The Brilliance of Star Trek: First Contact 

People who say that Picard had already made peace with his Borg experience, and that his anger is bizarre, really don't understand how PTSD works.

"First Contact", "The Undiscovered Country" and "Wrath of Khan" are the best Star Trek films in my view. Thanks for the video Dave.

My favorite moment in this film is when Worf says “PREPARE FOR RAMMING SPEED.” He is never out of the fight, even when the ship is literally blowing up around him. True warrior.

First Contact and Wrath of Khan are my favorite Star Trek movies. Picard telling the crew to not let the Borg touch them gives me chills. The scene when Worf says "assimilate this" is absolutely badass.

I saw this on its opening night in Dublin with my friend. Then we went to the pub to discuss it. After an hour, we went back to the cinema to watch it again. One of the best Star Trek movies ever made IMO.

The into theme music to First Contact is spectacular, and right up there with Wrath of Khan in musical quality.

First Contact presented the Borg at their most physically terrifying, and really demonstrated how horrifying assimilation is. Unfortunately Voyager really took the claws out of them.

I Protest Sir! I Am NOT a Merry Man!

Absolutely, hands down, 100% my favorite Star Trek movie or episode...

Patrick Stewart’s performance is imo his best part from all good things. The sense of PTSD from his experience as Locutus is perfectly done. You really feel Picard’s pain

First Contact was absolutely apex Modern Trek. Everything about this movie hit the mark. When First Contact released in November 1996 DS9 had started Season 5 which arguably was their best overall and Voyager was finally hitting its stride in Season 3. Not to mention there were so many fun Trek novels being written and published like William Shatners “The Return”. I was about 13-14 years old at the time and looking back I’ve never enjoyed Sci-Fi more then at this time.

The Vulcans landing at the end was done so well. It got me a little emotional that I actually appreciated Cochran being a fool and hitting the juke box to lighten things up.

The moment the Enterprise E is revealed with that beautiful backdrop as it slowly turns - ingrained in my memory forever. The E was just as much a character as the main cast in this movie.

I remember watching this this movie for the fifth or sixth time as a kid, off school sick with a migraine (again) and I had normally never paid much attention to the opening credits. This time however I was blown away by how utterly gorgeous the score was. This film really awoke in me a love for film scores and I could never watch films the same way after that.

First Contact was the first Star Trek movie I went to see with friends. When Crusher activated the EMH everyone in the theatre cheered and it was such a great feeling. I couldn't imagine anyone cheering for any new Trek characters, which is sad. Great review, Dave! Loved the trivia about the first drafts, which I didn't know about.

Having JLP come to see the metaphorical relationship with himself and Cpt. Ahab was a nice touch. JLP would have of course been familiar with Moby Dick, and the fact that Lily introduces the concept as a jab toward JLP is hilarious, having never actually read the novel herself.

I don't know if it deliberate, but I really appreciated that this is the 2ndTNG movie and it mirrors the 2nd TOS movie in many ways. In Wrath of Khan, Khan quotes Moby Dick and he is an Ahab character obsessed with getting revenge on Kirk. In First Contact the roles are flipped and Picard is the Ahab character obsessed with the Borg. Picard is only narrowly able to avoid Ahab and Khan's fate because of his character qualities. He realizes what he is becoming and regrets his choices. The writing was top notch IMO.

First contact is really my most favorite ST movie... the cross over with DS9 and VOY, Sovereign class, effects, new uniforms borgs being overwhelming finally in our quadrant of the galaxy... THIS was the peak of Star Trek for me in movie form.

I converted my best friend into a trekkie by showing him STFC. It was the best of times and I think the intervening years thereafter until Picard season 3 really proved how special that era of star trek was.

