Back Look Cinema: The Podcast

Zo had once stayed in the windy city of Chicago in the late 80's. While he was there he heard wild rumors about a cop that had been chasing down a drug kingpin for over ten years. It was said that that cop would use just about any underhanded tactic to bring down this kingpin. Word on the streets was that he had blackmailed some college kid to help infiltrate the kingpin's suspected drug operation. The rumors said that this kid ope...

Zo somehow finds himself deep, deep under the surface of the ocean: near the Cayman Trough while America and the Soviet Union have their Cold War. He's aboard the most advanced underwater facility ever constructed. The Navy commandeered the facility to investigate a sunken submarine, but, to Zo, the Navy SEAL officer sent to oversee operations don't appear wrapped to tight. The SEAL's presence only cranks up the tension for the har...

Zo is in the wrong place at the wrong time: in the midst of Russia during an intense moment in World War II or, as the Russians would come to call it: The Great Patriotic War. In a city once known as Stalingrad on the banks of the Volga river the fighting has intensified as Russian civilian fighters and the Soviet Red Army desperately defend their country against the onslaught of the German Nazi war machine. Zo as well as the rest ...

Zo is swept up in the excitement of 17th century France and by excitement that means constant war, the threat of public riots and persistent food shortages.  Among all of this upheaval are rumors that three of the most famous of the Musketeers of the Kings Guard have gone rogue; though they've long since retired, many say that these men present a clear and present threat to the Crown and, given how His Royal Subjects feel towa...

Zo gets a call from a man who's voice was familiar. The man had the demeanor of an old friend who was excited to talk to him. He wanted to catch up, sit down and talk about old times. They agree to meet at the bar and, while the man seemed friendly enough, Zo realized that the stranger isn't actually someone he knew or anyone he remembered meeting. Not wanting to be rude Zo carries on with the meeting with this friendly stranger, w...

Zo has had some bad days, but he'd never had days as bad as the end of the world! It started with a localized storm, next there was the largest aircraft he'd ever seen hovering over D.C.. It was so large that he could just barely see it from his apartment all the way in the suburbs of Suitland, Maryland. One would suppose that it was a "UFO", but it was later identified as an honest to goodness extra-terrestrial space craft - one o...

Zo somehow ended up in the wild west, but it's incredibly west and it's incredibly wild. At a port he notices there's a skirmish as people are disembarking a passenger ship. It's a fight between one man defending a woman against half a dozen men. The man handles himself well against the men and is only hampered by the woman accidently hitting that man while she's trying to help him. The man announced that his name was Mathew Quigle...

Zo is back, baby! He's been places and he's seen some things: namely he's been to the theater and he's seen Masters of the Universe and Mortal Kombat 2. Are these films worth your time? If you're curious then check out this episode for some SPOILER FREE reviews from a fan of these icons from the 1980's.

Episode Chapters

00:05:48 Masters of the Universe Review

00:22:18 Mortal Kombat 2 Review

Please leave a comment, suggestion or qu...

Zo visits some old friends at a trailer park. It seems like a normal place with kids running amok, teenagers fooling around and senior citizens looking for someone to fix their TV's so that they can watch their soap operas. Alex is just the guy the guy that they need: a recent high school graduate who is this neighborhood's handyman. Zo noticed that Alex is also fantastic at the Starfighter videogame. Zo had tried the game himself ...

Zo is on a research project that takes him to the National Institute of Mental Health and while there he discovered their secret program of animal experimentation on rats, mice, dogs, cats and other animals. These experiments seem cruel and unnecessary. What he's heard is that some of the rodents had gained super-intelligence and had escaped the lab. The scientists at NIMH has tracked them down to a nearby farm. There's not a lot t...

Zo got a rare chance to see a couple of movies and he's going to give you his SPOILER FREE impressions of The Mandalorian and Grogu and Is God Is. These are two very different movies that, by all rights, shouldn't be in the same episode . . . yet here we are! The Mandalorian and Grogu is first; if you want to skip to the next review, then you can skip to the next chapter or go to the 10 minute mark.

Episode Chapters

00:02:13 The M...

Zo, still roaming around the 1800's, and Zorro is very much active. He appears when the people, his people cry out for his intervention. His people, the people of California, are on the precipice of great change as they vote on whether or not to become a state of the United States. Those in favor of this monumental move believe that becoming a state would offer some relief from oppression an grant a greater opportunity for freedom,...

Zo is transported into a time of change for Spanish California. It's a time of mystery, corruption, intrigue, romance and high adventure. It is a time when the common folk are oppressed by their wealthy overlords and they cry out for justice. The legend who had once defended the people against the chaos has been gone for many years, but Zo hears whispers of his reappearance. There is hope in the air that the people will once again ...

Zo impossibly finds himself on a futuristic space craft ostensibly designed for science and exploration, but for a space craft of peace, the U.S.S. Enterprise is sure loaded for bare with powerful shields, nimble impulse engines, deadly accurate phasers, devastating photon torpedoes and a brilliant Captain. She will require all of these advantages as her Captain and crew discover and attempt to dismantle a galaxy spanning conspirac...

Zo is ravished by a horrible unknown raspatory ailment. It could be Covid, the flu, the cold or all three at once. In any case he was unable to record a show for this week; however, Zo reached out to his friends Troy and Brad from Not a Bomb podcast and they graciously leant one of their shows to this podcast for you to enjoy.

The episode is #153 - Masters of the Universe (1987). In this episode Zo is a guest and he discussed with ...

Zo and Chris (a special guest and host of the Saturday Morning Podcast) embark on a trek to the final frontier. They board the USS Enterprise, but, unbeknownst to them, they are heading for a place that should not exist - a planet at the center of the galaxy where God is said to exist. This excursion, they've heard, is lead by a mysterious preacher named Sybok who is a Vulcan who has embraced his emotions. How Sybok convinced Capta...

Zo gives his impressions on this Spoiler Free review of They Will Kill You starring Zazie Beetz, Patricia Arquette and Myha'la and directed by Kirill Sokolov who also wrote the film with Alex Litvak. This episode released on Easter of 2026. Does it make for a good Easter movie?  Well, I wouldn't expect anyone to watch this film and be filled with the Holy Ghost, but it does have religious tones. The kind of religious tones tha...

Zo gives his Spoiler Free review and impressions of Project Hail Mary Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and starring Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller and James Ortiz. A film adaptation of Andy Weir's novel of the same name. Overall the novel was fascinating. Will the movie live up to the wonder that was presented by the novel? Do you think that this movie is fit for your viewing pleasure? Take a listen then make a discission...

Zo once visited his family in a small town in Georgia and during his visit some outlandish events happened. At first it seemed like that the lady in the neighborhood that everyone respected and affectionately called "Big Mamma" was acting strange. She beat up her martial arts instructor. She beat a bunch of bullies with her grandson at basketball on the playground and, strangest of all, it seems that she forgot how to cook. Later i...