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The First Run

The First Runwww.thefirstrun.com
The First Run is a weekly podcast featuring lively, spirited talk about film. We'll be discussing a wide variety of films including new releases, lost classics and perhaps a controversial opinion or two. So come join us for some animated conversation, that only occasionally devolves into rudimentary chimp-like poop throwing.

Episodes

TFR Ep. 677: The Creator, Saw X, 5 Streaming Horror Picks

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt face one of the great questions of our time…why is sci-fi usually such a bummer? Who knows but they get served up another heaping helping of it via Gareth Edward’s with The Creator. Then, because Chris likes to push Matt ever closer to the edge, the guys burn away another couple hours of their lives with Saw X. Matt refuses to call it Saw 10. They give you a run-down of the big Physical Media releases, give you the Straight to DVD and Streaming Picks of...

Oct 06, 20231 hr

TFR Ep. 676: It Lives Inside, Stop Making Sense, No One Will Save You, 5 Favorite Live Albums

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt take on a couple of horrific nightmares and cut a rug. First out of the gate is an Indian demon tormenting your soul so it’s nice and ripe for consumption in, ‘It Lives Inside’. Then Hulu brings us the gray alien monsters we’ve been waiting for, maybe, with, ‘No One Will Save You’. But it doesn’t end there, oh no! Matt and Chris react to the IMAX 4k Remastered release of Talking Heads’ seminal concert film, ‘Stop Making Sense’. There’s the life-altering...

Sep 29, 20231 hr 14 min

TFR Ep. 675: The Outlaw Johnny Black, El Conde, What Are The Odds?!?

This week on the First Run, the Chris and Matt call an audible and abandon Agatha Christie for Michael Jai White in ‘The Outlaw Johnny Black’. When one of the most anticipated films of a podcast host becomes an option to cover on said podcast, one takes the opportunity. Then the show slips on down to Chile, eats some hearts, and dusts just a nudge of Wes Anderson whimsy and twee onto the vampire genre with ‘El Conde’. As always, Chris will tell you all about the upcoming releases on Physical Med...

Sep 22, 202356 min

TFR Ep. 674: The Nun II, Extraction 2, Call It!

On this episode of The First Run, it’s sequel week! First out of the gate, The Conjuring expanded universe continues with, ‘The Nun II’. Taissa Farmiga returns as the nun on a mission to bring justice to church, exposing its greed, abuses, and hypocrisy…No, that’s not right. Valak the demon returns. Not to be confused with Valek, the Vampire. Taissa is dispatched to end the horrors once again. Then Tyler Rake (Tyler Rake, christ) returns with ‘Extraction 2’. Reuniting the team from the first und...

Sep 15, 202351 min

TFR Ep. 673: The Equalizer 3, They Cloned Tyrone, 5 Most Anticipated Films Left For 2023

This week on the First Run, your favorite movie bros try to answer the eternal question…”Can Antoine Fuqua make a worthwhile film?” The latest attempt brings Denzel Washington up to bat yet again with ‘The Equalizer 3’. Then Chris and Matt slum it on Netflix with the sci-fi satire ‘They Cloned Tyrone’. There’s the subtly awesome rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Straight-to-DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris wrap up the show by searching for a diamond ...

Sep 08, 202348 min

TFR Ep. 672: Beau Is Afraid, The Pope’s Exorcist, TFR Libs

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt finally catch up with Ari Aster’s ‘Beau Is Afraid’. It’s a sprawling tale of one man’s journey to visit his mother, with all the accompanying insanity, violence, humor, and just a dusting of an Elektra Complex, all led my Joaquin Phoenix. Clocking in at a meager 3 hours, is it the (Insert genre here) we’ve been waiting for? Or a bloated mess? Then as ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ mania is sweeping the country, we discuss ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’. It’s the number 1...

Sep 01, 202351 min

TFR Ep. 671: Blue Beetle, 5 Favorite Legacy Comic Book Characters

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris bear witness to the last desperate gasps before the death rattle of the DCEU with ‘Blue Beetle’. Is this the definitive entry of the DCEU, the yardstick in which all the other entries are measured against? Maybe, maybe not, who gives a shit at this point. As always, they run down the big releases on physical media, give you their straight to dvd and streaming picks of the week then wrap up this episode with their five favorite legacy superheroes. It’ll ...

