The First Ride

Tae-jung, Do-jin, Yeon-min, and Geum-bok have been close friends since early childhood. While in high school, Tae-jung achieves a perfect score on the national college entrance examination, and the four friends obtain their parents' permission to take a graduation trip to Thailand, which is also meant to be their last chance to travel together before Yeon-min emigrates abroad. However, after missing the airport bus, they fail to catch their flight and the trip is canceled.

Ten years later, Tae-jung, who has long aspired to become president, is working as a parliamentary aide while maintaining his political ambitions. Do-jin, who has been receiving treatment for a psychiatric illness that developed after high school, shows signs of improvement and suggests that they finally take the trip they were unable to make years earlier. Geum-bok, who is preparing to formally enter monastic life, also wishes for one last act of freedom before ordination. Tae-jung agrees to join them, promising to return before an upcoming party convention, and the group departs for Pattaya during the Songkran music festival. They are joined by a dakimakura representing Yeon-min, who had emigrated to New Zealand, and by Ok-sim, a friend of Tae-jung's younger sister who has an unrequited crush on him.

Shortly after arriving in Thailand, the group meets Tai Park, who has come to drive them to their accommodation. On the way, a traffic accident occurs involving another vehicle, leading to an argument. When Tae-jung attempts to intervene, Ok-sim remarks that she feels reassured when he steps forward, but Tai Park suddenly punches Tae-jung, knocking him unconscious. Tai Park flees into the sea, and the police arrive. After learning that the vehicle Tai Park was driving was stolen, the group is taken to the police station. With assistance from the Korean embassy, they are soon released and proceed to their lodging.

Throughout the trip, Do-jin's mental condition fluctuates. He repeatedly argues with Tae-jung over Yeon-min's dakimakura, disrupts a nightclub performance by climbing onto the DJ stage, and causes further disturbances. Later, Tae-jung attempts to retrieve Do-jin's medication with Ok-sim's help, but when club patrons begin filming Do-jin and Geum-bok, Tae-jung reacts violently, threatening them with a chair. Police intervene once again, and when Tae-jung reaches into his pocket to produce the medication, an officer mistakenly believes he is drawing a weapon and fires a taser, which strikes Ok-sim instead.

The trip continues to deteriorate when footage of the nightclub incident appears in Korean news, prompting Tae-jung's superior, Assemblyman Nam Joong-dae, to reprimand him. Frustrated, Tae-jung lashes out at his friends. During an argument at a restaurant, Tae-jung throws Yeon-min's dakimakura to the floor. Do-jin accuses Tae-jung of having treated Yeon-min dismissively in the past and abandoning him now to preserve his own future. Tae-jung storms out, and Do-jin spends the night searching for him along the beach. Tae-jung, who has been watching from a distance with Geum-bok and Ok-sim, eventually reconciles with Do-jin, and they return to their lodging with the dakimakura.

Despite the earlier chaos, the group successfully enjoys the Songkran music festival. Later, while drinking with Sylvia, a Korean bartender they befriended during the trip, they lose consciousness and awaken in an illegal organ-harvesting facility. Ok-sim, who had been arrested separately for failing to pay at a hotel restaurant, recognizes Sylvia on a wanted poster at the police station and claims to know her whereabouts. By leading the police to Sylvia, Ok-sim manages to rescue her friends before the operation is carried out.

As the facility burns during the escape, Do-jin insists on retrieving Yeon-min's dakimakura, causing another confrontation. It is revealed that the real reason the friends never went on their high school trip was not because they missed the bus, but because Yeon-min had died in a traffic accident. Do-jin's illness stems from guilt over abandoning Yeon-min, who was severely injured and unable to move after the crash, out of fear instead of helping him. Unable to let Yeon-min go, Do-jin breaks down, prompting Tae-jung to re-enter the facility to retrieve the dakimakura.

The group rushes to the airport but arrives too late to board their flight. Tae-jung despairs, believing he will miss the party convention, but Ok-sim intervenes by stopping the plane on the runway, allowing them to board in time.

After returning to Korea, the friends gather at Yeon-min's grave to share memories. Tae-jung successfully delivers his speech, helping Assemblyman Nam become party leader. Do-jin attends a job interview at a travel agency. Ok-sim is briefly detained by Thai authorities due to the airport incident but is released through Tae-jung's diplomatic efforts. On the day of her return to Korea, Tae-jung meets Ok-sim at the airport and accepts the ring she had previously given him.

Filming began on March 21, 2025 and ended on June 11.^[3]

The First Ride was included in the lineup of the 2025 Cannes Film Market.^[6][7]

The First Ride was released in South Korean theaters on October 29, 2025 by Showbox.^[8]