In The Cold Open #32, The Spring Can Not Get Here Fast Enough Edition, Matt Reynolds, Robert Sickels, and Kynde Kiefel discuss movies released over the past few months, including, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Mother!, The Shape of Water, The Post, Phantom Thread, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Suburbicon, It, and Blade Runner 2049.  Also, throughout this episode Matt pays homage to Mark E. Smith, the lead singer of The Fall, his favorite band for 30 + years.  Our intro this edition is Jonny Greenwood’s […]

In The Cold Open #31, The Lunar Eclipse/Welcome to Fall Edition, Matt Reynolds, Robert Sickels, and Kynde Kiefel discuss their recent media consumption, which includes Game of Thrones, The Beguiled, Logan Lucky, Baby Driver, Detroit, Dunkirk, Atomic Blonde, and a whole lot more. Our intro this edition is Carla Thomas’ “B-A-B-Y” from the Baby Driver Soundtrack and our outro is Nena’s “99 Luftballons” from the Atomic Blonde Soundtrack. The Cold Open Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, so please rate, review, and […]

In The Cold Open #30, The Wonder Woman/Summer Day Drinking Vol. 2 Edition, Matt Reynolds, Robert Sickels, and Kynde Kiefel start off by pouring some out for the recently departed Adam West. They then discuss what they’re currently consuming (The Keepers, Fargo, Twin Peaks, Better Call Saul, The Leftovers, Silicon Valley, Catastrophe, The Handmaid’s Tale, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Romanzo Criminale, Sound Opinions Podcast), before delving into their main topic, Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman. Our intro this edition is Han Zimmer’s […]

In The Cold Open #29, The Moonlight in Manchester Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels discuss four high profile recent films, Rogue One, Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea, and La La Land. Our intro this edition is The Goodie Mob’s “Cell Therapy” from the Moonlight soundtrack and our outro is Ryan Gosling’s “City of Stars” from the La La Land soundtrack. The Cold Open Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, so please rate, review, and subscribe!

In The Cold Open #28, The Hell or High Water Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin with a deep dive into the state of contemporary movie Westerns, using Hell or High Water and The Magnificent Seven as our jumping off point.  We then briefly discuss the rapidly evolving business model of the television industry in the age of viewing on demand. Our intro this edition is Townes Van Zandt’s “Dollar Bill Blues” and our outro is Nick Cave & Warren Ellis’ […]

In The Cold Open #27, The Welcome to Summer Day Drinking Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin with a discussion of the pilot of AMC’s Preacher.  We then take a look at the latest installment in the never-ending Marvel Comic Universe, Captain America: Civil War.  And finally, we take a deep dive into Shane Black’s Los Angeles, specifically as seen in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys. Our intro this edition is “California Dreamin'” by The Mommas & The Poppas […]

In The Cold Open #26, The Force Awakens Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin with a brief discussion of Sisters, Krampus, and the magical powers of Whiskey Punch before getting to their SPOILER FILLED take on Star Wars: The Force Awakens. They dissect the film through varying lenses, including casting, writing, cinematography, editing, and audience reception. Of the many digressions along the way, the most notable is an unexpected detour into Face/Off and the careers of Nicolas Cage, John Travolta, and John Woo. […]

In The Cold Open #25, the Thanksgiving Break Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin by discussing their favorite Thanksgiving related bits of media–A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving for Robert and the original Twilight Zone TV series for Matt. We then discuss, with many digressions along the way, Sicario, The Martian, Spectre, and Netflix’s Jessica Jones. Finally, we end the show by touching on our shared Star Wars fatigue. Our intro and outro this week is the Vince Guaraldi Trio’s “Thanksgiving […]

In the Cold Open #24, The Decline of Western Civilization/Back to School Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin by recounting their differing responses to a recent Wilco concert.  They then delve into Straight Outta Compton and Shaun the Sheep. Lastly, they discuss Penelope Spheeris’ astounding Decline of Western Civilization documentary trilogy, which has been remastered and released as a gorgeous box set by Shout Factory. Our outro this week is Fear’s “I Don’t Care About You.” The Cold Open Podcast is available on Apple […]

In the Cold Open #24, The Decline of Western Civilization/Back to School Edition, Matt Reynolds and Robert Sickels begin by recounting their differing responses to a recent Wilco concert.  They then delve into Straight Outta Compton and Shaun the Sheep. Lastly, they discuss Penelope Spheeris’ astounding Decline of Western Civilization documentary trilogy, which has been remastered and released as a gorgeous box set by Shout Factory. Our outro this week is Fear’s “I Don’t Care About You.” The Cold Open is on iTunes, so please […]