I wish Chief O'Brien had been on the Defiant. It would have been so awesome to see him cameo, and as Colm Meaney's O'Brien was IN TNG, it would be fitting. It would have given more consistency to have another DS9 character on the Defiant, added continuity AND gravity to the scene. And for those that argue who no Sisko, Sisko's absence wouldn't be unusual...he'd have been ordered to stay on high alert at DS9, and if the Federation didn't want Picard in the engagement due to being potentially compromised due to being assimilated, likewise the Federation may not have wanted a man who lost his wife at Wolf 359 massacre to lead the defiant, despite Sisko's impressive military skill. Sending Worf in his stead makes perfect sense. So, no Sisko, no plot hole. Kira's absence as well as Odo's is logical...it's not Bajoran/DS9 business. Bashir hypothetically could have then been assumed to be on board, but would likely be in the med bay, busy tending to casualties. So, apart from Dax, none of the other DS9 mains needed to be aboard or on screen, but, argh, such a missed opportunity to see the Chief. Additionally, O'Brien could easily have been written out of the remainder of the movie with a throwaway line like he had to stay aboard the drifting Defiant to try and get it back up and operational/battle ready. It's such a nitpick, but honestly it's always bothered me as it seemed like such an easy/logical cameo opportunity, and also logic as to why none of the other officers/main DS9 characters were present. In a movie that was clever enough to write in a logical EMH cameo, and had Barclay cameo, it just seems odd and frustrating for me that a TNG supporting character and DS9 main character didn't appear in such a perfect scenario.

I remember watching this in theaters. I miss the 90s 🤣 and TNG

The escape pod scene still looks amazing almost 30 years later!

There is so much reward for this movie that the Enterprise series made sure to bring James Cromwell back to reprise his role. You can see Zefram Cochrane's story progression from the unenthusiastic pioneer to a man who's happy to be received as Earth's hero. You sadly don't really see that as much in movie/tv series connected lore.

The line must be drawn HERE! This far, no further!

This is one of THE best STAR TREK films ever made. Jonathan Frakes is a fantastic directory. The opening pull-back shot is epic!

This movie is neck and neck with Wrath of Kahn for best Trek film, everything about it felt "Big". In addition to having very early roles for Neal McDonough and Adam Scott, the holographic bouncer in the Big Goodbye scene was played by Ethan Phillips.

"COCHRANE: And you people, you're all astronauts, on some kind of star trek?". I can still hear the groans in the theater lol

I really love how they deconstructed Zefram Cochrane in this movie, breaking him down from the mythic depiction in TOS' _Metamorphisis_ to be a much more flawed and human individual, with less altruistic desires. It's a sharp contrast to similar attempts we've seen in recent years with other series, because it feels like they are adding to his character rather than taking something away from it. It is the _Subversion of Expectations_ trope done properly.

There's one thing I would have done differently in respect to the Borg in First Contact. With the Borg as thr villain of this film, there really did need to be greater interaction beyond simply the drones to carry thr film, hence the introduction of the Borg Queen. I would have made the Queen an attempted adaptation by the Borg to deal with their loss to the Federation, and a collective fear that humanity could be the ones that finally stop their plans for 'perfection.'. The adaptation of a Queen could have been shown to be a backfire, and helped lead to their undoing.

Alfre Woodard is always a great addition to anything she's involved in. It was awesome to see her find a place in Trek lore. Her _"You broke your little ships"_ and _"...I think you got him"_ are such classic her. She had a recurring role in the 80s drama St. Elselwhere as an OBGYN surgeon then years later reprised the role in an episode of Homicide: Life in the Streets as a burnt out mercy killer. A startling contrast but Elsewhere was notorious for doing that to its characters. And it continued the producers carrying characters over into other series creating a continuity string that went all the way back to the 70s series The White Shadow.

I remember going to the theater to see this movie in it's opening weekend.. When the Enterprise E was first shown on screen, the entire theater went absolutely BONKERS, I have never experienced anything like it before.. When the fleet destroyed the Borg cube, the audience cheered loudly.. Never again in my life have I ever had an experience like "First Contact". I'll never forget it.

There’s always been exactly 1 issue I’ve had with this film: Sisko wasn’t on the Defiant and didn’t play off Picard regarding the Borg.

