“Star Trek: First Contact,” directed by Jonathan Frakes and released in 1996, is the eighth feature film in the Star Trek franchise and the second to star the cast of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” This installment is celebrated for its compelling storyline, memorable characters, and successful blend of action, drama, and science fiction.

The film follows Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the crew of the USS Enterprise-E as they confront their old enemies, the Borg, a cybernetic species bent on assimilating other civilizations into their collective. The plot is set into motion when the Borg launch a direct assault on Earth. In a desperate battle, the Borg create a temporal vortex to travel back in time to the mid-21st century, intending to prevent humanity’s first contact with an alien species and assimilate Earth before the Federation is ever formed.