Perfectly adorable

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Highly entertaining entry in the Star Trek Universe. In fact, there are more laugh-out-loud moments than I recall in any other ST film. And it's always fun to see dynamic actors like James Cromwell ("Babe") and Alfre Woodard in roles from their younger days. I have one overriding question and it concerns the soundtrack. Which one of these actors (or producers or the director) is the Sun Records fan? I was shocked to hear an extended guitar solo from Roy Orbison's "Ooby Dooby." It wasn't the original Sun Record from 1956, but it was an almost note-for-note recreation. Too bad they didn't use the original, but it was still startling to hear this bit of pop culture resurrected 40 years later.

The first real mission for the new generation of Enterprise fleet and for me this was an outstanding entry in the franchise. Bye bye to the annoying Data like in Generations welcome to the real Data. Not only that, this delivers also on the part of effects.Not only was the story great because it's full of action from the first minute until the end. It was watchable due the great effects not only in space but also on the make-up. Borg looked stunning and all cyborgs did work out fine. Sure, you will be reminded of Species (1995) and The Terminator (1984) when you see the Borgs but never mind, it isn't a copy.If you don't are a Trekkie geek this one surely can be watched without knowing a thing about the Enterprise. Great flick.Gore 0/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 4/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

First Contact is not simply as a great Star Trek film. It's wonderfully smart and sophisticated science fiction period. Here's the hook that I like about it, which may or may not have been intentional (but given that Ronald Moore is the co-writer, the beautiful mind behind Battlestar Galactica, I'll say yes): we often think about being from other worlds coming to our own and how we see them and their technology, and that's the point of view, of US seeing the OTHER. The power with this movie is that because it's Trek, we have a vehicle for characters who are from another time and place, though who are us (in some ways more than others, usually more), and in this story as the Enterprise has to go back in time to the year 2063 with on one side The Borg to grapple with again and to make sure that a one-day-important man Zephram Cochrane (James Cromwell), who is basically a drunk who loves to dance to old time rock and roll and has somehow created what will be the warp drive everyone uses in the future, the roles are reversed. In short, we get to have a pure science fiction story that is loaded with ideas that, because it's the Borg (again, not unlike the original series the movies do a good course correct with their sophomore outing), we get to see what attaining "perfection" really means on contrast with a character like Zephram on the other side. It's a terrific balancing act.I'm sure that for Trek fans, and the ones for TNG I think are a *little* more fanatical than even the ones for the original series, could be wrong on that, there are great callbacks and just by making it the Borg, which was one of the highlights of that show and how intense and psychologically profound it got (what would happen if you were stripped of your personality and "assimilated" by an entire collective consciousness - an analogy for political persuasion I suppose but could be anything). But for general audiences, i.e. those who may not watch Trek or only do occasionally, it works on its own terms. The writers and director Jonathan Frakes make this fast moving but loaded with character motivations and arcs and plot - even for Alfre Woodard, who at first appears to be a supporting player, is probably closest to an audience surrogate and all the better for it (she gets to play a lot of emotions here, the full spectrum for bad-ass to terrified to indignation and wonder and awe and so on). And I think the themes it's wrestling with are easy enough to grapple with, about how what it means when you're thrust with the reputation of being a MAJOR leader and figurehead in the future, or if there's a being that can turn on and off an 'emotion chip' ("Sometimes, I really envy you," Picard comments, rightfully so), but also has the goal to become more human and is given that chance... by the villain. I can go on and on.It's also extremely funny - the great comedic lines are sharp and witty, or they play on character stuff like when Zephram gets Marian Sirtis' character drunk on "this thing called Tequila" - and has beats that combine humor and satire and suspense with seemingly great ease: when Picard has to buy a moment or two from the Borg, he "brings to life", literally, a chapter from a book that's set in a 1930's style nightclub (he in a fedora and suit, Woodard in period clothes, surrounded by extras and so on) until he realizes he's in the wrong chapter, pushes it ahead and is in a white tuxedo, gets a Tommy gun and blows away the Borg (much as he can do). This is one of those moments that would be brilliant in any movie, that could pull it off well, and this does. And at the heard of it all is the villain of the "Leader" of the Borg, played with aplomb and delivish villainy by Alice Krige, who wants to turn Data as with all beings into this "perfect" consciousness that she's had for so long. But does she truly know what she is? Or care? Certainly to Data it matters for much of the run time.Such rich conflict in this movie! And characters talking out their problems, like Picard's issue about whether he should or shouldn't destroy the Enterprise in order to save his crew from the Borg. And throughout the writers weave in clever ideas and concepts and give full SCI-FI moments like, I couldn't even believe it, Picard and Warf and that other guy going out with Zero-G space suits on to the ship to stop some thing-a-ma-bob from going off that the Borg's setting up, and that transported me to a direct place in science fiction cinema too - that slow-speed and all the more intense for it act of doing something in space where if you lose your grip on the ground you'll float away to death. This may be the best Trek film of the modern day, on par if not superior(!) to 'Khan' as a blend of adventure, story, action, and deeper philosophical notions about how we see ourselves, our roles in shaping the future, the past, and being ourselves throughout it all.

