Reel Review with Zoe (Real FM)

Zoe reviews the latest theatrical release from Angel Studios: Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Spy, Assassin. The title alone is intriguing; the words pastor, spy, and assassin are rarely used to describe the same person! If you know anything about the real theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, like Zoe, then that name alone could be intriguing and now his story is on the big screen. But is it worth the theatrical e...

Welcome to Reel 2, Zoe's deeper dive on the new film, Wicked (Part 1, 2024). Zoe enjoyed the movie and recommended it on her spoiler free Reel 1 but now she dives deeper into the movie's themes alongside her special guest, Chaplin Justin . Chaplin Justin is a host of the Faith Refresh podcast on the Real FM Podcast network, and he was the perfect person to talk to. Leaving the theater, Zoe had a l...

Wicked (part 1) was released on November 22nd, 2024, based on a popular Broadway musical of the same name that's been on stage since 2003. The musical is also based on a book, which was released in 1995. Wicked follows a similar pattern as the original Wizard of Oz, which started as a book in 1900, then became a stage musical, until becoming a movie in 1939. Zoe went into this film completely blin...

The Covenant was released in 2023, created by filmmaker Guy Ritchie and starring Jake Gyllenhaal. The film is a fictional story inspired by the real life events between the United States and Afghanistan in 2018. It is a story centered on two characters, Jake Gyllenhaal's character a Master Sergeant in Afghanistan named John Kinley, and his Afghan interpreter named Ahmed. Ahmed and John have a uniq...

The box office success of "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" has some people asking, "Is Tim Burton Back?" but that begs another question.... where was he? And who is he? If you're wondering these questions, Zoe has answers. In this episode, she breaks down the origins of the iconic film director, his filmography, where "he went" and where he is today with this new film's success.... And you can listen to...

Don't say his name three times! Zoe is reviewing the sequel to a classic 80s Tim Burton film, but this begs some questions, "is the movie as good as the original? Is it necessary for the story progression? Or is it just a nostalgia cash-grab?" Zoe found the film entertaining and middle of the road, but a surprisingly fun theatrical experience. But she warns that this is NOT a family film or film f...

This time Zoe is shaking things up, starting a brand new segment called "Manic Movie News Monday" where she discusses movie news, trending topics related to the industry, and upcoming releases... in this update, Zoe talks about what's coming soon to theaters (The Wild Robot from Dreamworks, Megapolis from Francis Ford Coppola starring Adam Driver, and the Joker sequel) plus Zoe rants about the Min...

In this spoiler-filled review, Zoe discusses the original "A Quiet Place" film and the subsequent films in its franchise (A Quiet Place: Part II & A Quiet Place: Day One). Zoe makes the case these films completely miss the point of the original film which was a family-centered, heart-felt story that had scifi horror elements, instead of being a scifi horror film about a family. There is appare...

Zoe missed it while it was in theaters, so she decided to catch it on streaming: A Quiet Place Day 1. Zoe was super hyped for this film and avoided all the spoilers so she could make up her own mind. A Quiet Place is beloved by her, so she was very curious about the new entry of the franchise. But watching a movie when its recently left theaters means it comes with a heavier cost for renting onlin...

Reel 2 is where Zoe gets to talk spoilers about the new movie but in this case, Zoe wanted to open up a conversation about the current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe because this new movie (Deadpool & Wolverine) offers a stark contrast to the kinds of movies we've been getting lately... and Zoe isn't talking about the R rating, she means the heartfelt storytelling and character archs.....

In this spoiler-free review, Zoe is talking about the new movie in the Disney Marvel Cinematic Universe: Deadpool & Wolverine. This movie has been hyped as the movie of 2024, but Deadpool is a character full of debauchery and filth with his foul language, sexual references, and bloody violence... will being a "Disney" film change that? Zoe's answer is both yes and no... and this movie surprise...

If you listen to Reel 1, you'll get a spoiler free review on the new movie Twisters, where Zoe expressed how surprised she was by the film. She personally loved it, and felt inspired to watch the original 1996 movie Twister, because she vaguely remembered not liking it as a kid. Maybe she was wrong and Twister was a good movie after all.... So, she compares and contrasts the two tornado films in t...