Aug 25, 2023

TFR Ep. 670: The Last Voyage Of The Demeter, TMNT: Mutant Mayhem, 5 Favorite Movie Vampires

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt engage with the hypothesis that asks, can you make a whole movie out of one chapter of a book? It’s a moment in time for the lord of the undead. Ahoy their matey’s! We gots us a Dracula! It’s ‘The Last Voyage Of The Demeter’! Then there’s another animated movie based on a beloved property. This time it’s the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’! The boys are back in town with an animated reboot. Is 2D animation back, baby? There’s the garlic lo...

Aug 18, 202355 min

TFR Ep. 669: Talk To Me, 5 Favorite A24 Releases, Part 2

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt, your curmudgeonly internet uncles, head down under for this year’s scariest movie of all time, ‘Talk To Me’. Should you believe the hype? Does A24 deliver another knock out film? The boys give you their oh-so informed opinions. Then it’s the terrifying, yet adorable run down the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week! Matt and Chris then wrap up the show with their definitive personal rankings of t...

Aug 11, 202347 min

TFR Ep. 668: Barbie, 5 Favorite Movie Tie-In Promotions

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt succumb to the matriarchy and all things capitalism to discuss ‘Barbie’! Greta Gerwig’s big screen anti-man, pro-communism screed is here and is tearing up the charts! Could a movie about a girls’ toy actually be good? And have a little something for the fellas? There’s the pink-alicious rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week! Then Matt & Chris close out the big show by sharing th...

Aug 04, 202352 min

TFR Ep. 667: Oppenheimer, 5 Favorite Christopher Nolan Scenes

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt become Death, the destroyer of (cinematic) worlds with the latest 3 hour spectacle from Christopher Nolan, ‘Oppenheimer’. Matt, for one, is looking forward to wading into historical moral quandaries the guys have no business opining on. And Chris wants to see stuff blowns up real good. After that uplifting discussion, they’ll give you the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Straight-to-DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week, then wrap up the show...

Jul 28, 202359 min

TFR Ep. 666: Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning: Part 1, 5 Favorite MI Action Set Pieces

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt choose to accept the latest entry in the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise, ‘Dead Reckoning, Part 1’. We’re nearing the end of one of the most consistently entertaining action franchises of all time. Are we going out with a bang, or have we lost a step or two. Then there’s the death-defying review of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming & Straight to DVD Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris close out the non-stop action with t...

Jul 21, 202344 min

TFR Ep. 665: Insidious: The Red Door, Who Dat?!?

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt step-up to that crimson door and head into The Further one last time (Maybe? Possibly?) with Patrick Wilson’s directorial debut, ‘Insidious: The Red Door’. As always, there’s the biggest Physical Media Releases of the Week, featuring the Straight-To-DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap up this boondoggle with another round of ‘Who Dat’?, a segment whose namesake has drifted beyond the limits of mortal memory. So close your eyes ...

Jul 14, 202345 min

TFR Ep. 664: Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny, 5 Favorite Indy Scenes

On this episode of The First Run, Chris and Matt attempt to turn back the clock one more time as Harrison Ford returns for a final grand adventure in ‘Indiana Jones & The Dial Of Destiny’. Is there any gas left in Indy’s tank? Is why Nazi’s are bad need to be explained? Should we just have let the franchise end with The Last Crusade like we all agreed to back in 1989? There’s the rejuvenating rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming & Straight to DVD Picks o...

Jul 07, 202342 min

TFR Ep. 663: Asteroid City, What Are The Odds?!?

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt check the latest quirk fest from Wes Anderson, ‘Asteroid City’. Will it be the delightful deadpan delivery of the ‘Royal Tennenbaums’, or the lifeless deadpan delivery of ‘The Darjeeling Limited’? As always we there’s the thrilling yet contemplative rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Straight to DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then, much to Chris’ delight, we get back to our games with another round of What are the Odds? S...

