World Cup, Season 3, Match 1E: Czechia vs Australia vs Latvia vs Bolivia

[Angel Glez]

1. And So It Is
2. Motorcycle Summer
3. Samson and Delilah
4. Incomplete Eclipse

Tight group.

[Nathan Treadway]

1. Neúplné zatmení
2. Ukamau
3. Motociklu vasara
4. Samson and Delilah


Probably my second favorite round thus far (after the first one). Thanks guys!

[tommy_leazaq]

1. Incomplete Eclipse - 6.8. Taare Zameen Par without the Bollywood over-the-top sentimentality> The lead actress did an extraordinary job
2. Samson and Delilah - 6.4. Fine
3. And So It Is - 6.3. Amazing visuals but bit boring..
4. Motorcycle Summer - 4.2

[joachimt]

Ukamau: 2.188 (58-38)
Neúplné zatmení: 2.219 (57-39)
Samson and Delilah: 2.688 (42-54)
Motociklu vasara: 2.906 (35-61)

[Armoreska]

With about 10 more voters remaining, everything is possible

[sebby]

1. Ukamau - 7.5/10
2. Neúplné zatmení - 3.5/10
3. Samson and Delilah - 2/10
4. Motociklu vasara - 1.5/10

[joachimt]

1. Ukamau - 7.5/10
2. Neúplné zatmení - 3.5/10
3. Samson and Delilah - 2/10
4. Motociklu vasara - 1.5/10

Your ratings seem to get worse every round. I really admire your perseverance.

[sebby]

1. Ukamau - 7.5/10
2. Neúplné zatmení - 3.5/10
3. Samson and Delilah - 2/10
4. Motociklu vasara - 1.5/10

Your ratings seem to get worse every round. I really admire your perseverance.

I kind of knew that I wasn't going to like this round -- these films are typically not the sort that stir much of anything within me, hard as I try to allow them the opportunity to do so. I did like the Czech film initially, but as it went on I became less and less enamored with it until I found myself exasperated with how it was saying what it was saying.

Anyway, the next round looks quite good (at least from afar) so I don't anticipate being so harsh. We'll see.

[RogerTheMovieManiac88]

Motociklu vasara - 1.5/10

You didn't disappoint. Haha, seriously, I'm sorry it didn't prove to be your cup of tea.

[Armoreska]

That's 33 voters. Where's the rest?

[Fergenaprido]

Incomplete Eclipse - It started off kind of meh, but got better over time. It never really grabbed me, though, despite the occasional visual flair or plot contrivance. At least the lead character managed to earn my sympathy by the end of it.

And So It Is - This is an example of an important film that's not necessarily good. I found the acting subpar (though I recognize that wasn't the focus), the storyline formulaic, and the execution bland.

Samson and Delilah - Nicely shot with sparing use of dialog. It's funny because in the Latvian film they repeat "we understand each other without words" but they clearly don't, while I felt in this film the two leads actually did understand each other without needing to speak aloud. Pity that neither one made a film after this, and their personal lives seem to have developed similarly to their characters. The end is a glimmer of hope, though.

Motorcycle Summer - Ehhh, it has its moments. Inessa really looks like one of my Lithuanian colleagues.

Overall, not a very good round for me, though this might also be the shortest round by runtime.

1. AUS - Samson and Delilah - 7.4
2. CZE - Neúplné zatmění [Incomplete Eclipse] - 6.8
3. LAT - Motociklu vasara [Motorcycle Summer] - 6.4
4. BOL - Ukamau [And So It Is] - 5.8

[Armoreska]

The top two are now tied by points, who knows about H2H

[joachimt]

The top two are now tied by points, who knows about H2H

Neúplné zatmení: 2.206 (61-41)
Ukamau: 2.206 (61-41)
Samson and Delilah: 2.647 (46-56)
Motociklu vasara: 2.941 (36-66)

Neúplné zatmení - Ukamau: 18 - 16

34 voters. 14 hours left.

[DulceDoes]

1. Samson and Delilah
2. Ukamau
3. Neúplné zatmení
4. Motociklu vasara

[wasabi]

1. Neúplné zatmení
2. Samson and Delilah
3. Motociklu vasara
4. Ukamau

[joachimt]

Neúplné zatmení: 2.194 (65-43)
Ukamau: 2.25 (63-45)
Samson and Delilah: 2.583 (51-57)
Motociklu vasara: 2.972 (37-71)

5 hours and 19 minutes left.

[funkybusiness]

1. Neúplné zatmení
2. Motociklu vasara
3. Ukamau
4. Samson and Delilah

[PeacefulAnarchy]

1. Neúplné zatmení
2. Ukamau
3. Samson and Delilah
4. Motociklu vasara

Czech film, while very good, seemed like it never quite merged the tone and content, even though it took the right approach at it. Still very good though. The next two are interesting and worth a watch but held back, the Ukamau by the acting and S&D by the lack of dialogue, though both, especially the latter, are shot extremely well

[mjf314]

1. Neúplné zatmení
2. Motociklu vasara
3. Ukamau
4. Samson and Delilah

[Armoreska]

What a massive turnaround

[SpinningTop]

Since I have seen all of these I think I'll vote if that is allowed.