There are two scenes that make this my second favorite Star Trek movie after Wrath of Khan (discounting the Search for Spock and Spock saves the Whales which I only liked because of a small part of the messaging). Second is the scene with the launching of Cochrane's ship. When he panics and puts in the mix-tape, and "Magic Carpet Ride" starts playing... that was just great. And first, above all else in this movie, much of which was very enjoyable... the Ahab scene with Lilly. First, Picard was _right_ about not blowing up the Enterprise. Launch escape pods and and Borg can get away. And there is no guarantee that blowing up the ship will destroy _all_ of the Borg. If one makes it to Earth, game over. And in blowing up the Enterprise, you've destroyed your only means of fighting the Borg. But I have lost track of how many times I have paraphrased Picard's speech, how many times I've linked to it in the ongoing war with socialist slavery. Here's my version: "We've made too many compromises already; too many retreats. They invade our cultures and we fall back. They assimilate entire societies and we fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And _I_ will make them pay for what they've done!" Picard could not possibly, by any stretch of the imagination, hate the Borg as much as I hate socialist slavers. So the Borg murdered a few tens of thousands of people. Big deal. Socialist slavers have murdered my entire world.

I do really love this movie, I’m glad to see it given the praise it deserves

Lilly is a perfect example of a strong female (of color as well) character done right.

I absolutely loved First Contact, for quite a number of reasons. For one thing, it had genuine stakes, the characters all work hard to achieve victory, and the antagonists are genuinely intimidating in a way that rarely exists in Sci-Fi Films -- The Borg here are almost like completely-competent Stormtroopers, but crossed with "bionic zombie" qualities (as Lily puts it), and the fact that they are all unwilling participants, having been assimilated rather than recruited makes them more terrifying, as does the fact that they don't have any long-range capabilities; if you can't kill them with your weapons (which they can adapt to), they're going to take you down with their own hands, many of which have been replaced with sharp instruments (and are likely cold to the touch). With that, it does a great job of using Zefram Cochrane as a perfect allegory of how we distort Historical figures, while making him a great character, himself worthy of respect in addition to being incredibly entertaining. While I do wish that the Earth-based crew got more to do in regards to plot, they did each get moments to shine, including Barkley, and I love how Cochrane tried to run when he discovered he was going to be a legend. It was a bit over-the-top, but it is an understandable response. Visually the movie is spectacular, and not only in regards to the Visual Effects (this being only John Knoll's first or second film in charge of the VFX as a whole, later doing things like the Pirates trilogy, Pacific Rim and Rogue One) -- The cinematography is some of the best of any Star Trek film, using intense camera angles at times of intensity (incorporating a semi-fisheye when the Borg are present is a nice touch), and both the production design and lighting are genuinely outstanding. I also absolutely love the musical score and own it on CD - the main theme itself is so good that I recall hearing it during a post-Gold Medal montage during an Olympic event a few years later (yes, really)! I also absolutely love the climax, with Data's double-betrayal being a uniquely triumphant moment in the film, him using a slight bit of his Anger within his still-enabled emotion chip, and I love how when he punches the container that would destroy the Borg Queen and Drones, the spewing material almost makes a screaming sound as it blasts out, as if it too was full of fury. Lastly, that scene between Picard and Lily in his ready room was absolute gold, and every line leading to his emotional outburst perfectly added to his internal fire. He tries to be civilized but is barely holding onto his inner rage and Lily sees that he's compromised, and in trying to talk sense into him, she only sets him off. I also adore the little touch on how he quotes Moby Dick to her as she starts to leave, herself using the analogy earlier, after which she confesses she never actually read it - his very subtle smirk afterwards is wonderful. I also love how the last line of the scene was about Ahab: "I guess he never knew when to quit." -- I also loved the short follow-up where she leaves him behind on the Enterprise and the escape pods leave, the scene of them blasting off being a surprisingly potent one. A fun fact: Supposedly, the Medieval-Borg screenplay leaked somehow, and Mad Magazine got a hold of it, and their Star Trek First Contact spoof was made using that, meaning that they literally spoofed the wrong version of the movie.. (This was mentioned by Braga in the Commentary)

I just wished that the space battle against the cube was shown more. They designed new ships just for this movie, and we barely get to see them.

One of the best sci-fi films ever made. The stakes couldn't have been higher, and the plot was just genius.

This star trek movie had a alien franchise feel to it almost. The green lightning on the ship and just the overall tone of the film. This is definitely sci fi horror.

