First Watch

In a long-awaited comeback, Cole and Zach reunite to discuss the films of summer 2024, its low lows and... moderate highs, before diving into three big autumn releases, Todd Phillips' box office dud Joker: Folie à Deux, Francis Ford Coppola's self-funded indulgence Megalopolis, and the year's most wickedly funny body horror, The Substance.

On this episode, Cole and Zach take some time to debrief and discuss the 96th annual Academy Awards and then dive deep into the LCL ocean to celebrate the theatrical release of Hideaki Anno's bizarro anime masterpiece, Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion.

After a somewhat slow start to the year, Denis Villeneuve's segmented, then delayed, Dune comes to its rousing conclusion. Trev and Morgan join Zach and Cole to talk through 2024 Oscars catch-up, a few new releases, and discuss if the Québécois director steps up to become the next big blockbuster titan. 

Just before we crack open the year's first big blockbuster release, Cole, Zach, and guest Ryley take a trip back in time to discuss the hypnotic appeal of Marguerite Duras' sensual, dark, and experimental India Song.

At long last, Cole and Zach meet to discuss their favorite new releases of the year 2023 - the very best of the decade so far. Tune in for our thoughts on the latest from Martin Scorsese, Justine Triet, Jonathan Glazer, Christopher Nolan, and more, as we discuss not just our favorites, but all the Oscar nominations and snubs from this year as well!

It's 2024, and we're celebrating by looking back on 2023, starting with our favorite first time watches of the year, not including new releases. Cole and Zach discuss their top ten (actually, nine...) movies they each saw for the first time in 2023 and look back at a year of podcast episodes, directors, and film movements that defined the year.

Another year is at its end, but before we say au revoir Cole and Zach join to discuss a big round of new releases, including Hirokazu Kore-eda's Monster, Trần Anh Hùng's The Taste of Things, and Jonathan Glazer's The Zone of Interest before biting into our follow up to last year's Disney top 10 - our favorite Pixar animated feature films.

This week, Luke from Mecha and Monster Mondays joins us to talk about a Japanese pop culture invasion. After discussing a few new releases, including Scavengers Reign, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Poor Things, the gang digs into the latest monster smash, Godzilla Minus One as Cole acts as the voice of reason against Luke and Zach's excitement. Finally, we discuss the surreal fantasy The Boy and the Heron from animation legend, Hayao Miyazaki, and the meaning behind its original title, How Do You Live?

Bonaparte is afraid. In the continuing saga of 2023's historical epics, Ridley Scott's Napoleon prompts Ryley, Cole and Zach to dig back 100 years and discuss Abel Gance's beloved but underseen silent era masterpiece, Napoleon, to determine which explosive film is the definitive take on France's national hero. In addition we also discuss some new releases, including Taika Waititi's disappointing Next Goal Wins, Beyoncé's latest concert smash, Renaissance, and Bradley Cooper's Oscar hopeful Maestro.

This week, to celebrate the season, we reflect on Martin Scorsese's mournful November crime classic, The Irishman, and discuss a large selection of movies, including Ozu's Tokyo Story, Todd Haynes' May December, and the latest installments of the MCU and Hunger Games series.

This week we celebrate all things glamour. After discussing some new (and very old) releases, Cole and Zach discuss screening Kubrick's opulent classic, Barry Lyndon, in cinemas, and then the life and legacy of Priscilla Presley, Elvis Presley, and director, Sofia Coppola.

After a speedy roundup of new releases and films playing at AFI Fest, including the latest by Alexander Payne, Wim Wenders, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, David Fincher, and Justine Triet, Cole and Zach dive into the season's biggest release, Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon and discuss how it compares to the director's best, the year's best, and David Grann's book of the same name.

Wouldst thou like the taste of butter? Wouldst thou like to live horrifically? In the final installment of our horror genre Eras Tour, Jake joins Cole and Zach to discuss turn-of-the-millennium horror, including Scream, The Blair Witch Project, the endless wave of J-Horror, slasher sequels, and finally, the rise of "elevated horror" and Robert Eggers' seminal debut, The Witch.

