Oppenheimer (2023; Christopher Nolan) Rating: Bump It *Now playing everywhere. In this change-of-pace mini-episode, Sacramento film critic Daniel Barnes shares his thoughts on Christopher Nolan’s new three-hour biopic Oppenheimer, starring Cillian Murphy as the father of the atomic bomb. Daniel recalls his The Two Popes-esque encounter with Nolan, praises Murphy’s haunted and haunting lead performance, and delves into the film’s many paradoxes. If nothing else, Oppenheimer confirms...

Dare Daniel Season 2/Episode 0 – Dare Daniel: Cage Match mini-episode “Their grandkids’ grandkids’ grandkids are gonna think this show is the bee’s knees!” Dinosaur trafficker Daniel and Holy Grail enthusiast Corky switch faces to preview their upcoming season, Dare Daniel: Cage Match. A deep dive into the terrifying nooks and disturbing crannies of the prolific and singular Nicolas Cage, Dare Daniel: Cage Match begins on Tuesday, July 25, with a review of Vampire’s Kiss. In this...

Dancin’: It’s On! (2015; Dir.: David Winters) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 21 “You can play baseball, you can play tennis, but you can’t play dancin’!” In this final Best of Dare Daniel rerun, Daniel and Corky are revisitin’ their reviewin’ of the revoltin’ Dancin’: It’s On! DANCIN’: IT’S ON! FACTS AND FIGURES The Flav-o-rita recipe: 1 oz. jalapeño-infused blanco tequila; 0.5 oz. blanco tequila; 0.5 oz. mezcal; 0.75 oz. Cointreau; 0.75 oz. lime juice; 0.25 oz. pineapple juice; 0.25 oz....

Can’t Stop the Music (1980; Nancy Walker) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 20 “Relax! Boogie!” Tragically unable to stop the music, Daniel and Corky serve up two scoops of Can’t Stop the Nuts to revisit their review of this factually dubious Village People biopic. CAN’T STOP THE MUSIC FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. release date: June 20, 1980 Critics scores: 22 on Rotten Tomatoes This week’s Darer: Dan Scott Why did Dan dare Daniel and Corky? “Because you can’t stop the music. Nobody can stop the...

Love on a Leash (2011; Dir.: Fen Tian) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 19 “His name is Alvin Flang! His name is Alvin Flang!” Pizza-faced cinderblocks Daniel and Corky get revenge on the evil pond that cursed them to become professional podcasters by revisiting their review of Fen Tian’s jaw-dropping Love on a Leash. LOVE ON A LEASH FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. DVD release date: Aug. 19, 2013 Critic scores: n/a This week’s darers: Erica Shultz and Gunnar Pearson Why did Erica dare Daniel and...

Holidate (2020; Dir.: John Whitesell) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 18 “Did you just compare sex with me to eating slugs?” Daniel and Corky make a holidate to revisit their review of John Whitesell’s shallow rom-com Holidate. HOLIDATE FACTS AND FIGURES Daniel’s craft beer: Moksa Brewing’s Cold Steeped – Geisha (11% ABV) Corky’s craft beer: Imperiale Beer Project’s Sweep the Dregs West Coast IPA (7.1% ABV) Netflix release date: Feb.  28, 2020 Critic scores: 45 on Rotten Tomatoes; 44 on...

Mac and Me (1988; Stewart Raffill) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 17 “Nice teddy bear!” Daniel and Corky courageously revisit the waking nightmare of product placement and alien body horror known as Mac and Me. MAC AND ME FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: August 12, 1988 Domestic box office: $6.4 million (production budget: $13 million) Critic scores: 7 on Rotten Tomatoes This week’s Darer: Liam Why did Liam dare Daniel and Corky to watch Mac and Me?  “Actor Paul Rudd has a...

Old Fashioned – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 16 “Hey there, Stress Boy.” Reformed frat boys Daniel and Corky continue their Best of Dare Daniel series by revisiting Rik Swartzwelder’s Old Fashioned. OLD FASHIONED FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: Feb. 6, 2015 Domestic box office: $1.9 million (production budget: $600,000) Critics scores: 17 on Rotten Tomatoes; 29 on Metacritic This week’s darer: Rachael Legg Rachael’s dare: “Old Fashioned was filmed in my hometown, and so...