Tough little ship

I used to watch First Contact the most on VHS as a kid. It has a wonderful balancing of tones, especially with regards to the maturity of the themes while retaining an optimistic outlook on the future. Still one of my favourite Star Trek movies

When it first came out I didn't like the idea of the Borg Queen, but I've come to appreciate it more over time. What still irks me is her interest in Data in First Contact. In Best of Both Worlds part 2, Locutus designates data as obsolete from the Borg POV. By First Contact he's not upgraded all that much beyond his emotion chip, so why would the Borg Queen care about him, much less seek to convert him.

I made my eight year old, Star Wars fanboi son sit and watch this film. I assured him he would like it. When it was over he turned to me and said "That was awesome". I cried a tear of joy. Victory.

I attended the Royal Premier in Leicester Square dressed as Will Riker, Brent Spiner & Jonathan Frakes gave a brief talk before the movie started! Definitely the Best TNG Movie, "Great Times!"🤔😁👍

This is undoubtedly the best of the TNG films. My younger self was irritated with what I saw as disrespecting continuity: the Borg had seemingly been dealt with by the end of the series, Picard had dealt with what the Borg had done to him, the Defiant was seemingly presented as Worf's ship, and both the Borg Queen and Data being able to turn off his emotion chip seemed silly. However, I've come to appreciate the film so much more since then, and the reasoning behind many of these decisions and the reality of how severe trauma really can be only heighten that appreciation.

Great review as always, Dave. I can add a couple of details about a late (but not final) draft of that script. In the 1990s, my best friend was a props and collectibles dealer, and had a lot of connections in Hollywood and on the Paramount lot. We were actually lucky enough to tour the DS9 sets and also be on set during the filming of one of the Enterprise-B scenes in “Star Trek: Generations.” And several months before First Contact was released, my friend got a late draft of the script that was pretty close to what the final film turned out to be, with a couple of exceptions. The main difference was with the Zefram Cochrane character, who was much more of an unstable drunk in the draft that I read. What struck me - especially considering how movies are made today - is that in the draft I read, the Lily character (played by Alfrie Woodard) was shown to be the main inventor of the warp drive. Zefram Cochrane was portrayed as more of a frontman who took the credit, but Lily was actually the brains behind the invention. I can only assume that the writers came to their senses and correctly realized that Trek fans wouldn’t like seeing a figure as iconic to Trek lore as Zefram Cochrane being shown as a mere fraud who just took credit for her work. So they tweaked the script to the final version, where Cochrane was definitely flawed and maybe a bit unstable, but he was still undeniably the genius who invented warp drive. Had the movie been made today, they no doubt would have doubled down on the whole idea of Lily being the true inventor of warp drive, and Cochrane would have been sidelined as little more than a clownish fool who could only wish to be as awesome as his strong female superior. Very glad they changed that. The other difference is that the Defiant was pretty much destroyed in the battle with the Borg Cube at the beginning of the movie. The copy of the script I read had Worf and the surviving crew being beamed off just before the Borg hit it, and described the Defiant as a gutted, burning wreck. No doubt the producers of Deep Space Nine weren’t too happy about that, so the final version of the movie just says that Defiant was damaged, but could be recovered. I miss the days when my friend’s connections got us access to things like that. Although considering the state of Star Trek today, I doubt I’d be thrilled to get my hands on an advance script of any current Trek production.

First Contact and Wrath of Khan are the high water marks of the Star Trek films, no question. I love them both.

Star Trek: First Contact was one of my best cinema experiences. Opening night with a cinema full of fellow Star Trek fans. I remember everyone cheering and clapping [myself included] when the aliens at the end revealed themselves to be Vulcans.

Back when Star Trek was written by people who respected the lore. Also seeing a serious Federation fleet is still cool.

It’s a evergreen movie still holds up

The line must be drawn HERE! This far..no further!!! ..and IIII will make them pay for what they’ve done!!

This is the NexGen version of “Wrath Of Khan.” Just as most people didn’t totally love the first film they had to really bring it for the second film, and they did it.

One big diversion from the original series was that they made Zephrim Cochran from Earth, instead of Alpha Centuri.