Killers of the harvest moon. This week, Morgan drops by to aid Cole and Zach in the continuing exploration of horror through the eras. After discussing our favorite horror movies of this year, we cruise through the 60s, 70s and early 80s to talk about horror's arrival on the main stage with hits like Psycho, best picture nominee The Exoricst, and slashers from Halloween to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and beyond.

After covering the recent release slate - Saw X, The Exorcist: Believer, The Creator, as well as the Palme d'or and Golden Lion winners, Anatomy of a Fall and Poor Things, Cole and Zach travel back to the earliest days of horror. This week we tell the story from the silent era to the Hays Code, and focus particularly on Jacques Tourneur's 40s classic, Cat People.

This week - perhaps a consolation to Cole after so much Christopher Nolan talk - we offer a smorgasbord of gay classics, new and old! The main focus is Ira Sachs' Passages, but also discussed are Kurosawa's classic color-explosion Ran, and a fond farewell to the ultra-70s (and surprisingly homoerotic) filmography of the late William Friedkin.

This week, in our continuing celebration of the release and box office domination of Oppenheimer, Cole and Zach extend their discussion backwards in time to dissect the cerebral works of director Christopher Nolan: Inception, The Prestige and Memento.

This week, Morgan and Ryley join Cole and Zach to explore the fallout of J. Robert Oppenheimer's most notorious invention, and the latest and, yes, greatest of Christopher Nolan's ballyhooed filmography, Oppenheimer, as well as the week's other big release, Barbie, and a historical watchlist leading up to Nolan's grand opus.

In the first ever bonus episode of The First Watch Podcast, Ryley links up with Zach and Cole to discuss Hayao Miyazaki's The Wind Rises, Masaki Kobayashi's The Human Condition to explore two examples of men trying to spare their human souls in the face of the Pacific War. Stay tuned for our episode on Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer later in the week!

This week, we've assembled our team with one mission. Morgan and Jake join Zach and Cole to debrief on all our favorite action movies of this century so far, from the turn of the millennium to the films on this week's marquee. In this stuffed episode we talk James Cameron, we talk George Miller, and of course, we talk all things Mission: Impossible. In this conversation you can get a breakdown of every single entry, including the latest two-part box office bruiser, M:I - Dead Reckoning.

It's July, the summertime, the midway point of the year 2023. Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Oppenheimer and Barbie are still in the future tense for Cole and Zach, but before the bomb, the pink shoe, and Tom Cruise all drop, it's time to look back and celebrate the best cinema has to offer at this halfway point.

This week, after a huge rundown of new releases, guest Ryley joins Zach and Cole to talk about the great Hungarian slow cinema maestro, Béla Tarr, and all the things, big and small, that make his work endure through the decades, focusing particularly on Sátántangó and Werckmeister Harmonies.

Last weekend the historic Texas Theatre hosted one of the era's premier cinematographers, Roger Deakins, with a series to celebrate the accomplishments of Team Deakins', their Oscar glory, and some of the best looking films of this century. This week, new guest Tyke sits down with Zach to discuss the event and all four films screened - Andrew Dominik's The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Denis Villeneuve's Sicario, the Coen brothers' No Country for Old Men, and finally, Deakins' first Oscar winner, Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049.

The demise of the superhero film has been greatly exaggerated. This week, Ben joins Cole & Zach to discuss the latest insect/arachnoid caped comic adaptations, Hideaki Anno's Shin Kamen Rider, and the much anticipated animation juggernaut, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

Our final episode has finally arrived. The big one. The best ever Czech film, according to the Czech people: František Vláčil's Marketa Lazarová. Ryley joins Cole and Zach to unpack this masterpiece and a specific type of period film that eschews modern themes and character dynamics in favor of the cold, harsh realities of the past.

This week Ryley joins Cole and Zach to continue with the third part of our Czechoslovak New Wave series. On this episode, we dive into the communist political context that defines all the films in the movement by focusing in on Miloš Forman's radically silly The Firemen's Ball.

Pop on LP3. This week we're mixing it up and interrupting our ongoing Czechoslovak New Wave series to discuss the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe trilogy finisher, James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Guests Ben and Trevor discuss with Zach what makes this entry stand above the rest of the fold and also talk about recent theatrical re-releases of trilogy final installments, Return of the King and Return of the Jedi.

