Captain Ahab chases his White Whale (Star Trek: First Contact (DVD))

Member Name: sewbizzie

Product:	Star Trek: First Contact (DVD)
Date:	17/07/09 (109 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent acting, great story,

Disadvantages: None from me or hubby

From the title of this review some of you may have thought I was going to review Moby Dick but if you have watched this film then you will understand the reference or if you have not watched it yet then do look out for it.

First Contact is part of the Star Trek series and we see Patrick Stewart playing the role of Captain Jean Luc Picard. At the start of the film he is having a dream about when he was taken by the Borg and turned into one of them. He soon awakes from this dream and finds Star Fleet are asking him to take his ship to an area where they would like them to watch that things are still quiet. When they arrive in this area they find a problem.

They arrive to find Wharf and his new ship fighting and trying to destroy a Borg ship, the Enterprise helps and the ship is destroyed and we see Wharf's ship badly damaged so he is beamed back aboard the Enterprise. After this they notice that Earth has changed and it looks like it has been taken over completely by Borg. Picard orders the Enterprise to follow the Borg ship and they find they are taken back to the 20th century and have to stop the Borg taking over.

To stop the Borg they have to find Dr Cochran who was the first man to make warp speed and be noticed by Alien life form and as the Borg have attacked their home the ship is no longer able to take off and make history. The team lead by Number 1 is beamed down to find Dr Cochran and help him fix his ship. Trouble is happening back on the Enterprise though as they soon find the ship has been taken over by the Borg and Data has been taken.

Will Number 1 and his crew be able to help Dr Cochran make history and will Captain Picard be able to save his ship from the Borg?

I really have only touched upon the plot for this film and it is so much better than I have made it out to be. The storyline is very good and yes it is a science fiction film but it is also quite believable. So much more so than the Star Wars films and the makers of the film seemed to have looked to the future and used props and items which they believe could become a reality this is why me and hubby enjoy Star Trek so much.

Patrick Stewart does a wonderful job in the role of Captain Picard and he really does make his character so believable. I do like the fact that in this film he is holding a grudge against the Borg and he is after revenge as this shows a different side to the otherwise calm and cool Captain. He seems to just fit perfectly into the role and I think he works so well with all of the other actors and actresses in the film.

My favourite again in this film is Data who I played by Brent Spinner as he seems to take to the role of the android extremely well and I love how he is able to act without putting any emotions into the role. He is excellent and cunning in this film and he does still manage to add some humour with the addition of an emotion chip.

The film is set both on the enterprise and on Earth. The scenes on Earth were very good although it did make us out to be back to basics and living in forests without all the modern technology which we have today despite being set about 50 years away from this year. The costumes and sets on Earth were all very good and look authentic. The scenes on the Enterprise were good as well and despite being a space ship it all did look authentic and could all be real in the not to distant future. This is why I like the Star Trek films as they have not taken it too far and too much of a fantasy with the design of the ships and weapons.

The special effects in the film were very good and I did not find any places where there were visibly added back drops or dodgy sets. I think a lot of time, effort and money was put into this element of the film. The music was good throughout the film but the best song for me had to be from Dr Cochran which he played in his ship.

The DVD which we have does not have any bonus features but this was no loss to me as I am not a fan of these.

The Borg were strange creatures and at times looked quite scary so I do agree with the 12 certificate that this film has. I really cannot see why hubby finds the leader of the Borg sexy, she is repulsive and strange in my eyes! The running time of this film is 106 minutes which I found to be a great length.

We have had this DVD for quite some time and I cannot remember how much we paid for it but do try places like EBay and Amazon and you should be able to pick this up for under £5.

I do highly recommend this film, not only as I have a crush of Patrick Stewart but also as the story line is good and the acting and effects are great.

Summary: Picard must defend the Enterprise from the Borg and Number 1 must help Dr Cochran make Warp speed