Movie · 1996 · Science Fiction, Action, Adventure, Thriller · 1h 51m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 6.2/10 (197K ratings)
Resistance is futile.
Overview
The Borg, a relentless race of cyborgs, are on a direct course for Earth. Violating orders to stay away from the battle, Captain Picard and the crew of the newly-commissioned USS Enterprise E pursue the Borg back in time to prevent the invaders from changing Federation history and assimilating the galaxy.
Ratings
Curator score: 6.2/10
IMDb: 7.6/10
Letterboxd: 3.68/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 93%
Metacritic: 70
TMDB: 7.3/10
Director
Jonathan Frakes
Production
Paramount Pictures
Cast
Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, James Cromwell, Alfre Woodard, Alice Krige, Neal McDonough, Dwight Schultz, Cameron Oppenheimer, Robert Picardo, Adam Scott, Ray Uhler, Eric Steinberg, Joey Anaya, Don Stark, Patti Yasutake
Where to watch
fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential
Curator Review
Verdict
A muscular, crowd-pleasing Star Trek film that works as both a Borg thriller and a character study for Picard. It moves fast, has strong stakes, and balances action with franchise lore better than most big-screen Trek entries.
Best for
Star Trek fans who want the franchise at its most propulsive
Viewers who like sci-fi action with a serious emotional core
Fans of ensemble adventure films that still center one great lead performance
People who enjoy time-travel plots with clean momentum
Skip if
You want a purely optimistic, exploratory Star Trek tone
You dislike franchise continuity and fan-service callbacks
You prefer quieter, more contemplative science fiction
You are not interested in action-heavy blockbuster pacing
Overview
First Contact is the rare franchise sequel that understands what kind of movie it wants to be from the opening minutes. It gets to the point quickly, escalates cleanly, and turns the Borg into a genuinely frightening engine for suspense rather than just a familiar villain. The result is a Star Trek film with real forward drive and a surprisingly strong sense of urgency.
Worth noting
What makes it stick is how well it uses Picard’s trauma. The movie is not just about saving Earth; it is about a man trying to outrun a wound that has already changed him. That gives the action a sharper edge, and it helps the film feel more emotionally focused than many effects-driven sci-fi adventures of its era.
Bottom line
It is also one of the better examples of Trek translating to the big screen without losing the ensemble’s chemistry. The time-travel detour adds texture, the production has a polished mid-90s blockbuster sheen, and the whole thing lands with the confidence of a studio adventure that knows its audience. It is not the most philosophical Trek film, but it may be the most efficiently entertaining one.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Will Menaker (3.5★) · 578 likes
The one that kicks ass.
This is the hardest Trek movie outside of II. Picard straight up smokes a couple Borg with a hologram Tommy Gunn like Albert Finney in Miller's Crossing. Credit to the boy Jonathan Frakes for directing this one. Probably the most successful because it gets that it's a movie and has a plot that starts right away, steadily raises the stakes and keeps the momentum and action going all the way to the end. A lot… more
Jamelle Bouie (4★) · 464 likes
We've made too many compromises already; too many retreats. They invade our space and we fall back. They assimilate entire worlds and we fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn here! This far, no further!
Matt Singer (3.5★) · 348 likes
Probably looks more like a Very Special Episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation than it should, but on the scale of Very Special Episodes, it’s a pretty special one.
I like James Cromwell as Zefram Cochrane, the reluctant engineer who invents warp technology, and Alfre Woodard as his assistant Lily, who has several excellent and intense scenes with Patrick Stewart about the fate of humanity and his blinding hatred of the Borg. (I don’t think I’ve seen this movie… more
Sethsreviews (3.5★) · 320 likes
Watching a Star Trek project without my dad by my side, telling me endless facts about the production and the franchise feels illegal, I must say.
pd187 (4.5★) · 280 likes
"computer, twenty first century clothing!" (everybody gets big candyman coats)
this is a better james cameron movie than every terminator sequel but i still cant believe deanna troi doesnt know about tequila