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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. 736: Gladiator II, 5 Favorite Ridley Scott Characters

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt want to be sure you are entertained so they have a discussion on the latest sword and sandals epic from Ridley Scott with ‘Gladiator II’. Next up they discuss the big releases on Physical Media, give you their Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris then wrap it all up with their Top 5 Ridley Scott Characters. 00:00-15:00: Intro/Gladiator II 15:01-21:40: Physical Media Picks 21:41-36:17: 5 Favorite Ridley Scott Characters 36:18-40:36...

Nov 29, 202441 min

TFR Ep. 735: Red One, 2024 Holiday Gift Guide

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt join Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evan’s on the mission to rescue Nick in ‘Red One’, the family-not-so-friendly holiday action film of November 2024! Next up, it’s on to the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week! Finally Matt and Chris close out the show with the 2024 Holiday Gift Guide for the film lover in your life. Or just for you. 00:00-11:20: Intro/Red One 11:21-20:09: Physical Media Picks 20:10-36:5...

Nov 22, 202441 min

TFR Ep. 734: Anora, Heretic, 5 Favorite Against-Type Performances

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt continue to work their way down the sex worker ladder with Sean Baker’s latest, ‘Anora’. Then they highlight an extremely specific and relatively unlikely ,but no less valid, danger of religion with ‘Heretic’. As always they give you the big releases on physical media, the Viper Video and Streaming picks of the week, then wrap this all up with their 5 favorite roles where actors played against type. 00:00-17:54: Intro/Anora 17:55-27:02: Physical Media P...

Nov 15, 202454 min

TFR Ep. 733: Azrael, 5 Favorite Political Thrillers

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the post-rapture horror film, ‘Azrael’, featuring current scream queen Samara Weaving. Does the mostly dialogue-less film deliver the scares and dread? Or does it feel like a gimmick? And is that Esperanto I hear…? There’s the death-defying rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Chris and Matt then close out the big show by sharing their 5 Favorite Political Thrillers, apropos of...

Nov 08, 202442 min

TFR Ep. 732: Venom: The Last Dance, Rank ‘Em: SSU

This week on the First Run, Chris and Matt check out the final installment of Sony's Venom series, ‘Venom: The Last Dance’. Does the series go out with a bang or a whimper? You can probably guess but the guys will give you the final word on how it is. As always, Chris will bring the big releases on physical media, the Viper Video and streaming picks of the week. Finally, Matt and Chris will tell you which entry in the Sony Spider-Man Universe sits atop the steaming heap. 00:00-14:53: Intro/Venom...

Nov 01, 202441 min

TFR Ep. 731: Smile 2, The Shadow Strays, What Are The Odds?!?

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt dial up the carnage and suffering. First up, director Parker Finn takes over the reins for the solid ‘Smile’ film sequel with ‘Smile 2: Still Smilin‘’. Who’s our smile demon going to possess this time? And why is it never someone with a jacked up grill? After that, it’s the grin-inducing rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris then venture to Jakarta for Timo Tjahjanto’...

Oct 25, 202440 min

TFR Ep. 730: V/H/S: Beyond, 5 Favorite Horror Anthologies

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt adjust the tracking on their VCRs to no avail with the latest in the V/H/S series, ‘V/H/S Beyond’. Then, they’ll give you the rundown of the Big Releases on Physical Media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Finally, Matt and Chris will wrap up the show with their all killer, no filler list of their 5 favorite Horror Anthologies. 00:00-25:57: Intro/VHS Beyond 25:58-36:25: Physical Media Picks 36:26-55:14: 5 Favorite Horror Anthol...

Oct 18, 202456 min

TFR Ep. 729: Joker: Folie à Deux, Salem’s Lot (24), 5 Streaming Horror Picks

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt find themselves back in early 80’s Gotham with the return of ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’. The first film received a less than stellar reaction from your erstwhile hosts. Can Todd Phillips’ latest musical super-hero film win them over? Then there’s the maniacal rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. But wait, there’s more! The long-delayed Stephen King adaptation of ‘Salem’s Lot’ has landed on ...

Oct 11, 202451 min

TFR Ep. 728: Megalopolis, 5 Favorite Directorial Runs

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt go big, some would even say mega. Big stars, big performance choices, big run times with Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis. We’ll give you the big releases on physical media, the viper video and streaming picks of the week. Then we wrap it up with our Top 5 Four film directorial runs. 00:00-21:45: Intro/Megalopolis 21:46-32:15: Physical Media Picks 32:16-48:48: 5 Favorite Directorial Runs 48:49-50:37: Wrap-Up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey©...

Oct 04, 202451 min

TFR Ep. 727: The Substance, 5 Favorite Body Horror Films

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt find themselves the closest mirror and take a long look at themselves aging… just getting so old… and discuss Coralie Fargeat’s ‘The Substance’. Demi Moore returns with a power house performance in possibly the most divisive horror films of the year. There’s the life-splitting rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris share their 5 Favorite Body Horror Films! 00:00-1...

