Co-host of the Dare Daniel and Canon Fodder podcasts and a member of the San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle.
The Fall of the American Empire (2019; Denys Arcand) GRADE: C By Daniel Barnes The film opens on Friday, July 12, at the Tower Theatre in Sacramento. “Static, Shapeless and Flat” While the films of Atom Egoyan chart a pronounced rise and fall, fellow Canadian filmmaker Denys Arcand […]
Paris is Burning (1990; Jennie Livingston) Grade: B+ By Daniel Barnes *Opens Friday, July 5, at the Landmark Opera Plaza in San Francisco and the Landmark Shattuck in Berkeley. Released in 1990 but immersed in the ethos of 1980s New York, Paris is Burning still feels like one of the […]
The Beautician and the Beast (1997; Ken Kwapis) – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 42 “Talk to the hand!” Long-suffering Slovitzian factory worker Daniel Barnes and “classy European” Corky McDonnell return to Sac City Brews to record their review of Ken Kwapis’ maliciously PG rom-com The Beautician and the Beast. […]
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Funan (2019; Denis Do) GRADE: B- By Daniel Barnes *Opens Friday, June 21, at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. French artist and first-time feature filmmaker Do based this “digitally hand-drawn” GKIDS release on stories told by his Cambodian mother. Earnest and filled with grace, Funan follows a Phnom […]
Mac and Me (1988; Stewart Raffill) – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 41 “Hundreds dead and a city on fire as a dance party at McDonald’s spirals out of control.” On this product placement-heavy episode, hosts Daniel Barnes and Corky McDonnell review the horrifying family film Mac and Me. […]
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All is True (2019; Kenneth Branagh) GRADE: C- By Daniel Barnes *Opens on Friday, June 14, at the Tower Theatre in Sacramento. “Flavorless Yet Vainglorious” Vintage shameless Branagh, borderline unwatchable, but also a weirdly perfect cap to a career built on flavorless yet vainglorious Shakespeare adaptations. It makes perfect […]