Collision Course (1989; Lewis Teague) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 15 “I’m on your ass!” Daniel and Corky turbocharge their memories to revisit their review of Jay Leno and Noriyuki “Pat” Morita in the racist buddy-cop comedy Collision Course. COLLISION COURSE FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: n/a (debuted on HBO in 1992) Critic scores: n/a (32 Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes) Box office performance: n/a This week’s Darer: Darcey Self Why did Darcey dare Daniel and...

Jaws: The Revenge – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 14 It’s another tickly day in paradise as Daniel and Corky revisit their review of Jaws: The Revenge. JAWS: THE REVENGE FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release: July 17, 1987 Domestic box office: $20 million (production budget: $23 million) Critics scores: 0 on Rotten Tomatoes; 15 on Metacritic This week’s darer: Dean Longenecker Dean’s dare: “Jaws 3D is happy this movie exists. God awful movie. I’m embarrassed that a Great White Shark...

Rawhead Rex (1986; George Pavlou) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 13 “Get upstairs, fuckface! I can’t keep God waiting!” Daniel and Corky emerge from the ground to revisit their first Scare Daniel review: the slop-dog 1986 monster movie Rawhead Rex. RAWHEAD REX FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: April 17, 1987 Critics scores: 25 on Rotten Tomatoes This week’s Darer: Matthew Dougherty Why did Matthew dare Daniel and Corky to watch this movie? “Just terrible B horror movie. Bad...

Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 (1987; Lee Harry) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 12 Daniel and Corky make your day Garbage Day by revisiting their review of the glorified clip show Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2. SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT PART 2 FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: April 10, 1987 Domestic box office: $154,000 (production budget: $100,000) Critic scores: 25 on Rotten Tomatoes IMDB synopsis: “The now-adult Ricky talks to a psychiatrist about how he became a...

Cool as Ice (1991; David Kellogg) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 11 “I’m gonna go across the street and, uh, schling a s*****g.” Daniel and Corky put on their formal parachute pants to revisit their wildly popular review of Vanilla Ice in the wildly unpopular Cool as Ice. COOL AS ICE FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: October 18, 1991 Domestic box office: $1.2 million (production budget: $6 million) Critic scores: 7 on Rotten Tomatoes This week’s Darer: Heather Smith Why did...

Ultraviolet (2006; Kurt Wimmer) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 10 Daniel and Corky bravely subject their mind’s eyes to the memory of Milla Jovovich in the retina-shredding Ultraviolet. ULTRAVIOLET FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: March 3, 2006 Domestic box office: $18.5 million (production budget: $30 million) Critic scores: 9 on Rotten Tomatoes; 18 on Metacritic This week’s Darer: Marco Cabodi Why did Marco dare Daniel and Corky to watch Ultraviolet?  “Nonsensical Milla...

Fateful Findings – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 9 “I can’t believe we’re revisiting Fateful Findings.” Daniel and Corky uncover the cosmic conspiracy behind Best of Dare Daniel by listlessly pecking at random keys on five broken laptops. New Dare Daniel episodes will resume in the Spring! FATEFUL FINDINGS FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. festival premiere: Dec. 8, 2012 This week’s darer: Gunnar Pearson Gunnar’s dare: “You guys talk about bad movies and every show or podcast that talks about bad...

Love Actually – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 8 In this week’s holiday-themed Best of Dare Daniel, your hosts (and a special guest) revisit the horndog treacle of Love Actually. LOVE ACTUALLY FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: Nov. 7, 2003 Domestic box office: $59.7 million (production budget: $40-45 million) Critic scores: 64 on Rotten Tomatoes; 55 on Metacritic This week’s darer: Heather Smith Why did Heather dare Daniel and Corky to watch Love Actually? “It’s that magical...

Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 7 “It’s putting the ka-ching back in Christmas.” Daniel and Corky take the Christ out of Christmas long enough to review Kirk Cameron and his unique brand of Bible-sanctioned materialism in Saving Christmas. NEW DARES The Cat (Doug Glassman) Knowing (Courtney) SAVING CHRISTMAS FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: Nov. 14, 2014 Domestic box office gross: $2.8 million (production budget: $500,000) Critic scores: 0...

