Star Trek’s Greatest TNG Film Misses The Total Level Of Star Trek

Star Trek: First Contact is the perfect film to characteristic the Subsequent Era crew, however it misses the purpose of the philosophy of Star Trek. After six blockbuster films starring the forged of Star Trek: The Authentic Sequence, it was time for a brand new part of Trek on the massive display. 1994’s Star Trek Generations bridged the hole by that includes a team-up between James T. Kirk and Captain Picard, however the first true standalone Subsequent Era movie was launched two years later with First Contact. The film was a smashing success, and was a giant change for the collection.

Two extra Star Trek: The Subsequent Era films can be launched after First Contact, however neither may attain the heights of its predecessor. They’d be the ultimate Star Trek films within the unique continuity, and it will take practically a decade for the franchise to return to the massive display in J.J. Abrams’ 2009 reboot. Whereas First Contact is a beloved piece of the Star Trek cinematic universe, it is not with out its flaws in each execution and philosophy. Maybe most significantly, the film stumbles on the subject of understanding what makes Star Trek such a singular science fiction franchise.

There’s No Denying What First Contact Will get Proper

After the lackluster installment that was Star Trek Generations, First Contact was actually a breath of recent air. Not solely did it enable the crew from The Subsequent Era to essentially shine, however it represented a wealth of latest prospects. In spite of everything, the flicks that includes the crew of The Authentic Sequence stretched on for a decade-and-a-half, and there was no purpose to suppose that the brand new Enterprise crew could not match that feat. First Contact additionally well leaned into the Subsequent Gen period’s strongest new villain, The Borg, and allowed them to flourish with an even bigger price range.

What First Contact finally ends up being is a wonderful sci-fi motion movie with acquainted characters and areas from the Star Trek franchise. The Nineteen Nineties CGI was spectacular for the time, and the scope and scale of the story actually feels greater than any mere two-part episode of The Subsequent Era. The subsequent movie, Rebellion, was a noticeable downgrade when it comes to scale, and it actually helps to level out what made First Contact such an amazing motion movie. The plotting is crisp, and the stakes are fairly excessive for the reason that crew is tasked with saving the longer term.

From a design perspective, First Contact can be practically flawless, and it enhanced the visuals from the present and tailored them for the massive display. The flicks naturally needed to be greater, and the manufacturing upped the ante in each division, from lighting, to costumes and make-up, and even a sweeping rating by Jerry Goldsmith. It helped to set the tone for what the Subsequent Era films may appear to be, a lot in the identical means that the esthetics of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan influenced the Kirk period.

The Philosophy Of Star Trek Is Thrown Out The Window

The Star Trek franchise is a utopian sci-fi story that imagines a future by which humanity has transcended all of the evils of society. Whereas the exhibits and films have explored how that concept is not fully infallible, it’s nonetheless the tenet behind the unique period of Star Trek that concluded with the cancellation of Enterprise in 2005. Star Trek: First Contact largely ignores these beliefs on the subject of its characters, and turns the enlightened Captain Jean Luc Picard into an motion hero with little or no consideration for who he was throughout the seven seasons of The Subsequent Era.

One of many film’s themes recollects the trauma Picard confronted when he was captured by the Borg in “The Better of Each Worlds”. The evil inflicted upon him weighs closely on his psyche, and he holds a grudge. This might be pure for another person, however First Contact makes Jean Luc Picard into an ultraviolent, Ahab-like determine who needs nothing greater than revenge towards the Borg. That is utterly out of character, and he beforehand confirmed within the season 5 episode “I, Borg” that he would not destroy all the collective regardless of having the chance.

Picard’s trauma may have been a captivating theme, and it isn’t not like The Wrath of Khan. The titular villain pushes Kirk right into a no-win scenario, and it assessments him to his very core. Nonetheless, Star Trek II confirmed that Kirk caught to his morals it doesn’t matter what, whereas First Contact transforms Picard right into a raving madman who mows down Borg drones with a machine gun. Making Star Trek: First Contact an motion movie was a wise alternative, however it should not have come on the expense of the philosophy of the heroes and the ethical basis of all the franchise.