July – 0 / Seconds – 1
Darezhan Omirbaev (Arsaib) July – 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Max Slobodin) Seconds – 1
Darezhan Omirbaev’s July (1) vs. John Frankenheimer’s Seconds (0)
Darezhan Omirbaev’s July (1) vs. John Frankenheimer’s Seconds (0)
July 0 – Seconds 1
Seconds’ ending was a bit of a copout, but it was more interesting as a whole.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) —0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —1
Frankenheimer’s film was a surprise hit for me. I never knew Rock Hudson was in any good movies ;) A very interesting film that explores familiar themes but has an approach that feels inventive for the time it was made.
What is the name of the device that attaches the camera to the actor as they walk around? Where was that first used?
The film also isn’t afraid to get down and dirty, and I found its descent into madness to be handled very effectively.
Omirbaev’s film also handles familiar themes, and in this case it may be overshadowed by other films I’ve seen recently that also deal with childhood in this way.
July might grow on me more in time, but for now this is it. Both great films.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) — 1 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —0
on second thought i’m keeping my seconds thoughts to myself. just imagine a couple paragraphs hysterical ravings and a final yell in allcaps that my vote isn’t the least bit political, whatever else it may be.
July 1 vs Seconds 0
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) — 1 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —0
July was wonderful. Great, touching, story for the shorter format. Can’t wait to see more from Omirbaev!
Seconds was fun. Ending was certainly a bit of a cop out….but I enjoyed the stylishness of most of the shots.
Darezhan Omirbaev’s July 0 vs. John Frankenheimer’s Seconds 1
“What is the name of the device that attaches the camera to the actor as they walk around? Where was that first used?”
Never seen it referred to by a specific name, but it was a torso harness of some sort.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July): 0 —vs— John Frankenheimer (Seconds): 1
Darezhan Omirbaev’s July (0) v. John Frankenheimer’s Seconds (1)
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) 0 – John Frankenheimer (Seconds) 1
My vote goes to Frankenheimer, but I am very much looking forward to seeing more from Omirbaev.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) — 1 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —0
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) 1
Darezhan Omirbaev’s July (1) vs. John Frankenheimer’s Seconds (0)
Darezhan Omirbaev (Arsaib) July – 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Max Slobodin) Seconds – 1
My favorite match of Round 1.
July – 1 vs. Seconds – 0
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) 1
A fairly close match.
Seconds was bold, disturbing and gripping, with some great ideas and a superb ending. Stylistically it is adventurous and though the expressionism didn’t always work for me it certainly makes for an eyecatching piece of cinema. Like many of the best pieces of sci-fi it uses the sci-fi elements as a springboard for exploring real-world issues and ideas (in this case relating to personal identity).
July I really liked, and am liking even more reflecting on it. It was a lovely, lyrical film which captured childhood very well I thought. I agree with (I think it was) Kenji’s comment in another thread about how we’re granted information the children aren’t (about the door locking stopping the man from being able to give the money), and it’s hard not to wonder how the event will effect them as they don’t know this information, perhaps making them more cynical towards the world.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) — 1 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —0
July (Omirbaev) – 0 // Seconds (Frankenheimer) – 1
I second Davandwar – although I don’t find this to be a particularly difficult vote, I think that future films from Omirbaev may put his style in a new light and make him a really great discovery. Anyway I rarely get as enthusiastic about shorts as I do features – it’s an unfortunate weakness that I’m still trying to shake.
It doesn’t help that Seconds was so chillingly good. And I was intrigued by some of the stylistic and thematic similarities between it and the only other Frankenheimer I’ve seen, The Manchurian Candidate. He places the audience right next to his characters, between them, careening among them; he crafts tension slowly out a situation that seems at first to be whipstitched out of disparate genres; and he carries over this theme of control, of losing grip over the self, and of the victimization of the (very) little man. I’m frankly surprised at how clearly they were both made by the same person and very much interested in seeing more from a director who I was not at all expecting to be enthusiastic about.
July 1 Seconds 0
I echo Twodeadmagpies. God, I just hope my vote won’t be taken as for “political reasons rather than cinematic reasons”… @____@ Really, it’s hopeless to assume that a person promotes a certain film because of some kind of underlying motive other than the more obvious and apparent reason that the person actually likes the film, something I had to un-learn myself.
Now that that’s all been said, Seconds is also a great film, and indeed it used to be a big favourite of mine, if more or less for the ending and Rock Hudson’s performance but even in a dystopic 1960s story, heteronormative patriarchy seems to be the standard? It is not so much as part of what the film is criticizing. Neither is it inherent in the created system but it is also just another norm in the film. Errr, this time I’d go for the more down-to-earth film.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) – 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) – 1
Very close for me. I thought both were really great films, but I wanted a lot more out of July. I think it was Rock Hudsons performance that sold me on Seconds.
I have seen Seconds (a long time ago) and I’m certain that this “political reason” will become obvious once someone points it out, but my head is bloody from scratching it. What are you people talking about?
Darezhan Omirbaev – July 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Max Slobodin) Seconds – 1
It was a fairly close match. However, short films couldn’t affect me that much. They really need to be masterpieces. July is so close to that level I had to think about my vote. At the beginning I was sure to vote for Seconds. But then… But than I think that I have to admit that seconds is also very successful film which knows what it is talking about. So I decided to vote for Seconds. I am curious about the next films of both directors.
I have 14-10 Seconds
That one is unexpectedly difficult.
The Seconds are appealing with the ideas, some great scenes ( I rather prefer the party to the pagan orgy). On the whole it was a bit too expressionist, but kept well in memory, and yet I bear a grudge against it, I wanted it too be better, not that obvious, as I really liked the concept, the mood and so on.
I loved the authenticity of July immediately, and all those small unnecessary moments are never too many for me, and a one-day span. But I frowned several times and after a night sleep — it was too inviting, such a nice peace of storytelling, which is ok in the short format, but…
If to speak about the cinematic style and presentation of reality it would be 1 to July. and if to delve into the story and what it could do to me, 1 goes to Seconds.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) – 0 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) – 1
Mainly because Frankenheimer’s film is more risky, daring and now nobody seem to do this type of films (meticulously exploring wild premises) anymore. Certainly very interested in what will be next from both directors.
Darezhan Omirbaev (July) — 1 vs. John Frankenheimer (Seconds) —0
July 0 – Seconds 1
House of Leaves
The extended voting period for this match lasts until 7pm BST (6pm GMT) on Wednesday, 11 May, which means that users will have over 48 hours in order to publish their votes. The world map which lists all current time zones can be found on www.worldtimezone.com, so that everyone can be up to date about how much time is left.
After the voting period is over the votes will be counted and the results published. The next match will begin before 7pm BST (6pm GMT) on Tuesday, 10 May.
Each user can vote on any match as long as he/she has watched both films that are lined-up against each other. An explanation for the preference in each case would be greatly appreciated. Managers are not allowed to vote on matches that their director participates in. The voting should be handled like this:
Film A 1 (or 0) – Film B 0 (or 1)
Please mark the winning film/score in large or heavy print.
PLEASE NOTE: IF YOU DO NOT NAME BOTH FILMS IN YOUR POST YOUR VOTE WILL NOT BE COUNTED
The match (managers in parentheses) you´re going to vote for on this thread is:
Darezhan Omirbaev (Arsaib) July vs. John Frankenheimer (Max Slobodin) Seconds
If you have not seen either of these films and are not able to access them on your own then pm me and I should hopefully be able to give you access to streaming links.