The Tribe (2015; Miroslav Slaboshpitsky) GRADE: B- By Daniel Barnes The opening titles say it all: “This film is in sign language. There are no translations, no subtitles, no voice-over.” A conceptually unique and visually compelling Ukrainian import comprised of only 34 shots, The Tribe follows the arrival […]
We Come as Friends (2015; Hubert Sauper) GRADE: B By Daniel Barnes Nope, not the Zac Efron-goes-EDM drama. Instead, Darwin’s Nightmare director Hubert Sauper writes, directs and edits this rambling, sneakily compelling documentary about modern-day colonialism in Sudan. This adventurous Frenchman also pilots an ultralight plane of his […]
Fort Tilden (2015; Sarah Violet-Bliss and Charles Rogers) GRADE: B+ By Daniel Barnes *Opens tomorrow, August 14, at the AMC Metreon 16 in San Francisco. Fort Tilden also premieres tomorrow on VOD services. “We fucked up summer.” The existential crises of the young, privileged, bored, white, female, and […]
Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet (2015; Roger Allers et al.) GRADE: C+ By Daniel Barnes An animated passion project shepherded to the screen by Salma Hayek, the hugely promising Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet arrives in theaters as a decidedly mixed bag. Gorgeous sequences of highly individualized, hand-drawn animation from […]
Listen to Me Marlon (2015; Stevan Riley) GRADE: A- By Daniel Barnes “Raw and Deeply Personal” Contrary to the didactic self-inflation and conclusion-based approach of Best of Enemies, Steven Riley’s stunning documentary Listen to Me Marlon practically bursts with a sense of discovery. It shows new sides to […]
Best of Enemies (2015; Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville) GRADE: B- By Daniel Barnes I generally recoil when I hear the word “important” in a documentary. Besides being an utterly meaningless evaluation, it’s a red flag of self-inflation. If you need to bring on a stacked deck of […]
