Reel Beasts

Ben Faulkner & David Mauro•podcasters.spotify.com

Cinephiles and dinosaur nerds rejoice! Film connoisseur David, and paleontologist Ben (both trained informal educators), join forces to explore the rich history of prehistoric animals in movies. Reel Beasts takes listeners from the badlands to the cutting room floor through insightful critiques, scientific rigor, and a pinch of comedy. With filmmaking experience and several dino digs under our belts, we’re here to pick bones about silver screen saurians both majestic and ridiculous.

Last refreshed: July 2nd, 2025 at 1:39 PM ⓘ

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Episodes

035. Field Beasts: Scenes From Dinosaur Country

A little collection of vignettes from Montana in July 2023

Oct 14, 2023•15 min

034. Jurassic World (2015) part 1 ft. Tim

Holy Mosasaur! You knew we would get to this one someday. We take aim at one of the biggest blockbusters of the last decade with the help of friend of the podcast Tim!

Oct 06, 2023•1 hr 45 min

033. Mini Beasts: In Defense of Paleontology

Ben gets on his soapbox briefly to respond to some common critiques/misconceptions about paleontology.

Sep 30, 2023•8 min

032. Beast of the Week: Ankylosaurus

ALL THE ARMOR for this amazing Ank tank of a dinosaur.

Sep 22, 2023•26 min

031. 65

Adam Driver + dinosaurs, what could go wrong? Well, plenty as it turns out!

Sep 15, 2023•1 hr 5 min

030. Field Beasts!

A rundown of field paleontology for fossil explorers!

Sep 08, 2023•1 hr 3 min

029. Walking With Dinosaurs: The Movie: 3D: The Podcast (2013)

"We should have brought layers" - a dinosaur in this movie.

Apr 01, 2023•1 hr 19 min

028. Reel(ish) Beasts: Anaconda (1997)

Thin plot, thicc snake.

Jan 05, 2023•1 hr 14 min

027. Unreel Beasts: Godzilla (1998)

"The Lost World Effect" states that a movie you thought was perfect in childhood is actually not very good. This film is a prime example of such an effect. We still like it though...

Dec 20, 2022•1 hr 25 min

026. The Velocipastor (2018)

A man of the claw, two podcasters in awe.

Sep 08, 2022•1 hr 19 min•Season 2Ep. 3

025: 10,000 BC (2008)

How many prophecies do you need? Four? OK cool.

Sep 01, 2022•1 hr 17 min•Season 2Ep. 2

024. Jurassic Park III (2001)

Come on in, the water's fine! There is definitely not a Spinosaurus in there!

May 22, 2022•1 hr 37 min•Season 2Ep. 1

023. Unreel Beasts: Annihilation (2018) ft. Aaron- Part 2

CW: cinematic violence / body horror, brief mention of self-harm Once the Shimmer takes a shine to you the shine don't stop.

May 01, 2022•1 hr 6 min

022. Unreel Beasts: Annihilation (2018) ft. Aaron- Part 1

CW: cinematic violence / body horror, brief mention of self-harm Ben is joined by astrophysicist Aaron to dissect Annihilation, a wonderful 2018 sci-fi slow burn. Come with us into the Shimmer!

Feb 21, 2022•1 hr 13 min

021. The Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure (1994)

We celebrate 1 year of Reel Beasts with a return to The Great Valley!

Jan 23, 2022•1 hr 15 min

020. Carnosaur (1993)

If there is one lesson to be taken from this movie, it is FEAR ALL EGGS!

Dec 24, 2021•1 hr 9 min

019. Mini Beasts: Jurassic World Dominion Trailer

The hottest takes on the new Jurassic World prologue trailer! We really enjoyed this one y'all.

Nov 29, 2021•48 min

018: The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

A sophomore slump for the Jurassic Park series? We discuss Spielberg's second stab at insular dinosaur carnage!

Nov 12, 2021•1 hr 18 min

017. Unreel Beasts: Alien (1979) Part 2- The Science

Acid blood, pharyngeal jaws, and the Fermi Paradox. All this and more in a tangent-tastic but thoughtful episode of Unreel Beasts!

Oct 11, 2021•1 hr 8 min

016. Unreel Beasts: Alien (1979) Part 1- The Film

Trigger Warning: discussions of sexual violence, strong sexual themes. Welcome to Unreel Beasts, where we expand our programming to include fictional creatures. We kick things off with one of the most influential sci-fi/horror/thriller films of all time! (3:30) plot summary. (17:39) themes and cinematography. (34:21) sexual dynamics, imagery, and implications. (58:21) the alien’s many forms.

Sep 04, 2021•1 hr 2 min

015. Mini Beasts: Talkin' Tyrants

Tangents and Tyrannosaurs rule the Earth! (00:00) - Intro to Tyrannosaurs, (5:50) - supercontinents and breathing strategies, (13:57) - A brief history of the tyrant dinosaurs, (40:32) - David's T-rex questions, (55:13) - Jurassic Park easter eggs and final thoughts.

Aug 22, 2021•1 hr 3 min

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