Jun 30, 202355 min

TFR Ep. 662: The Flash, DCEU Snyder-Verse Ranking

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt break the speed of light and enter the Speed Force! The great sorta’ maybe DCEU reset is here with ‘The Flash’! How do you balance the promotion of one of your big summer tent pole films and potentially reboot a cinematic shared universe against its star’s off screen, let’s say “antics”. Will the people come out?!? There’s the affable yet fierce rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the week....

Jun 23, 202345 min

TFR Ep. 661: Brooklyn 45, 5 Streaming Horror Picks

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt kick-off their summer experiment and drop down to one film. What does that mean? For one, Matt has to slow the intro down so he doesn’t end before the theme song does. This week, the guys check out the Shudder original, the ghost story Brooklyn 45. As always, there’s the top physical media releases, the Straight to DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap it all up with their 5 Favorite Horror Films on Streaming. That’s right!!! 00:...

Jun 16, 202347 min

TFR Ep. 660: Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse, The Boogeyman, 5 Favorite Animated Series Theme Songs

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt jump into the multiverse AGAIN! This time, it’s parallel universes just chock full of Spider-People. Miles Morales returns, with pretty much every other Spider-Man you can think of in ‘Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse’! The first film was a breath of fresh air in the animated genre. Can the sequel possibly be as enthralling as the original? Can it be better? There’s the web-slinging rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streami...

Jun 09, 202350 min

TFR Ep. 659: How To Blow Up A Pipeline, Dead Presidents, Heist Marathon Awards

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris join the revolution and get their ecoterrorism on with Daniel Goldhaber’s ‘How to Blow Up A Pipeline’. Can a film ignite a revolution? Then it’s time to put on some corpse paint and wrap up the Heist Marathon with the Hughes Brothers’ ‘Dead Presidents’. As always there’s the dreamlike rundown the physical media releases, with the Straight to DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris wrap up the show with the Heist Marathon Awards. So let’s sab...

Jun 02, 2023

TFR Ep. 658: Fast X, Thief, 5 Favorite Movie Families

This week on The First Run, it’s all about family. The always expanding, death means nothing, and neither does physics cinematic exploration of family. It’s Fast X! This time out Dom and the fam are haunted by the consequences of a prior adventure. Consequences that we had no prior knowledge of, like Dom’s brother. Has the Toretto family finally had one too many extravagant films? Are have we finally found Aristotle’s elusive balance? The Heist Marathon continues with Michael Mann’s directorial ...

May 26, 20231 hr

TFR Ep. 657: Hypnotic, Dog Day Afternoon, 5 Favorite Ben Affleck Performances

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt check out Hypnotic, a mind control super powers movie that was apparently directed by Robert Rodriguez! They were just as surprised as you were. And even though they had seen the trailer multiple times, they remembered William Fichtner was in this but forgot Ben Affleck is too. That, gentle listeners, is what the book nerds call “foreshadowing.” Then the Heist Marathon slides into the grim and gritty 70’s with Al Pacino in Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afterno...

May 19, 202346 min

TFR Ep. 656: Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, The Italian Job, 5 DC Casting Calls

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt head back over to Knowhere and catch up with what was once the surprise of the MCU, it’s the ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy, Vol. III’! Promised to be the final film featuring the cast we all know and love, is it a fitting sendoff for the MCU’s endearing outcasts? Then the Heist Marathon continues with the beloved ‘The Italian Job’ featuring Michael Caine. It’s the OG, so no Wahlbergs here. There’s the sweet and engaging rundown of the big releases on Physica...

May 12, 20231 hr 5 min

TFR Ep. 655: Sisu, Rififi, Call It!

This week on the First Run, Matt and Chris demonstrate their force of will by acting rationally in the face of adversity as they watch a Finnish dude brutally murder some Nazis in ‘Sisu’. Then they kick-off their Heist Movie Marathon with the French granddaddy of the genre, ‘Rififi’. There’s the luminescent rundown of the big releases on physical media, featuring the Straight to DVD and Streaming Picks of the Week, plus some bonus physical media talk. Then Matt and Chris wrap this up with everyb...

