There’s not a cast member from the original series of “Star Trek” in sight as the cast of “The Next Generation” take center stage in “Star Trek: First Contact.” Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) awakens from a nightmare about his previous assimiliation by the deadly Borg, a race of cybernetic organisms that force other species into their collective and connect them to their hive mind – a painful and gruesome experience for which the Enterprise captain has been seeking revenge. Upon hearing word of a new Borg attack on Earth, Picard disobeys direct orders from Starfleet to not interfere and pursues the enemy spacecraft, an engagement that reveals the species has completely taken over the planet by going back in time and changing history. The Enterprise follows suit and arrives in the past on April 4, 2063, the day before humanity’s first encounter with alien life after Zefram Cochrane’s (James Cromwell) historic warp drive flight – an event that the Borg prevented from happening in the alternate timeline. Considered by many to be the best “Star Trek” film since “The Wrath of Khan,” “First Contact” was especially lauded for its makeup and special effects in bringing the Borg to life, with Alice Krige turning her grotesque Borg Queen into one of the sexiest villains to ever grace the “Star Trek” universe – and a character created because the writers were having difficulty coming up with dialogue for what was going to be the Borg Central Computer. Jonathan Frakes (Riker) calls the shots behind the camera, earning the nickname “Two Takes Frakes” for his efficient directing style.
Star Trek: First Contact
