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Star Trek: First Contact [Blu-ray]
(Jonathan Frakes, 1996)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: Paramount Video: Paramount Home Video
Disc: Region: FREE! (as verified by the Momitsu region FREE Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:50:44.304 Disc Size: 44,014,065,698 bytes Feature Size: 26,939,068,416 bytes Video Bitrate: 22.78 Mbps Chapters: 31 Case: Standard Blu-ray case Release date: September 22nd, 2009
Video: Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: Dolby TrueHD Audio English 3897 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3897 kbps / 24-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) DUBs:
Dolby Digital Audio French 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
Dolby Digital Audio English 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps
/ Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English, English (SDH), French, Portuguese, Spanish, none
Extras: • Commentary by Damon Lindelof and Anthony Pascale • Audio Commentary by Jonathan Frakes • Audio Commentary by screenplay writers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore • Library Computers Mode Production • Making First Contact (20:18 in SD) • The Story (15:30) • The Missile Silo (14:04) • The Deflector Dish (10:31) • From "A" to "E" (6:38) Scene Deconstruction • Borg Queen Assembly (11:10) • Escape Pod Launch (4:58) • Borg Queen's Demise (3:12) The Star Trek Universe • Jerry Goldsmith: A Tribute (19:46)• The Legacy of Zephram Cochrane (12:18) • First Contact: The Possibilities (19:31) • Industrial Light and Magic: The Next Generation (12:17 in HD!) • Greetings From the International Space Station (8:31 in HD!) • Spaceshipone's Historic Flight (4:36 in HD!) • Brent Spiner: Data and Beyond - Part 2 (7:30 in HD!) • Trek Roundtable (12:51 in HD!) • Star Fleet Academy SCISEC Brief 008 Temporal Vortex (2:35)
The Borg Collective Archive • Storyboards
1930’s Nightclub • Photo gallery Trailers • Teaser Trailer (1:21) • Theatrical Trailer (2:22) BD-LIVE enabled
Bitrate:
Description: In their second big screen adventure, the year is 2373 and the crew of the Enterprise-E has learned the Borg has returned. Because of Captain Picard's past experiences with the Borg, Starfleet has ordered the Enterprise to stay out of the fight. Realizing too much is at stake, Picard disobeys orders and takes the Enterprise to Earth. His knowledge of Borg technology leads the Federation fleet to victory, but a Borg sphere escapes and opens a temporal vortex. The Enterprise pursues and travels back to April 4, 2063; the day before the first warp flight.
The Film:
"Star Trek: First Contact'' is one of the best of the eight "Star
Trek'' films: Certainly the best in its technical credits, and among the
best in the ingenuity of its plot. I would rank it beside ``Star Trek
IV: The Voyage Home'' (1986), the one where the fate of Earth depended
on the song of the humpback whale. This time, in a screenplay that could
have been confusing but moves confidently between different levels of
the story, the crew of the Enterprise follows the evil Borgs back in
time to the day before mankind made its first flight at warp speed. The latest edition of the starship is the ``Enterprise E'' (and there are plenty of letters left in the alphabet, Capt. Picard notes ominously). It is patrolling deep space when it learns the Borgs are attacking Earth. The Enterprise is ordered to remain where it is--probably, Picard (Patrick Stewart) notes bitterly, because he was a prisoner of the Borgs some six years ago, and ``a man who was captured and assimilated by the Borg is an unstable element.'' These Borgs are an interesting race. They are part flesh, part computer, and they ``assimilate'' all the races they conquer into their collective mind, which organizes their society like a hive. There is even a queen (Alice Krige), although she is not fat and pampered like an ant or a termite, but lean, mean and a student of seduction. One of the movie's intriguing subplots involves Data (Brent Spiner), the Enterprise's android, who is captured and hooked up to a Borg assimilating machine--which fails, because it can't crack his digital defenses. Then the Queen tries some analog methods all her own. Excerpt from Roger Ebert at the Chicago Sun Times located HERE
Star Trek: First Contact looks solid on Blu-ray from Paramount - a parsec leap above the SE DVD from 2005. Aside from what may be some very minor edge-enhancment the image is flawless on the dual-layered disc with the 1 hour 50 minutes feature covering almost 27 Gig of the 44 used. CGI effects are more prominently used in the film than in previous Trek flics and they have definitely benefitted from the move to 1080P. Details is very strong and colors seem far more brilliant than SD although it never looked boosted. Skin tones seem true - contrast exhibits healthy, rich black levels and daylight scenes the are most impressive showcasing some desirable depth. This Blu-ray gives a super presentation that Trekkie fans will no doubt appreciate. NOTE: This is also part of Star Trek the Next Generation Motion Picture Collection.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :The TrueHD 5.1 track at 3897 kbps does its job and then some. Separations stretched from the subtle to the demonstrative with the space battle sequences highlighting the more aggressive features. The Jerry Goldsmith score never overtakes the narrative - doing its job with rousing efficiency. The theme music sounds absolutely perfect and crisp with good range and bass. There are two foreign language DUBs, subtitle options and m y Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.
Extras :The supplements are endless with three optional commentaries - what I believe is a new one by Damon Lindelof and Anthony Pascale. The two-person ones do not seemed 'mixed' in very well with the film soundtrack but all are entertaining in their own right - the Frakes one is a bit underwhelming considering his status as director and actor in the film. Featurettes go on and on duplicating all from the SE DVD and about 30-minutes new material in HD. Under "The Star Trek Universe" we get Industrial Light and Magic: The Next Generation featurette - about the computer effects, Greetings From the International Space Station, Spaceshipone's Historic Flight - lasting 4.5 minutes and Brent Spiner: Data and Beyond - Part 2. where teh actor discusses his preference for First Contact as his favorite of the Star Trek films. The Library Computer feature runs along with the film allowing you to access a variety of infomation like "Assimilation" or "Counselor" dependant on the scene. It's a bit cumbersome to access and I can't see most people indulging. The disc is also BD-LIVE enabled.
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze September 15th, 2009
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About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 7500 DVDs and have reviewed over 3000 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
Although I never wanted to become one of those guys who
focused 'too much' on image and sound quality - I
find HD is swiftly pushing me in that direction. So be
it, but film will always be my first love and I list my
favorites on the old YMdb site now accessible
HERE.
Samsung HPR4272 42" Plasma HDTV Gary W. Tooze
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