The First Run

This week on The First Run Matt and Chris were supposed to see the latest from Park Chan Wook but that didn't happen because Matt is dedicated enough to drive to NYC to see a movie for you. The nerve. Instead, they catch up with The Mastermind, a tragic comedy of errors masquerading as a heist film.  Then, Chris and Matt give you their top 5 most anticipated films of 2026.  00:...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the theatrical directorial debut of Charlie Poling’s ‘The Plague’.  A bunch of punk kids at a waterpolo summer camp encounter something unsettling…themselves.  Plus Matt and Chris begin their Top 10 Most Anticipated Films, starting off with numbers 10-6! 00:00-16:12: Intro/The Plague 16:13-32:10: Most Anticipated Films of 2026: 10-6 32:1...

This week on The First Run, the buzz outweighs Chris and Matt's misgivings when they check out the latest from Josh Safdie, ‘Marty Supreme’. Then, because the guys have some kind of a laugh outside of movies for the show, they break down the top 5 other things they enjoyed in 2025.  00:00-16:25: Intro/Marty Supreme 16:26-19:19: RIP MTV 19:20-41:52: 5 Other Things We Enjoyed in 2025 41:53-45:2...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt travel once more to Pandora as the Avatar franchise returns with ‘Avatar: Fire And Ash’.  This time we’re introduced to a new clan, the Mangkwan.  A group of of raiders on the edge of survival willing to do anything to maintain their existence.  Just how far, and how long, will they go?  Well, I can at least guarantee to you this episo...

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris check out the latest accent from Daniel Craig in Rian Johnson's latest Knives Out mystery, ‘Wake Up Dead Man’. Then Chris will give you his thoughts on the 2025 remake of ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night’. Chris and Matt close out the how by spending a little time saying farewell to the late, great Rob Reiner.   00:00-16:24: Wake Up Dead Man 16:...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the latest by the French husband and wife directing team, Hélène Cattet’s & Bruno Forzani’s  ‘Reflection In A Dead Diamond’.  Known for the striking visual storytelling style, this time they tackle the euro-spy thrillers. Is it a wonderfully mad mash-up of visuals and narrative?  Or unintelligible mess?  Plus, Chris shares...

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris take a long, dreamy train ride to nowhere, or the answer to everything, with ‘Train Dreams’.  Not Train Wars like Chris keeps wanting to call it.  00:00-14:27: Intro/Train Dreams 14:28-30:04: Wrap-up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt venture once more to the 1940’s to watch a legendary Finish warrior dispatch a bunch more baddies in ‘Sisu: Road To Revenge’.  Plus it’s the return of Matt’s favorite guest with the 2025 Gift Guide for the Movie Lover in your life! Or just yourself. 00:00-15:05: Intro/ Sisu: Road To Revenge 15:06-29:47: 2025 Holiday Gift Guide 29:48-32:30: Wrap Up Th...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt check out the latest from Edgar Wright with ‘The Running Man’, a dystopian film that dares to ask "What would you for $1 billion new bucks?" Also Matt had some technical difficulties with his microphone but it gets better after the intro! 00:00-20:05: Intro/The Running Man 20:06-29:30: Rank ‘Em: Edgar Wright's Films 29:31-31:39: Wrap-Up Theme music b...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt delve back into the Predator-verse!  On this adventure, we eschew the Predator trope of the hunter villain, for a story about a honor, redemption, and cliche. Then Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone, and America’s Sweet heart, Jesse Plemons reunite for the latest off-center cinematic experience with Bugonia!  00:00-14:21: Intro/Predator: Badlands 14:2...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt check out the latest from Guillermo the Bull Frankenstein. It gets pretty heated discussing the merits of Mia Goth so you don't want to miss this one! 00:00-14:20: Intro/Frankenstein 14:20-23:52: Miscellany/Wrap Up  FindHelp.org Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

Happy Halloween!  This week on The First Run, Matt exercised his veto on musical bio-pics, sorry ‘Deliver Me From Nowhere’.  Instead it’s the puppy perspective horror film, ‘Good Boy’! Then to keep the Halloween season going, it’s the latest in Shudder’s horror anthology, ‘V/H/S: Halloween’!  Chris has some news for Matt that make him a super happy boy too! Then Matt and Chris close...

