Star Trek: First Contact proved to be the gold standard that Star Trek: The Next Generation's movie franchise could never top. Directed by Jonathan Frakes, Star Trek: First Contact premiered on November 22, 1996. Grossing over $92 million at the North American box office, Star Trek: First Contact was the highest-earning of the four Star Trek: The Next Generation movies. First Contact is also the most popular TNG big-screen adventure among Star Trek fans and is considered one of the best overall Star Trek movies.
Star Trek Generations ushered in the Star Trek: The Next Generation movie franchise in 1994, with Captain James T. Kirk (WIlliam Shatner) passing the torch to Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). Star Trek: First Contact did better business than Generations and was a hit with critics and audiences. However, TNG's movie dominance would take a downturn. 1998's Star Trek: Insurrection was less well-received than First Contact, and 2002's disastrous Star Trek: Nemesis killed the TNG movies for good. Nearly 30 years later, Star Trek: First Contact still shines the brightest among the films about Captain Picard's Starship Enterprise.
Fighting The Borg Turned Captain Picard Into An Action Hero
Star Trek: First Contact upped the action ante and delivered a whole new Star Trek: The Next Generation movie experience. First Contact was no glorified episode of TNG, it was a Star Trek spectacle worthy of the big screen. Captain Picard's battle against the Borg infecting the USS Enterprise-E showed a new side to him, with Jean-Luc gripped with madness and a single-minded fury to stop the cybernetic villains. First Contact boasts thrilling action sequences, including Picard, Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn), and Mr. Hawk (Neal McDonough) fighting the Borg in deep space on the Enterprise's hull.
Star Trek: Insurrection and Star Trek: Nemesis continued presenting Captain Picard as a phaser-toting warrior, but the personal animosity Jean-Luc felt toward the Borg gave Star Trek: First Contact more urgency and verve. Picard's mania added an intriguing new wrinkle to the wise and moral starship Captain, and it was fascinating to see Jean-Luc struggle with his morality with the help of Lily Sloane (Alfre Woodward), one of the best guest stars of the Star Trek movies. Star Trek: First Contact is a thrilling roller coaster delivering a Star Trek: The Next Generation experience unlike any other.
The Borg Queen Was So Impactful, She Continued In Star Trek's TV Series
Star Trek: First Contact bringing the Borg, the most popular villains from Star Trek: The Next Generation, to the big screen was a must-see event in and of itself, but the movie's masterstroke was creating the Borg Queen (Alice Krige). The Borg Queen was instantly iconic and was a menace unlike any other seen in previous Star Trek movies. The slinky, robotic Alice Krige infused the Borg Queen with malevolence, intelligence, and uncanny sexuality that made her a distinct and unique Star Trek antagonist, and a direct threat to Captain Picard and Data.
The Borg Queen made such an impact that she did something no other Star Trek movie villain has done by appearing in multiple Star Trek TV series. The Borg Queen (Susanna Thompson, Alice Krige) returned to become the arch enemy of Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) in Star Trek: Voyager, and a different incarnation of the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching, Allison Pill) became both a threat and an ally in Star Trek: Picard season 2. Alice Krige's original Borg Queen was finally defeated by Admiral Picard and the USS Enterprise-D's crew at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 3, finishing what Star Trek: First Contact began.
Audiences Saw The Pivotal First Contact That Made Star Trek's Future Possible
While Captain Picard fights the Borg on the USS Enterprise-E, arguably the more pivotal story in Star Trek: First Contact happens on Earth. Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and his away team making sure that Dr. Zephram Cochrane (James Cromwell) launches his starship, the Phoenix, to achieve Mankind's first warp flight ensures the origin of Star Trek itself. Star Trek: First Contact shows the monumental first meeting between humans and Vulcans resulting from humans achieving warp travel, which is the moment Star Trek's optimistic future is built upon.
Star Trek: First Contact delivers an ingenious retcon that it's because of Star Trek: The Next Generation's crew that Star Trek as we know it came to be.
Commander Riker, Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), and Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge's (LeVar Burton) efforts to inspire Zephram Cochrane to become the visionary history remembers provide a crucial counterpoint and welcome levity to Captain Picard's war with the Borg. Star Trek: First Contact delivers an ingenious retcon that it's because of Star Trek: The Next Generation's crew that Star Trek as we know it came to be. Zephram Cochrane finally finding the courage to fly the Phoenix to warp speed may be Star Trek: First Contact's B-story, but it's the foundation of Star Trek, and it makes First Contact one of the most important movies in the overall Star Trek saga.
Everything Came Together To Create TNG's Most Satisfying Movie
Star Trek: First Contact was the first Star Trek: The Next Generation movie focusing solely on Captain Picard and his crew, without the benefit of iconic characters from Star Trek: The Original Series. Hence, First Contact stacked the deck in its favor by featuring the Borg and the reliable time travel trope. But what gives Star Trek: First Contact its magic is that all of the elements came together wonderfully.
|
Star Trek: The Next Generation Movie |
Release Date |
Director |
Box Office |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Star Trek Generations |
November 18, 1994 |
David Carson |
$75,671,125 |
|
Star Trek: First Contact |
November 22, 1996 |
Jonathan Frakes |
$92,027,888 |
|
Star Trek: Insurrection |
December 11, 1998 |
Jonathan Frakes |
$70,187,658 |
|
Star Trek: Nemesis |
December 13, 2002 |
Stuart Baird |
$43,254,409 |
In Jonathan Frakes, First Contact had an experienced director versed in Star Trek and beloved by his cast and crew. Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore wrote a crackerjack script with memorably quippy, quotable dialogue. First Contact benefitted from tremendous guest stars in James Cromwell, Alfre Woodard, and Alice Krige. And Star Trek: The Next Generation's cast was allowed to shine, with a winning mix of humor, awe, and wonder balancing the gritty action in space between Picard and the Borg.
Star Trek: First Contact boasts a 93% Fresh rating and an 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Star Trek: First Contact was bolstered by a unified vision for the film that brought it all together. Star Trek: Insurrection struggled with confusion over whether Captain Picard breaking from Starfleet to help the Ba'ku was the right thing to do. Star Trek: Nemesis had a director, Stuart Baird, and a screenwriter, John Logan, who were Star Trek outsiders. Star Trek: First Contact is the landmark achievement of the Star Trek: The Next Generation movie franchise that holds up with repeat viewing, and it's a milestone TNG's movies never matched again.
