Star Trek: First Contact 
Our first time travel piece, one that bridges the 21st and 24th Centuries; the nature of Cochrane’s encampment actually makes the temporal gap seem wider, since the settlement is so low-tech and ramshackle. Since I’ll be watching this again - far, far down the line - I’ll not pay much attention to Picard, Data, or the Borg, since we’ll get more mileage out of them when they’re in the right temporal context, so to speak.
I like how the 21st Century Humans are portrayed, I’ll say that much. They’re nicely balanced between being rougher, more suspicious and more desperate than the
Enterprise crew - appropriate for tired survivors of a widespread conflict - and being just like the Starfleet Humans; particularly when the latter (well, Picard) show that they're just as capable of desperation and misplaced aggression after all. This theme of commonality is definitely a more intelligent handling of the relationship between "present" and "future" Humans than we've had (or will have) on other occasions.
Lily Sloane is the best character, very well-realized and well used in her interaction with Picard. Her immunity to the Starfleet chain of command, and more importantly to the personal charisma of Picard, lets her effectively challenge him and call him out on his mistakes. The most interesting and arguably most important moment in the film is when her wonder at, and sardonic sense of distance from, the future world Picard represents is broken by her realization that he’s something she in fact finds familiar – someone who was hurt and angrily desires to find a misplaced satisfaction in striking back. Oh, she thinks, I know you after all. It’s a great implicit reference to the recent world war and the turmoil her people have been through without actually distracting us with the details, and it collapses the bubble of supposed 24th Century distinction without shattering anything fundamental to
Star Trek’s positive future. It brings her humanity and Picard’s together, for two different meanings of the word. She recognises Picard and his demons because they’re universal, and you don’t build a better future by hiding from your problems or thinking that you’re above them (keep this in mind when we move onto Cochrane).
The heart of the film, which elevates it above being merely a fun action-adventure, is this conference lounge scene between the two of them; Picard and Sloane are great together (Alfre Woodard played against Patrick Stewart very well); I also think it’s wonderful that they had the male lead become close to a woman who was
not his love interest. The fact that Picard will remember her as a friend and advisor, not a lover, is actually a very refreshing touch. Okay, they did dance a waltz, but that was Picard blending in while he prepared to machine-gun a pair of drones, not anything to take seriously.
Cochrane is good too; if not so provocative a character then the idea behind him is one I like. Beneath the legend is a rather wearying man who thinks that alcohol and attractive women are the best things in life and who simply wants to get rich. Riker’s general bemusement throughout is great (Riker’s at his best when he’s simply
enjoying life and its absurdities), and the same goes for Troi getting drunk as the only way to connect with Cochrane (drunk Troi is genuinely funny). There’s a great tension between Cochrane’s uncaring, freedom-loving ways and the sense that he’s penned in by future history, trapped by fate and by the perspectives of others. He's piloting the ship that breaks away and opens up the horizon, but he's having to accept that he himself is stepping into a suffocating, entirely fictional role pre-prepared for him. Apparently he does eventually resolve the contradiction, albeit because Riker told him what conclusion he should come to a decade prior...
Cochrane actually has a fascinating subplot in that it's a strange reflection of Picard's arc. Both are facing an idealized 24th Century vision of Humanity; Picard clings to it and refuses to face his problems because he's using it as a shield: "we're not like you, we're evolved beyond that"; while Cochrane violently rejects it and runs as far as he can away from it. Eventually, Picard has to accept that he's just a man and Cochrane has to accept the same - only they have to accept this in different ways. Picard becomes more self-aware, accepting that he's as capable of losing himself to "negative" emotions as anyone of any era, and Cochrane learns to be less self conscious, to just be himself and not worry what others will make of him. They're all just people, nothing more, nothing less.
At the end, when Lily Sloane and Picard exchange goodbyes, they describe how they envy one another, for the worlds they get to live in. Again, for all the “evolved Human” superiority that could be annoying in early
TNG, it’s handled very well here. This film isn’t the oh-so-enlightened 24th Century talking down to the 21st (if anything, it reversed that dynamic by showing Lily Sloane to have a clearer grip on certain essential matters of the heart than Picard), and instead it chooses to celebrate the shared achievements and linked humanity of these two points on the journey - three actually, as a 21st Century Human and a 24th Century Human referenced the words of a 19th Century Human. That’s a truly positive message of future development, and this is why
First Contact is a lot more than just an action film. It’s a good piece of
Star Trek and a rewarding place to start this journey. The message feels good, and isn't thrown in your face either.
Other than the “Ahab” scene, the best scene is the First Contact itself, which manages to be stirring and emotional without being overblown; there’s a charming simplicity to it. Again, I’d say that this film shows a real humility toward “beginnings” and “the past” that really serves it well.
Definitely one of the best Trek films. Surprisingly subtle for what seems like simply a cyber-zombie action piece.
Continuity:
We don’t see much of Earth at all; we’re told there are only a few functioning governments, and we’re limited in what we see to one run-down camp in the woods, but we’re also told that fifty years later the planet will be a pretty great place to live. We’re told that the Vulcans had no interest in Earth until they realized Humans had broken the warp barrier; reinforcing that this is the moment it supposedly all changes for a civilization, even if
The Sundered: Castaways was rather more cynical on that point.
First Appearances of Things That Are Important:
Time travel (the nature of this run-through means we’ll be experiencing quite a few temporal loops that we’ll later get to close, which ought to make this more fun).
Klingons: "I am a Klingon". Indeed you are, Worf. Humans will be meeting a fair number of races. (There were several Klingons among the drones, too. I guess this Borg ship assimilated a Klingon outpost or two before heading into the Federation).
Borg: Here, without the original context, it really gives a sense that it's a hostile universe out there, that fleets of starships are sometimes required to hold back these vast dangers from the stars, e.g. cyber-zombies that "assimilate whole worlds". Contrast with the small settlement in the woods that represents Humans in this film. On the other hand, Humans go from that settlement to
having fleets of starships that turn back the cyber-zombies.
The Vulcans: Introduced in a low-key way that nonetheless has a lot of gravitas. They seem friendly, if a little uptight. Cochrane manages to visibly startle them, which is quite impressive.
Next Time:
The Lives of Dax: “First Steps”. The Humans aren’t the only new protégés of the Vulcans. We’ll be off to the conservative and isolationist planet, Trill.