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris break out of the basement and head to camp with ghosts and dead serial killers in tow with ‘Black Phone 2’. Chris will then give you his thoughts on the latest from Jason Statham, ‘A Working Man’.  00:00-18:48: Intro/Black Phone 2 18:49-25:42: A Working Man 25:43-30:01: Wrap-Up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

This week on The First Run, the official movie podcast of Antifa, Chris and Matt return the anti-franchise that is Tron.  Does Disney finally succeed and make a good Tron movie and justify their repeated attempts to build a franchise?  And how about that Jared Leto?!?  All this and MORE! 00:00-18:38: Intro/Tron: Ares 18:39-24:51: Wrap Up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt check out ‘The Smashing Machine’, the latest from Benny Safdie and Dwayne Johnson about the life of famed MMA fighter Mark Kerr. Is this The Rock's best performance? Tune in to find out! 00:00-15:45: Intro/The Smashing Machine 15:46-22:26: Wrap-Up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss the latest from auteur Paul Thomas Anderson featuring Mr. Leonardo DiCaprio, ‘One Batter After Another’.  Be described as THE film of 2025, does the film deliver on its almost universal praise? Or is it another tepid entry after ‘Licorice Pizza’?  After that, Matt and Chris do their best to rank Anderson’s films. How will their rankings...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt check out the latest film from Jordan Peele's Monkey's Paw Productions, ‘HIM’. It’s a film that combines two of America's  favorite pastimes...football and Satanism. It's another confusing episode of The First Run, buckle up! 00:00-16:19: Intro/HIM 16:20-20:24: Wrap-Up Theme music by Jamal Malachi Ford-Bey

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt lace up their Air Jordan’s and start stretching for the latest Stephen King big screen adaptation, ‘ The Long Walk’.  Is it the perfect time for a dystopian thriller to take our minds off of, you know, everything? Then the legendary metal band Spinal Tap returns with ‘Spinal Tap II: The End Continues’. Can the David, Nigel, and Derek still dial thing...

This week on The First Run, Matt and Chris reluctantly go to the Warren well one last time with ‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’.  Can James Wan’s dwindling franchise be saved with this one last adventure into the darkness?  Then Chris will give you the skinny on Spike Lee's latest joint, ‘Highest 2 Lowest’.  How does Lee’s version of Kurosawa’s classic ‘High And Low’ fare with Denzel de...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt both get their own personal movie picks! First up, they get involved in a non-heist heist as they discuss Darren Aronofsky’s latest, ‘Caught Stealing’, featuring Elvis and Catwoman.  Then Macon Blair’s reboot of the classic Troma movie ‘Toxic Avenger’, in the can since 2023, finally gets a theatrical release! Can you possibly improve upon a beloved b...

This week on  The First Run , Chris and Matt take a wild ride through Ethan Coen’s latest solo mystery-comedy,  Honey, Don’t!  Margaret Qualley plays a private eye with a monotone, a mission, an intense sexual appetite, and zero patience for nonsense. The guys will tell you if it even gets close to reaching the heights of past Coen classics.  Then, Gotham gets a Dolby facelift...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt take their kitty cat bracelet out of storage to watch the latest adventure of the Mansell family as they try and take a vacation and end up getting into all kinds of wacky trouble in ‘Nobody 2’.  Then Ari Aster returns with ‘Eddington’, the story about, well, a story that maybe serves no one, or is the hilarious satire of Covid and our deep divide we...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt lock and load for a double feature. First up is ‘Weapons’, the highly anticipated horror film from the writer/director of the still unavailable on physical media, ‘Barbarian’. Does it deserve all the hype? Then they head down under with ‘Dangerous Animals’, a film that stars Jai Courtney and might actually be the better for it. I know, Matt and Chris...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt discuss Akiva Schaffer’s reboot of the Police Squad franchise with ‘The Naked Gun’. Can the film revive the spoof genre? Is it at least worthy of the originals? There’s the always hilarious review 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 with the Horror Madness...

This week on The First Run, Chris and Matt stretch, flame on, and go full clobberin’ time as we dive into the story of Marvel’s first family in ‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’. From cosmic rays to family bonds that would make Dom Toretto proud, they see if this entry is a breath of fresh air in the MCU. Or if it can make Chris care about the FF. There's the big release on physical media, t...