Heard of some gravesites, out by the highway, a place where nobody knows... This week, Cole and Zach are once again joined by Ryley to discuss one of the best and most famous films of the Czechoslovak New Wave, Juraj Herz' The Cremator. After discussing some new releases, including the latest seasons of Barry and Succession, we dive into a discussion of one of the movement's - frankly one of film history's - boldest, funniest, and darkest political provocations.

This week is the beginning of a new series, where Cole, Zach, and guest host Ryley sink their teeth into the Czechoslovak New Wave. Kicking off these conversations is Věra Chytilová's wild, crazy, madcap provocation, Daisies. Simultaneously one of the movements most popular and difficult films, it's the perfect unconventional focal point for a discussion on our first topic—anarchism. Stay tuned for our next episodes, which will be on The Cremator, The Firemen's Ball, and Marketa Lazarová!

Whoa mama. We have a whole lot of new releases and a whole lot of guest hosts. Luke, Jake, and Morgan join Cole and Zach to talk about all the month's latest, including Kelly Reichardt's artistic exploration Showing Up, Makoto Shinkai's latest fantasy anime Suzume, Ari Aster's new nightmare comedy Beau Is Afraid, and finally, the latest splatter feature, Evil Dead Rise!

"Jeanne Dielman should be on Chopped." This week kicks off a new ongoing series where Cole and Zach discuss the top 100 movies in the 2022 Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time poll, beginning with the one and only, Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles. Join us as we take a trip back in time to discuss not only Chantal Akerman's revolutionary slow cinema masterpiece, but also some of the masterworks from a century ago, such as Cabiria, Pandora's Box and Die Nibelungen, as we unpack some of our favorite "deep cuts" from the silent era!

It's Easter, and it's Passover, and it's Ramadan! With so many holy holidays stacked up, Cole & Zach are celebrating with their seasonal favorites, from studio bible epics to the modern day. This week's new release includes (spoiler-free) discussion of Air, No Bears, and Enys Men, and culminates with a full review of the 2022 Cannes Icelandic and Danish drama, Godland, to wrap up our faith-focused episode.

The films of 2013 are turning 10 years old this year, and we're celebrating with analysis our ten favorites! In the first of our "Class Of" retrospective series, Cole and Zach take a trip back in time to discuss the year's finest celebrating a decade since their release. Join us for an expansive breakdown of our favorites, Oscars winners, the best performances, characters, scripts, and images of the year! And stay tuned down the road for our 20th, 30th, etc. anniversary episodes on the movies of 2003, 1993, and more later this year!

Bullets, nunchucks, screeching tires, flaming ammunition, and samurai swords. They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions, so why wouldn't the road to heaven be smeared with blood? This week, Cole and Zach return to discuss the good (Pacifiction), the bad (Shazam: Fury of the Gods), and the surprisingly decent (Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves) before breaking into a discussion of the biggest action movie since MI: Fallout (or arguably Fury Road). Join us as we discuss John Wick's mythic quest for vengeance and debate the series' placement in action Valhalla.

Just as Quantumania's box office star fades, another Jonathan Majors vehicles arrives to save the box office. This week, Cole and Zach are discussing Michael B. Jordan's knockout debut feature, Creed 3 and discuss how the new film and trilogy as a whole are great sports movies, satisfying dramas, and are a sincere antidote to other big budget fare.

The movie gods have blessed us with the gift of two incredible blockbuster theatrical re-releases, so James, Cole and Zach are following up the Titanic episode with a discussion of Ang Lee's wuxia masterpiece, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Tap in for our impassioned discussion of the rich history, choreography, and romance of this modern classic. This episode also includes (spoiler-free!) talk on The Woman King, To Leslie, Living, Return to Seoul, and Guillermo Del Toro's early aughts blockbusters.

This week, to celebrate it's theatrical re-release, James joins Cole and Zach to discuss James Cameron's sweeping, romantic, historical epic, Titanic. In this episode we breakdown the balance of strong emotional tones and images that makes this such an enduring classic. We've also got (spoiler-free!) discussion of the latest Soderbergh effort, Magic Mike's Last Dance as well as 80 For Brady and plenty more to dig into.