Battlefield Earth (2000; Roger Christian) – Best of Dare Daniel Rerun 6 “Holy amazing shit, John Travolta.” Daniel and Corky conclude Travolt-ember with the beloved Battlefield Earth, the first in their Best of Dare Daniel series of reruns. Elsewhere, Daniel and Corky discuss learning machines, corporate crapheads, ironic punishments, intergalactic bankers and gastro-extermination sequences. BATTLEFIELD EARTH FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical release date: May 12, 2000 Domestic box...

Two of a Kind – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 123 “It’s a movie forgotten by time, and I look forward to forgetting it myself.” Kooky inventor Daniel Barnes and flirty bank teller Corky McDonnell get together to save the world from the abysmal nothing-burgerTwo of a Kind. Grease stars John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John (RIP) unfortunately reunite for this chaotic and monotonous mix of fluffy romance and apocalyptic comedy. Elsewhere, Daniel and Corky discuss armoire obsessions, edible...

The Exorcist III – Scare Daniel Podcast Episode 122 “It’s just a bunch of peas and anchovies.” Daniel and Corky do their shouty best to keep up with George C. Scott in William Peter Blatty’s so-underappreciated-it’s-almost-overappreciated The Exorcist III. Blatty crafts a shockingly effective slow creep that is unfortunately undermined by an over-the-top fan service ending. THE EXORCIST III FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical debut: Aug. 17, 1990 Critics scores: 59 on Rotten Tomatoes; 48...

Hocus Pocus – Scare Daniel Podcast Episode 121 “Max likes your yabbos.” Daniel and Corky light a Febreze to clear the air after reviewing Bette Midler in the inexplicably beloved Hocus Pocus. This sloppily written, egregiously unfunny Halloween comedy about three Stooges-esque witches somehow became a beloved holiday tradition. Elsewhere, Daniel and Corky discuss circus movie fetishes, powdered wig lechery and inconsistent zap magic. HOCUS POCUS FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. theatrical...

Strait-Jacket (1964) – Scare Daniel Podcast Episode 120 “Do you want to date a doctor?” Zombie Daniel and Mummy Corky return from the dead for the 2022 edition of Scare Daniel. This is the fifth installment of our October horror movie series, meaning we’ve reached A New Beginning in Friday the 13th years. William Castle’s Strait-Jacket is a middling Psycho meets Gaslight proto-slasher movie that telegraphs its plot twists more than Western Union. But it’s elevated by Joan Crawford’s...

The Next 365 Days – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 119 “F**k society.” Daniel and Corky bid farewell to beloved toxic couple Massimo and Laura with their review of The Next 365 Days. Endless, pointless and utterly lacking in any new story developments, The Next 365 Days offers even less than its vapid predecessors. Elsewhere, Daniel and Corky discuss brunch montages, air humping, drone fatigue and yurt sex. THE NEXT 365 DAYS FACTS AND FIGURES U.S. streaming debut: August 19, 2022 Critics...

Ryan’s Babe – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 118 “I feel s****y, and I’m tired.” Daniel and Corky bemusedly smile and shake their heads over the indecipherable Canadian anti-comedy Ryan’s Babe.  This dimwitted yet bizarrely Rohmer-ian road trip movie gets the conventions of filmmaking so wrong that it forces you to question the value and meaning of doing it right. Elsewhere, Daniel and Corky discuss Nice Girl Brenda, inexplicable limping, Saskatchewan wise guys and kung fu strippers. Stick...

Grunt! The Wrestling Movie – Dare Daniel Podcast Episode 117 “You can tell he didn’t cut his own promos.” Mad Dog Is Mask Fan Club founding members Daniel and Corky take a beating from the 1985 mockumentary Grunt! The Wrestling Movie. After an amusing first five minutes, the film quickly becomes a chore. It’s driven by a mystery no one in their right mind could possibly care about and padded to feature length with endless wrestling sequences and an extended Wally George cameo. Elsewhere,...