Star Trek: First Contact is often considered to be one of the best Star Trek films and the best films featuring The Next Generation cast. This statement is justified because as someone who has never watched any Star Trek involving the TNG cast it does stand alone side the best 'Trek' films.Star Trek: First Contact is set six years after Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) had been rescued from the Borg and he is stilled plagued with nightmares and flashbacks. Now the Borg have started to invade the Federation and the battle is only won by the Enterprise's late intervention. However the Borg have a trick up the sleeve and travel back in time to conquer Earth. The Enterprise crew is unaffected and it is up to them to travel back to stop the Borg conquest and help the legendary Zefram Cochrane (James Cromwell) who achieved the first wrap flight and made contact with an alien race.Like 'Wrath of Khan' 'First Contact' was a continuation of a critically acclaimed episode, but even if you haven't seen it 'First Contact' works on its own terms and finds that sweet spot to appeal to fans and non-fans alike and matching the two tones the franchise has straddled, dark and brooding and light-hearted and funny. The film has with a dark image of Picard being assimilated into the Borg and his eye about to drilled before waking up and all the half of the film that features the Borg is the most atmospheric. The Borg are great villains, a near unstoppable hive a races that have been conquered, a collective that all linked together who work as one unit.Picard's assimilation with the Borg is both an advantage and disadvantage. Picard knows how the Borg operates and their tactics, so knows how to fight them, but he desire for revenge make Picard irrational. It's like Khan who could have been free after capturing the Enterprise in 'Wrath of Khan' but his want for revenge against Kirk is his downfall. Stewart gave a passionate speech about not sacrificing the Enterprise to the Borg.The Borg's assimilation of the Enterprise makes for a dark and dank atmosphere compared to the more brightly lit environments of the Enterprise. It is this sector of the film where we saw the Borg Queen (Alice Krige), the voice and personification of the Borg collective. Her introduction was impressive, her human body being lowered into a cybernetic body, CGI effects that still hold up today. Most of the Borg Queen's interactions are with Data (Brent Spiner), trying to convince him to join the collective, making him more human to attractive this.The cliché perspective of Star Trek from non-fans is that it a slow, boring franchise that only appeals to a hardcore fanbase. "First Contact" blows that perspective out of the water - it starts with a huge space battle between the Federation and the Borg as the alien hive try to invade Earth and there are sprinklings of actions scenes throughout the film. One of the best is scene when three members of the Enterprise crew having to stop the Borg from creating a satellite dish - it was a tense scene that was similar to the assassination of the Klingon Chancellor in "The Undiscovered Country".The action on Earth where Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) help Cochran with the first warp flight is more lighter in tone. The more comedic approach combined with the time travel story, cultural clash and essentially revealing the future to Cochrane made this half of film similar to "The Voyage Home". Cochrane is hailed a hero by everyone in the Federation, a man whose action united Earth, made a scientific breakthrough and made his planet a player in galactic politics but the reality was he was a drunk, he wanted to make money and is overwhelmed by finding out what his future holds. It made the character more human as he has to accept his destiny and James Cromwell, being the professional that he is was brilliant at humanising the character as he drunkenly dances and having the deal with the weight on his shoulders."First Contact" is a film that works for both fans and non-fans alike, having action, being able to balance a dark plot with lighter moments and working as a continuation and a standalone film, being a strong sci-fi film in its own right.