100% agree with your video. For me, this was my favorite Star Trek movie. My dad and I used to brainstorm how we’d beat the Borg. Lots of good memories around these times. 😊

First Contact was Wrath of Khan for the 90's. One of the few Star Trek movies you don't have to be a Trekkie or Trekker to enjoy.

The best Star Trek film ever made.

I’m not a Star Trek fan as much as I am into sci-fi. But the Borg have always been intriguing to me. I enjoyed First Contact greatly. Pleasantly surprised.

I was never a Star Trek fan and never saw an episode of tng until my friends dragged me to the theatre to see this and boy did this turn me into a fan quickly. The movie is just that good where I didn’t really need to see previous tngs but it did help to have my friends give me a quick drunken summary on the way to the theatre. It’s pacing is close to perfect, acting was great, effect were great, story was great.

Agreed. First Contact is incredible on so many levels and holds up extremely well today.

My most memorable modern startrek movie 🍿 I still think it’s one of the best sci-fi films ever made.

Hail Dave, you've summed it up very nicely and I pretty much agree with you about this film. Saw it in the cinema in 1996 and loved it. I feel it's aged well and as you say strikes a perfect balance between light and dark moments. What also becomes apparent is how close as friends the cast were. Frakes ' nickname was "Two takes Frakes" probably because he had the genuine support and goodwill of the cast.

I know alot of people say it's to much of an action movie but it makes the Borg and how they work scary I always enjoy watching it

Yep, by far my favorite Trek movie. We'll never have it again.

I remember seeing the Enterprise-E on the big screen for the 1st time in '96. What a beauty to behold!

This isn’t part of my programming. I’m a doctor, not a doorstop.

After the Wrath of Khan, First Contact is easily the best Star Trek movie to date. I remember going to see as a birthday treat and it did not disappoint. To this day i can still remember how excited i felt before going to see it. It's story, effects, music and CGI are just superb. I also love the creepiness, something we seldom see in Star Trek. That scene in the Jefferies tube still sends shivers down my spine. My only criticism is that it felt a little short. I would have loved more scenes with the Borg assimilating the Enterprise, and the space battle could have been a little longer. The Borg truly are one of if not the scattiest villains in the entire franchise. It is hard to believe that this movie is almost thirty years old. But it is still vastly superior to most modern movies, Star Trek or otherwise.

I was fortunate enough to see this when it released in cinemas. My dad was a Trek fan so we saw this and Generations there. I wasn't really into Star Trek so couldn't appreciate or understand the characters. But I do remember enjoying it. Fortunately I started watching TNG this year and I'm enjoying that too. So hopefully it'll bring me greater appreciation for it when I watch FC again. Plus it's like having my old man next to me again while I watch it.

First Contact is the only ST film I like enough to watch over and over and over.

I remember being so sad and shocked in Generations when Kirk died and when all of the rest of the Enterprise blow up. My young mind couldn’t comprehend. They should have had the balls to keep it all that way, IMO

First contqct was a great story. Especially how it later tied in into the enterprise series. A shame current trek chooses di ver sity over quality story

I first saw this on a pirate VHS copy in Thailand. Even with Thai subtitles and less than perfect picture it blew me away. I'm not afraid to say I had tears in my eyes when Zefram Cochrane made first contact with the Vulcans. He represented humanity perfectly for that time. Flawed but with a good heart and in need of some guidance.

This was definitely my favorite next gen movie out of the bunch

Ive never really got the criticism of the Borg Queen. First of all, the character is not the Borg Queen - she is never referred to as such by anyone in the film. This is just a name applied afterwards. I get the argument that giving them a face and a personality reduces the fear somewhat, but her role and position is spelt out in the movie. Data asks if she is their leader and she scoffs at his limited comprehension and tells him that she *is* the Borg. She is a gestalt entity, the Collective in one body. I find it remarkable how few people seem to get this. Likewise, I see her as an adaptation for dealing with humanity just as Picard says when discussing his assimilation as Locutus, a pseudo-individual within a hive mind. The concept works in this film but they went way too far with it subsequent TV series (looking at you Voyager).

Half this movie is great and half trash.... The trash part being way too much time in the past, and the Borg queen which effectively NERFED the Borg

I saw First Contact twice at the cinema in 1996 - first with my brother and then with my best mate. When it came out to buy I watched it so many times I wore out the VHS cassette. I'm so glad I wasn't the only one who was blown away by First Contact.

