Den says:
Hulahoop Soundings (1) vs Phantoms (0)
I say:
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) —0 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) —1
What can I say? I want to hang out with Edwin. He’s charmed me.
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) 0 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) 1
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) 1 – Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) 0
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) — 1 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) — 0
I guess I enjoyed watching the gorgeous girl hula-hooping but it’s still no match for Murnau’s visually captivating tale of obsession and gradual descent into madness.
Phantom (Murnau) – 0 // Hulahoop Soundings (Edwin) – 1
Not that there was anything really lacking in Murnau’s macabre mindgame, but Hulahoop Soundings is a prime example of using every frame economically to tell a rather unhappy little story in the blink of an eye. This is the sort of premise that many directors would flesh into a full-length film; Edwin rubs it down to its nub and achieves rather more pathos than he would have if he had bogged it down with details and intricacies.
Phantom’s probably my favorite Murnau yet, but he’s not one of my top directors so Edwin’s marvelous little yarn gets my vote quite easily.
Good luck to both managers for two fiery picks and Nino was actually right when he informed that I’d love Phantom. It may not be (so far) high above the rest of Murnau, but like with Hullahoop, an expansion of what a Very Boring Conversation COULD have been had it become a twisted dreamy reality, they’re a relentless step into exploring both directors’ filmographies more.
Phantom (Murnau) 0 – Hulahoop Soundings 1
Hulahoop Soundings (1) vs Phantoms (0)
Phantom – 1 / Hulahoop Soundings – 0
Phantom is only my third Murnau after Nosferatu and Sunrise, so his visual aesthetic still seems very fresh to me. Knowing nothing about it going in, it was a kick to find the horror psychological and the special effects, used sparingly, but with a strong punch each time (think Nolan was taking notes for the city folding in Inception?) Knowing Murnau mostly for spectacle, it was also great to see such strong characterization and emotional states tied in to silent film tinting.
Like Phantom, Hulahoop Soundings deals with the line between fantasy and reality, this time with an erotic flavor. It really works and feels original, so I find myself faced with a prejudice that comes up occasionally in the Cup, which is how to judge a short film against one of feature length. I usually find myself gravitation toward the feature, since it allows itself more time to unfold its qualities and bring the viewer in. Hulahoop Soundings does all that in seven minutes, so I’m aware it’s a prejudice I need to get past.
This is not to say that I’m voting for Phantom by default. It is wonderful and is now among my favorite silents. I’ve greatly enjoyed both picks and am glad to see Round Two starting at this high a level.
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 1 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 0
Given a first thought, any short film could be considered as starting the match one goal behind; if for nothing for the difficulties in concentrating all that matters to the director in a time interval one could smoke a cigarette. But if the material condensed is striking enough I think it would even be an advantage over a feature film (i.e. Víctor Erice’s “Lifeline” would be very very hard to be overtaken by). That is to say I had similar concerns like others. Phantom needs time to develop the tragedy and I think overall it’s more effective than Hulahoop. I like Hulahoop a lot and I could easily vote for it had it been against likes of Ripstein’s overlooking “Así es la vida”. But at the end of the day it leaves the taste of a bright idea only, Phantom is more like an accomplished meal.
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 1 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 0
Here’s RUS’s vote. He’s closed his account but still participating.
F.W. Murnau: (Phantom)—1 vs. Edwin: (Hulahoop Soundings)—0
tie at 6
F.W. Murnau: (Phantom)—1 vs. Edwin: (Hulahoop Soundings)—0
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 1 Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 0
Phantom 0 – Hulahoop Soundings 1
I usually seem to vote against shorts in these games, but Hulahoop Soundings is incredibly unique, both in terms of images and narrative. Phantom was good but something about the style seemed off-putting to me.
Phantom 0 – Hulahoop Soundings 1
I happen to have a really intense hula-hoop fetish. Don’t judge.
I’m with you Max. If I didn’t before, I do now.
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 1 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 0
As incredibly unique as Hulahoop Soundings was (I have never seen anything quite like it before) my vote goes to Phantom. This is only my third viewing of Murnau, but every time I see something new by him I appreciate his style so much more. Definitely want him around for another round!
Phantom 0 – Hulahoop Soundings (1).
Edwin is the One :D
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 1 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 0
F.W. Murnau (Phantom) – 0 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) – 1
Phantom was just not my cup of tea. The tinting worked a lot better than I thought it would. However, the story dragged on a bit too long, and was a little too melodramatic.
Hulahoop Soundings was quite original. Very interesting tale. My first Edwin, and definitely not my last!
Murnau (Phantom) 0 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) 1
All of Edwin’s stuff always blow my mind :) kudos to Edwin..
Murnau (Phantom) 0 vs. Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) 1
All of Edwin’s stuff always blow my mind :) kudos to Edwin..
Phantom – 1, Hulahoop Soundings – 0
If I could give Hulahoop Soundings negative points for its director, I would. Both films in competition have been God awful thus far… Masturbatory shit
Murnau is masterful as always. Possibly the most overlooked all-time great director there is (so much more than ‘Nosferatu’ and ‘Sunrise’, both of which deserve their spot in history… I’m thrilled that ‘Faust’ and ‘Phantoms’ are being seen here!)
I agree with that assesment regard Blind Pig but Hulahoop was whimsical fun.
Hulahoop wasn’t as bad as ‘Blind Pig’, I’ll give you that.
I was really looking forward to exploring Edwin’s films, as I hadn’t been exposed to his work yet. Unfortunately, thus far I have been pretty disappointed (this applies more for ‘Blind Pig’, as I had heard a lot of people singing its praises). If he moves on, hopefully I will find more to like from him.
F. W. Murnau (Phantom) 1 – Edwin (Hulahoop Soundings) 0
House of Leaves
Because of the delay, the extended voting period for this match lasts until 8pm BST (7pm GMT) on Tuesday, 31 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.
This is the beginning of Round 2.
The next match will begin before 7pm BST (6pm GMT) on Monday, 30 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 you´re going to vote for (managers in parenthesis) on this thread is:
F.W. Murnau (Nino Starr) Phantom vs. Edwin (Yuki Aditya) Hulahoop Soundings
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.