Sep 27, 202447 min

TFR Ep. 726: Speak No Evil (’24), Rebel Ridge, TFR Libs

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris make some new friends and go on a quiet retreat in the country with ‘Speak No Evil’. Surely, nothing bad will happen at all. Then they catch up with the latest from First Run Favorite Jeremy Saulnier for a bit of the ultra-violence (?) with ‘Rebel Ridge’. As always, they give you the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week! Matt and Chris then wrap it up with another round of the fill in the blank game, ...

Sep 20, 20241 hr 7 min

TFR Ep. 725: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, 5 Favorite Michael Keaton Performances

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the return of that madcap demon, Beetlejuice in ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’. Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara and Tim Burton return, this time with Jenna Ortega (queen of the requel) to tell bring us up to date on the Deetz family as they are tormented by Beetlejuice one more time. There’s the undead rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris close out the show by sha...

Sep 13, 2024

TFR Ep. 724: AfrAId, The Killer (24), 5 Favorite Blumhouse Horror Films

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt catch up with the latest film about the dangers of AI, the boogeyman du jour, with Blumhouse's, ‘AfrAId’. Then it’s on to the latest from John Woo, who remakes his own classic of the genre, for some reason, with ‘The Killer’. As always there is the rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap it all up with their 5 Favorite Blumhouse Horror Films. Get ready do some spo...

Sep 06, 202455 min

TFR Ep. 723: The Crow (24), Strange Darling, 5 Worst Reboots

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt bring back the double-feature just for you! Specifically you [enter name here]. First up it’s the reboot of the middlingly popular Crow franchise with, ‘The Crow’. One of the Skarsgård kids plays Eric Draven with pop music star FKA Twigs as Shelly. Director of the original film, Alex Proyas is having a blast with the film’s poor reviews. Do those stuck up critics have it all wrong again? Then there’s the subversive viral hit that is ‘Strange Darling’. I...

Aug 30, 202455 min

TFR Ep. 722: Alien: Romulus, Favorite Alien Scenes

This week, it’s a team-up with ScreenRun and The First Run as The Lady Wan, Chris Scalzo, and Matt Howell suit up and shoot into space one more time for the latest in the Alien franchise, ‘Alien: Romulus’. Fede Alvarez of ‘Evil Dead’ and ‘Don’t Breathe’ directs the latest foray into deep space terror as a group of desperate people try to scavenge a derelict space station for space parts that will allow them to resettle on a new planet for a better life. Except something may (is) waiting for them...

Aug 23, 2024

TFR Ep. 721: Cuckoo, Call It!

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt dive headfirst into the cinematic wonderland of the latest releases—so you don’t have to! This week, they’re cracking open the latest in arthouse horror from Neon, ‘Cuckoo’! Is ‘Cuckoo’ a mind-bending masterpiece or just a confusing cluck-fest? Are they the crazy ones for watching it—or are you for listening to them chirp about it? Join the guys as they try to untangle this twisted tale, armed with nothing but popcorn and questionable bird puns. As alwa...

Aug 16, 202447 min

TFR Ep. 720: Trap, Rotten Tomatoes Score Game

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt return to Pennsylvania and the M Knight Shyamalan universe with ‘Trap’. The Hartnett resurgence continues, but is the film with walking into? a trap. Get it? There’s the diabolical rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris close out the show by playing the annual RT Score game! Who will come out on top and win the coveted AMC gift card?!? All that and more on another sta...

Aug 09, 202449 min

TFR Ep. 719: Deadpool & Wolverine, SDCC Wrap Up, Rank ‘Em: Fox X Films

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt take one last spin around the block with the Fox Marvel Films, an inconsistent friend that delighted and hurt is in equal measure. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman show you what true besties look like with Deadpool and Wolverine. They give you the big releases on physical media, the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week then wrap it all up with a run down of San Diego ComiCon and give you the definitive ranking of the Fox X Films. 00:00-21:51: Intro...

Aug 02, 202455 min

TFR Ep. 718: Twisters, Who Dat?!?

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt batten down the hatches and prepare for the worst. It’s ’Twisters’ week, featuring ‘Twisters’! This time, it’s Glen Powell and a potentially catatonic Daisy Edgar Jones chasing them tornadoes. Does this retooling of a beloved 90’s disaster film spin is all up with excitement? There’s the pressure-dropping rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris, play a rootin’ tootin’ ...

Jul 26, 202452 min

TFR Ep. 717: Longlegs, 5 Favorite Movie Serial Killers

This week on The First Run, it's time for another wide theatrical Nic Cage release! Chris and Matt catch up with the man's latest unhinged performance with Oz Perkins’ ‘Longlegs’. Promoted as the scariest movie of the decade, but what about just 100 minutes of smothering dread? Then there’s the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris then wrap up the show with their Top 5 Serial Killers in Film. They stress "in film".... they aren...