May 05, 20231 hr 5 min

TFR Ep. 654: Evil Dead Rise, Ghosted, 5 Favorite Sam Raimi Scenes

This week on The First Run Chris and Matt head out to the cabin one more time…? Nope. It’s off to a soon-to-be condemned building to see what the Khandarian demons have been up to the last few years as A book of the Dead surfaces in rainy Los Angeles and hijinks ensue in ‘Evil Dead Rise’. Does the can’t miss franchise finally miss? Then it’s on to the Apple+ original ‘Ghosted’, featuring Hollywood ‘It’ people Ana De Armas and Chris Evans. It’s a rom-com spy thriller. It’s Chris’ flip-side to Mat...

Apr 28, 202351 min

TFR Ep. 653: Renfield, Holy Spider, 5 Favorite Supporting Characters

This week on The First Run…well, it’s a big milestone folks. This is our 653rd episode. 6. 5. 3. For this podcast landmark, Chris and Matt covered the latest from the world’s greatest actor as one of the world’s greatest monsters with Nic Cage as Dracula in ‘Renfield’. Nicholas Hoult and Awkwafina are in it too, I guess. Then they guys discuss the Dutch/Iranian procedural serial killer thriller thing that is ‘Holy Spider’. There’s the intoxicating rundown of the big releases on Physical M, featu...

Apr 21, 202357 min

TFR Ep. 652: The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Super Mario Bros., 5 Favorite Video Games

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt fire up their old NES systems, blow into the cartridge and boot up the new adaption of the classic game series, Super Mario Bros. in ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ [play Oh! Effect]! Then Matt and Chris double down on all things Mario with a discussion of The Super Mario Bros. movie from 1993. Bob Hoskins. Bob Hoskins. There’s the boisterous rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week! Chri...

Apr 14, 202347 min

TFR Ep. 651: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Inhuman Kiss, TFR Libs

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt pull out their character sheets and polyhedral dice with ‘Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves’. On the D20 of cinema, does Chris Pine and party roll a critical success or flub it with a natural one? Then they shift gears into Thai folklore with the horror-romance ‘Inhuman Kiss’. Chris finally gets to see one of his favorite monsters on at least the small screen. As always, they break down the big Physical Media Releases for the week, giving you th...

Apr 07, 202356 min

TFR Ep. 650: John Wick Chapter 4, Marlowe, 5 Favorite John Wick Things

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt dust off their gold coins and get measured for a new bullet proof suits as it’s another round of John Wick, this time we’re at Chapter 4, with no extra title descriptor. Then Matt and Chris really lean into the over-40-white-guys-with-a-podcast aspect of the show with Liam “Seamus” Neeson in and as ‘Marlowe’. Director Neil Jordan takes a stab at the legendary gumshoe. There’s the reveal of the big Physical Media Releases, featuring the Straight to DVD a...

Mar 31, 20231 hr 2 min

TFR Ep. 649: Shazam: Fury Of The Gods, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, 5 DC Adaptions We’d Like To See

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt say the magic word and return to the world of the Marvel Family! It’s Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, Captain Marvel Jr., or as current copyrights now call them, the Shazam family. It’s Shazam: Fury Of The Gods! Zachary Levi and the gang return to face Helen Mirren, Lucy Lui, and current Hollywood It Girl, Rachel Zegler, collectively known as the SISTERS OF ATLAS (supposed to be some reverb) there. Then Guy Ritchie ventures away from his wheelhouse, the Br...

Mar 24, 202357 min

TFR Ep. 648: Scream VI, 65, Oscars Wrap Up

And on this episode of The First Run, we head back to the Ghostface well one more time with ‘Scream VI’. Do we find that oh-so-refreshing potion of scares, nervous chuckles, and meta-commentary or is there not enough left in the vein to fill the bucket? Then we take a journey to a time long, long ago in a star system very, very near with Adam Driver and ‘65’. We run down the physical media, straight to dvd and streaming picks of the week. Then we wrap it all up with the post-Oscars breakdown fro...

Mar 17, 202346 min
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