 2" for example. The scene is still exciting nonetheless. All in all, "First Contact" was one of the best "Trek"s ever and one of the best science-fiction films ever made.
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Summary: The best of a mediocre "Next Generation" movie lot
Review: The Next Generation movies in the Star Trek series, generally speaking, stink. Which is unfortunate, since in some ways the TNG series was better than the original Trek. However, the movies generally vary from pure cheese to holier-than-thou piffle. First Contact is a good, fun movie overall, with pretty good effects shots and plenty of generally well-executed action. However, it also has some defects that can really get on your nerves. -The plot is dumb. Time travel has been done to death in Trek, and is a real groaner when you realize that it is being done yet again.
-The movie beats into the ground the Star Trek plot gimmick of "we've found a mysterious energy field, let's duplicate it/follow it/etc." We've gone from the first Star Trek movie (crappy in other ways), which at least gave a nod to real science, to the end of TNG, where they just make up fake scientific-sounding B.S. AT WILL as a plot fix.
-Picard acting like Ahab from "Moby Dick" is way overdone, the worst acting by Stewart EVER. Pure scene-chewing cheese, and the PC bit of having the skinny black chick talk reason into him is just dumb and annoying, since she was a throw-away moron of a character. If you are going to be PC for no reason, at least have Geordi do it, we've established that LeVar Burton's character has a brain, and he can actually ACT, unlike what's-her-face.
-Making the Cochrane character such a total jerk was a BIG mistake. Yes, it was intentional, but it was a bad decision... it makes you hope he gets shot in the head instead of fulfill history, and makes the whole middle section of the movie drag. Overall, however, it is a fun movie and the only TNG movie worth watching.
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Summary: "The line must be drawn here! This far, no farther!"
Review: And the only hope for the federations survival lies upon Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), and "The Next Generation" crew. The sequel to the popular TNG episode "The Best of Both Worlds" has Picard take his revenge on the Borg(a half-organic and half machine race) who once assimulated him into Locutis of Borg. Led by the evil Borg Queen(played by the beautiful Alice Kridge), the Borg plan to assimilate Earth in the late 21st century. This is around the time where Zefram Cochrane (James Cromwell) and his assistant Lily Sloan (Alfre Woodard) plan to make the first warp drive experiment leading to first contact with an alien race(well, lets just say its a very special Star Trek moment). While this movie does borrow from some scary sci-fi films like "Aliens" or "The Terminator," it does show that "The Next Generation" can handle the big screen by themselves. A truly great entry in the Star Trek films. Bravo TNG!!!
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Summary: Best of the TNG movies....
Review: Well, my topic tittle pretty much says it all. I believe this was the best movie that the TNG crew put out for a variety of reasons.
For one thing, it played upon the tv series's best episodes (Best of both world 1&2). It also featured the Borg, while they were still cool and menacing - before they were made absolutely pathetic and neutered by the Voyager series which I think was the worst of the newer Treks, even worse than Enterprise.
Anyhow, the premise is your classic time travel to save the Earth from having its past altered. Of course, it did seem silly, that the borg would go to all that trouble when technically, they should be able to take Earth quite easily if they really wanted to.
Still, the story of first contact is great cannon wise, because it shows the first time humans meet the vulcans. It's nice to see this part explained, although you will end up wondering, so, it was only because of Picard and his crew that the Federation was born? If you start dealing with time travel, then one usually gets into the muddy parts, like how their part in the past had already happened and they were merely replaying history, so technically their winning was already decided all along.
The movie has plenty of action, and was pretty well directed by Jonathan Frakes. I've seen some of his other movies, and he's a decent director, when he's given a good script and a fairly sizeable budget.
The Data subplot is interesting too, since it really plays out the paragon between your deepest desires and whether one has the fortitude to reject them for the good of friends.
Overall, a very good movie that deserves to be in your collection, especially if you are a TNG fan.
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