Jul 19, 202439 min

TFR Ep. 716: Maxxxine, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, 5 Most Anticipated Films Left in 2024

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt play the shortest game of 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon ever with a discussion of Ti West’s trilogy capper, ‘MaXXXine’. Mia Goth returns to wreak havoc in 1980’s LA in her pursuit of stardom, regardless of you gets in her way. Then it’s the neon-drenched review of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. But that’s not all, as Matt and Chris fire up the synthesizer and gas up their Chevy Nova. It’s time f...

Jul 12, 202448 min

TFR Ep. 715: Kinds Of Kindness, 5 Best Films of 2024 (So Far)

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt catch up with the latest from Yorgos Lanthimos, the hardest working man in show business, with the unexpected anthology film, ‘Kinds Of Kindness’. There’s the love-struck break down of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap it all up with their 5 Favorite Films of 2024...so far! 00:00-16:47: Kinds of Kindness 16:48-26:57: Physical Media Picks 26:58-40:09: Best of 2024 So Fa...

Jul 05, 202443 min

TFR Ep. 714: Thelma, 5 Favorite Donald Sutherland Perfomances

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the high octane action thriller you never saw coming with ‘Thelma’. June Squibb finally lands the top of the call sheet at the tender age of 94. Think of it as Hot Fuzz for The Villages. Then there’s the non-stop thrill ride that is the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Steaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week! Then Matt and Chris close out the program by honoring one of the greats with their 5 Favorite Donald Sutherland performanc...

Jun 28, 202436 min

TFR Ep. 713: Inside Out 2, 5 Favorite Family Films

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris get in touch with their feelings with the latest from Pixar with, ‘Inside Out 2’. As always, there’s the joy-inducing rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap it up the big show with their Top 5 Family Films. Will Chris squeeze in ‘Something Wicked This Way Comes’ again?!? 00:00-12:44: Intro/Inside Out 2 12:45-26:04: Physical Media Picks 26:05-41:06: Top 5 Family F...

Jun 21, 202443 min

TFR Ep. 712: Hitman, The Watchers, 5 Favorite Unusual Rom-Coms

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt have just had enough of each other. And funnily enough, both decide to engage with Richard Linklater’s ‘Hitman’, featuring up and coming (and just leaning over the Tatumline) leading man, Glen Powell. Chris shares his thoughts, and fears, regarding the debut feature by Ishana Night Shymalan with, ‘The Watchers’. Then it’s on to the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris close out the sho...

Jun 14, 202454 min

TFR Ep. 711: In A Violent Nature, Who Dat?!?

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt do their best menacing slow walk as they check out ‘In A Violent Nature’, the latest horror film to flip the horror script by asking "What if we just follow the bad guy?" They give you the big releases on physical media, the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then Matt and Chris wrap it up by trying on different personalities and answering some questions with Who Dat? In A Violent Nature interview. Matt Zoller Seitz article. 00:00-12:05: Intro...

Jun 07, 202457 min

TFR Ep. 710: Furiosa, Rank ‘Em: Mad Max Franchise

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt rev their engines and prep for another beautiful day with the Mad Max Fury Road prequel, ‘Furiosa’. It’s a dive into the back story of Fury Road’s ultimate bad ass, with an actor swap out from Charlize Theron to Anya Taylor-Joy. So is this entry also all shiny and chrome? Then the guys bear witness to the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Viper Video Picks of the Week! Then Matt and Chris close out the big show by ranking the M...

May 31, 202444 min

TFR Ep. 709: I Saw The TV Glow, 5 Favorite Nostalgia Shows

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris dip their toes into the nostalgia pool and let the capital M Metaphor wash over them with the latest from A24, ‘I Saw the TV Glow’. As always they give a run down of the big releases on physical media, the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then the wrap up it all give you a glimpse into what gives them the warm and fuzzies with their Top 5 Nostalgia TV Shows. 00:00-17:15: Intro/I Saw the TV Glow 17:16-24:59: Physical Media Picks of the Week 2...

May 24, 202456 min

TFR Ep. 708: Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes, 5 Favorite 4th Films

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt travel into the Planet of the Apes future, many generations in the future to be exact, to see the beginning of a new trilogy with, ‘Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes’. Gone is Caesar and…everyone else. Are we ready for the next chapter? Do we care? Next is the banana filled festival that is the rundown of the big releases on Physical Media, featuring the Streaming and Straight to DVD Picks of the Week. Matt and Chris then close out the show by sharing t...

May 17, 202439 min

TFR Ep. 707: The Fall Guy, 5 Favorite 80’s Shows Needed A Movie Remake

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt jump into their 1980 GMC K25 and do some donuts on the beach with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt in ‘The Fall Guy’. The guys run down the big releases on physical media, featuring the Viper Video and Streaming Picks of the Week. Then they get creatively bankrupt and give Jimmy Hollywood some ideas with a rundown of their Top 5 80's Shows that Should be Made into Movies. 00:00-17:35: Intro/The Fall Guy 17:36-25:49: Physical Media Picks 25:50-46:17: Top 5 8...

May 10, 202449 min
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