Don’t judge a movie by its trailer... that's the lesson Zoe is taking away from her viewing of "Twisters". Zoe had one impression of what the film “Twisters” would be like after seeing a recent trailer, that it would be a yew-haw action adventure rom-com involving tornadoes. She was wrong but NOT disappointed. This film is far more real, showcasing the true devastation of tornadoes, and how it imp...

In this spoiler-free reel review, Zoe warns you about this film Bad Boys Ride or Die. She encourages you to NOT spend time and money at the movie theater with this one. It is an obnoxious film with bad editing, poor tasteless humor, and a performance by Will Smith that lacks charm. By the way, welcome to Reel Review! This is where Zoe helps answer the question, "Should I see this?" and invites you...

Zoe dives deep into the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the latest installment in the reboot franchise. Zoe is a big fan of the original film Planet of the Apes from 1968, and fell in love with the recent trilogy helmed mostly by Matt Reeves. This new installment comes after what Zoe describes as a perfect trilogy, so how exactly do you follow-up perfection? It is a nearly impossible task, and...

In this spoiler-free reel review, Zoe discusses the latest installment to a franchise she loves: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. Admittedly, this franchise may be somewhat niche. There are likely two types of audience go-ers: those who love the trilogy and those who haven't seen any of the previous films. So this poses a challenge for the filmmakers, how do they please both types of audience me...

In this spoiler-free reel review, Zoe covers the action-packed film The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt. The film is a love letter to the stunt community, filmmaking, and classic action films. That makes a lot of sense because its directed by David Leitch who got his start in Hollywood by being a stunt man and has now directed several big action films. This action film is pretty go...

This episode of Reel Review is different. Instead of reviewing a new movie, Zoe is joined with two incredible guests to discuss their new film: Pastor's Kid. The film's director and writer is Benjamin Koppin, who works in L.A. as a commercial producer and independent filmmaker with his wife. The leading actress in the film is played by Courtney Bandeko who loves working in indie-films and has also...

In this Reel 2, Zoe is taking a closer look at the "true story" the movie The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is based on. It turns out this action-backed and violent rated R film may not be as true to the real life events or heroes as it seems. And sadly, that is true with many films based on "true stories" because there is no standard or expectation for how accurate they are supposed to be......

In this spoiler-free reel review, Zoe covers the refreshing and entertaining film "The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare" starring Henry Cavil. Zoe and her husband Sam enjoyed this film but it is definitely for mature audiences with profuse swearing and a glorification of violence. There is one scene which has some nudity from behind, but it is a scene which shows a character how bad these Nazis a...

This Reel 2 is a deep dive on the recent film, "Monkey Man". If you are looking for a spoiler free review, that was Reel 1 which you can listen to right now. But this episode is dedicated to unpacking what makes this film stand out in the action genre and the filmmaker behind it all, Dev Patel. Spoilers ahead! By the way, welcome to Reel Review! This is where Zoe helps answer the question, "Should...

In this spoiler-free reel review, Zoe covers the surprising film "Monkey Man" which was written, directed, produced and starring Dev Patel. This film is rated R in every way, from the bloody violence, to language, and nudity, but it is also a heavy film wrestling with a lot of themes like religion and politics, revenge, and the treatment of minorities. It is a difficult film to recommend and depen...

In this Reel 2, Zoe asked her resident Godzilla-expert Sam to bring his knowledge to the conversation. Sam discusses why he felt this movie was more of a Kong movie than a Godzilla film, not really a team-up, and he wishes the Legendary studio would make a genuine Godzilla-centered film. They also talk about the monster-verse, franchise-fatigue, and how it is indeed possible to make legitimately g...

Big monster fights are not Zoe's cup of tea when it comes to movies but this latest entry in the "monster-verse" franchise from Legendary Studios surprised her! She had a very fun time at the theater and her husband who is a mega Godzilla fan was also pleased. It can't be compared to Japan's film, Godzilla Minus One, from last year, but that's okay because they're two completely different films an...

In this deep dive into Kung Fu Panda 4, Zoe explains why she feels this full shows the greed of Hollywood. One of the film's co-directors, Stephanie Stein, has come out expressing her frustration with DreamWorks and shared her unfortunate experience on the project. Her story explains exactly what went wrong on this film: the bad storytelling decisions, lack of character development, rapid pacing,...