The last great Trek movie. Just had everything. "Don't you people have to pee". "Leak, oh, I get it".

I was twelve years old and a huge Trekker when FC was released. What a great time to be alive when Trek was at it’s best. 1996 also saw the release of Trials And Tribbelations and the 30th anniversary of Star Trek. So this movie was in a sense a lightning in a bottle. The people behind Star Trek were highly motivated. I mean it was the 30th anniversary and they did all that wonderful stuff! If Trek would have ended in 1996 it would’ve been hailed as the greatest SciFi franchise of all time. That’s how good the year 1996 was for Trek

"Assimilate this!" -Best line ever

Story, soundtrack, CGI, characters...all I can say is, that this one of my favourite Star Trek movies and Sci-Fi movies in general.

First contact was one of the first and only movies I went to see at the theater multiple times. Later in 1997, I fell rather ill during the holidays. I received a VHS copy as an early Christmas present and I remember the joy it gave me. I would just listen to it even when I was too weak to keep my eyes open.

They turned the borg into Zombies in first contact

First Contact is the very best ST film. It is an excellent film in its own right.

"I am not a merry man!" - Warf....indeed as one of Robin Hoods merry men.

First Contact is brilliant in so many ways! I loved the breaking of the 4th wall moment when Zefram Cochrane says: "And you people, you're all astronauts... on some kind of Star Trek." That got a good laugh from the audience in the theater. Also, James Cromwell (who was already a Star Trek veteran at the time, much like David Warner) was not the studio's first choice to play Zefram Cochrane, they wanted Tom Hanks who was a Star Trek fan himself. Hanks unfortunately was unavailable at the time because he was busy filming "That Thing You Do". Can you imagine Tom Hanks in a Star Trek film? That would have just been incredible!

Funny story. After seeing the movie 4 times at the cinema when it first came out I then went and bought the soundtrack because I couldn’t wait for the movie to come out on VCR and DVD. I used to listen to that soundtrack every single day until the movie was released in retail. I could see the movie in my head and knew what was happening and the dialog going on. Still one of my favourite sci-fi movies of all time along with generations. I also found generations to be more of a TV show than a movie.

I saw First Contact on opening night as a 14 year old, dressed up in full makeup with my Klingon fan group. It was a memorable night for me all around, and along with Star Trek VI remains my favorite ST movies.

"They invade our space, and we fall back, they assimilate entire worlds, and we fall back. No more. The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And I, will make them PAY FOR WHAT THEY'VE DONE!!!" Epic, truly Shakespearian.

This is my favorite of the next generation films.

That's what they came here to do, stop first contact! I so love that moment of realization.

A brilliantly efficient and tightly written script. So much happens in the first sequence alone

"First Contact" is my favorite of the Star Trek movies. Troy's drunk scene, three Queen's interaction with Data, and Picard's outburst are the best. As for the Queen being a central controller of the Borg, "You imply disparity where none exists. I am the Borg."

It's my favourite Star Trek movie, always a good watch and has aged fairly well.

Glad to see I’m not the only one who memorizes entire Star Trek scripts. First contact and undiscovered country are definitely on that list

My first and favorite Startrek movie.

Certainly the best TNG movie and in my top three of all of them. One scene that I love is between Cochrane, Riker, and a VERY drunk Deanna Troi. Troi: It’s a primitive culture…. I’m just trying to blend in. Riker: ‘Oh you’re blended alright.’ Nice to see Marina Sirtis do some comic relief.

saw this in the theater on my 17th birthday... still my favorite Star Trek movie.

Star Trek First Contact to me has “Eye Candy “ Special Effects,Great Acting,Story Editing & music by the Great Jerry Goldsmith! The Director knocked this Star Trek movie out of the park! Out of all 12 films this one is my absolute favorite.

I still remember watching this in the cinema when I was 13 years old. Damn near wet myself when i saw the Defiant laying into the cube. Truely the golden age of Trek ❤

This is the best Star Trek movie for me. The start especially embraces the reason I loved Star Trek...military Scifi.

One of my favourite Star Trek movies.