“Not a Trekkie? Well, as they say in the new film, Star Trek: First Contact, “Resistance is futile.”
Get out your bizarre yellow poison that kills all living critters: it’s time to battle with the seemingly unstoppable Borg. For those who do not diligently watch Star Trek on TV, The Borg is an alien race that reproduces by turning all organic life with which it comes into contact into other drone-like Borgs.
As you know if you watch the TV show, Captain Jean-Luc Picard (played by Patrick Stewart) has a twisted advantage. Picard was briefly a Borg himself, but before the temptress Borg Queen could make him her companion, the crew saved him. The encounter has since left Picard with painful memories that haunt him as the movie opens.
The special effects in “First Contact” put “ID4” to shame. The makeup work on the alien characters was unbelievably excellent just as it has been in past Star Trek flicks. The all-time star is the Borg Queen. Played by Alice Krige, the queen bee seductress steals the show with her metal vacuum cleaner hose hair. Her body armor clamps to her breasts with these diggy claw things. Ouch!
But that’s really the most gripping part of the movie. I won’t tell you the plot, but it’s predictable. Unless you regularly attend Star Trek conventions and own a pair of Spock ears, it will be hard to comprehend the subtle nuances. Like, every time they say, “Engage!” everyone laughs. Could someone please explain?
There are some great moments, though. My second favorite character was the neurotic Zefram Cochrane (James Cromwell, who also won an Academy Award for his performance as the Farmer in “Babe”). When we first meet him, he’s drunkenly dancing to a strange jukebox, not exactly what you’d expect of the godlike icon who changes history by inventing the warp-drive.
In another great scene, Lily Sloane (Alfre Woodard) plays Cochrane’s companion, motivating Captain Picard with an emotional Captain Ahab lecture. She tries to get him to blow up the ship, killing all the Borgs, but that’s not enough for him. He wants to kill them with his bare hands. Come on, these are Borgs, not Moby Dick! You can’t exactly spear them with a whaling harpoon! Puh-lease!”