This Valentine's, Cole and Zach are joined once again by Morgan to celebrate Quentin Tarantino's nostalgic, warm, hilarious love letter to the city of angels, Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood. Join us as we discuss what makes Tarantino's 9th such a beautiful and moving ode, and one of our favorites of the past decade. This episode we also discuss (spoiler-free!!) the latest M. Night Shyamalan thriller, Knock at the Cabin as well as Brandon Cronenberg's Infinity Pool.

After our big 2022 new release episode, Cole and Zach return to discuss a shared favourite, 2018 Oscar-winner The Favourite directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. Join us as we break down what makes this period piece so funny, smart and enduring. Also tune in for our (spoiler-free!) talk on new releases M3GAN, Saint Omer, Shin Ultraman and indie horror smash Skinamarink!

One year ends, another begins, and Cole and Zach celebrate the very best films of the year. From blockbuster titans like Spielberg, Peele and Cameron, to international arthouse darlings Park Chan-wook, Todd Field and Jerzy Skolimowski, we cover it all! Our favorite films, characters, performances and more, all in two spoiler-free hours. Looking to catch up on the best of 2022? Look no further.

It's our last episode of 2022, and to celebrate, Zach and Cole return to Pandora to discuss James Cameron's long awaited The Way of Water. The king of sequels and lord of the blockbuster returns to remind us how exciting, vivid and soaring they can be. We also take some time to discuss (spoiler free!) the latest films from Guillermo Del Toro, Alejandro González Iñárritu and Laura Poitras' Golden Lion winner, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed.

This week we're delighted to present our biggest episode yet, our ten favorite Walt Disney Animated feature films. Join us as we discuss our personal canons, our favorite villains, our most underrated and overrated films, and much more. Please enjoy our expansive journey through the history of the biggest company in American animation.

This week, the (other) Zach joins Zach and Cole to discuss the movies of the late fall - White Noise, Bones & All, The Eternal Daughter, and Glass Onion (NOTE: SPOILER FREE :D), before diving into Spielberg's walk down memory lane, The Fabelmans. Join us as we celebrate one of the finest American filmmaker's greatest modern works.

The dead speak! To celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, Cole, Zach and Jake bite into George A. Romero's classic horror trilogy of classic zombie films, Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead. There's no better way to honor America's foibles than with the genre master. Bon appetit!

This week, Cole and Zach review the hotly anticipated Wakanda Forever, the first MCU entry covered on the show! During the conversation, we discuss the potent sense of mortality imbued in the film, the incredible cast, Ruth E. Carter's Oscar-winning, and Oscar-worthy efforts, as well as the way forward for this superhero franchise colossus.

November means the theaters are packed with awards hopefuls, and this week Cole and Zach are joined by Trevor to explore Park Chan-wook's newest thriller, Decision to Leave. The gang also discusses (spoiler-free) a other awards winners and awards hopefuls, Triangle of Sadness, The Banshees of Inisherin and Armageddon Time. Check out our new movie roundup!

For the second week, Cole and Zach are joined by a Jams & Tea guest, Morgan, to discuss seasonal horror watchlists and Kiyoshi Kurosawa's procedural masterpiece, Cure. Stay tuned for (spoiler free!) discussions of TAR and Decision to Leave!

This October, our horror maestros are celebrating the season with a horror medley – first a rundown of our recent horror watchlists, then a breakdown of Argento's original 1977 nightmare masterpiece, Suspiria, and Guadagnino's 2018 reimagining of the same name. Grab your candy bowl and tap in!

You may have heard, the biggest movie in history is back in theaters. This week, Cole and Zach get together to discuss James Cameron's feast for the senses, James Cameron's Avatar, and discuss its technological innovations, lasting appeal and one-of-a-kind theatrical experience.

This week, Zach and Cole discuss one of the great Italian filmmakers, Luchino Visconti, his life, his work, and particularly The Leopard and The Damned. Visconti's films are a rich, vivid tapestry of history, and this conversation is a primer to give some context to his films and unpack what makes them epic and epochal.

Cue the strings! Cole's back from vacation, and together he and Zach cover several summer new releases - Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, Beast, Inu-Oh and Prey - before Cole launches into an impassioned defense of one of the most reviled films of the 1990s, Gus Van Sant's remake of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, starring the late Anne Heche and Vince Vaughn.