No. 1. MOTORCYCLE SUMMER
No. 2. AND SO IT IS
No. 3. SAMSON & DELILAH
No. 4. INCOMPLETE ECLIPSE

[RogerTheMovieManiac88]

1. 'Motociklu vasara' - 9.5/10
2. 'Ukamau' - 10/10
3. 'Neúplné zatmení' - 7/10
4. 'Samson & Delilah' - 6 or 6.5/10

Ranked in terms of most favourite to least favourite. Sad to see Latvia not progress. A fascinating national cinema well worth delving into!

Cheers!

[Nathan Treadway]

Since I have seen all of these I think I'll vote if that is allowed.

No. 1. MOTORCYCLE SUMMER
No. 2. AND SO IT IS
No. 3. SAMSON & DELILAH
No. 4. INCOMPLETE ECLIPSE

Welcome aboard! Don't let this be the last one you vote on.

[Armoreska]

The deadline is over however it's still April 8 somewhere
https://time.is/IDLW

41 votes, but certainly someone missed out?

[joachimt]

The deadline is over however it's still April 8 somewhere
https://time.is/IDLW

41 votes, but certainly someone missed out?

Well, deadline is deadline. But I will figure this out for the next match. I always thought a date ended at the last place on earth if it's 11AM here the next day during the winter and 12AM during the summer (because we forward our clock in March). That's how I've set the deadlines in season 2 as well.

Anyway, here's the final score:

Neúplné zatmení: 2.171 (75-48)
Ukamau: 2.268 (71-52)
Samson and Delilah: 2.707 (53-70)
Motociklu vasara: 2.854 (47-76)

Czechia and Bolivia continue to the next round. Congratulations to Carmel98 and burneyfan. Also thanks to Daviddoes and RogerTheMovieManiac88 for their picks and the 41 members who voted this round.

Perfect attendance after 5 matches

72allinncallme
Angel Glez
Armoreska
beavis
burneyfan
clemmetarey
Cocoa
Daviddoes
edward5
Fergenaprido
Film Junkie
filmbantha
funkybusiness
Gershwin
hurluberlu
jdidaco
joachimt
jvv
klaus78
Lilarcor
Mario Gaborović
Mate_cosido
metaller
mjf314
Mochard
Muellwind
Nathan Treadway
Nopros
sebby
Smoover
tarr
tommy_leazaq
toro913
wasabi
weirdboy
XxXApathy420XxX
zhangalan
zuma

Members who lost their perfect attendance this round

Gorro
sacmersault

[jvv]

Well, deadline is deadline. But I will figure this out for the next match. I always thought a date ended at the last place on earth if it's 11AM here the next day during the winter and 12AM during the summer (because we forward our clock in March). That's how I've set the deadlines in season 2 as well.

There might be some differences because different countries switch to summertime/wintertime at different dates.

[Gorro]

Didn't have/make the time to watch the films for this round. Will be back next round.

[brokenface]

1. 'Motociklu vasara' - 9.5/10
2. 'Ukamau' - 10/10
3. 'Neúplné zatmení' - 7/10
4. 'Samson & Delilah' - 6 or 6.5/10

Ranked in terms of most favourite to least favourite. Sad to see Latvia not progress. A fascinating national cinema well worth delving into!

Cheers!

You've ranked a 9.5/10 above a 10/10 *head explodes*

[joachimt]

1. 'Motociklu vasara' - 9.5/10
2. 'Ukamau' - 10/10
3. 'Neúplné zatmení' - 7/10
4. 'Samson & Delilah' - 6 or 6.5/10

Ranked in terms of most favourite to least favourite. Sad to see Latvia not progress. A fascinating national cinema well worth delving into!

Cheers!

You've ranked a 9.5/10 above a 10/10 *head explodes*

He's the manager of which country......?

[monty]

Didn't have/make the time to watch the films for this round. Will be back next round.

Ditto.

[joachimt]

Members who lost their perfect attendance this round

Gorro
sacmersault

Just noticed this on iCM:

sacmersault checked Samson and Delilah

[Nathan Treadway]

Members who lost their perfect attendance this round

Gorro
sacmersault

Just noticed this on iCM:

sacmersault checked Samson and Delilah

There's a couple more he hasn't checked yet, still. Hopefully he'll be back for the next round. ;)

[sacmersault]

1. Motociklu vasara - 7.5/10
2. Neúplné zatmení - 7/10
3. Samson and Delilah - 6/10
4. Ukamau - 6/10

Motociklu vasara - playful and a bit weird
Neúplné zatmení - well made coming of age movie
Samson and Delilah - ending feels a bit out of line with the rest of the movie
Ukamau - acting was rather stiff

I didn't finish all the movies for this round and I'm not a manager of any of these but just wanted to point out that: Sanjines, the director of Ukamau, was known for literally going to villages in the middle of nowhere and having them play the parts. So of course the acting is not going to be up to par but that's precisely his point. The social struggle, the social context, the way of living and the story were important to him, not how good someone was as an actor. Most actors in his films are people from the streets of the town and are told "fight with this guy because he killed your wife" and thus you get what you see.

[RBG]

well said sacmersault

[sacmersault]

I only got to see 3. If I would have had a couple of hours I would have watched the Czech film.

My ratings would be:
1. Samson and Delilah (it had been on my list for a long time and I thought it was pretty great)
2. Ukamau (Not the best Sanjinez film but not bad)
3. Motociklu vasara (I hated it at first. It felt like the other movie about the kids at the lake. But now I don't think it's that bad)

Who knows where Czechia would have placed. I really wanted Australia to continue.

[RogerTheMovieManiac88]

1. 'Motociklu vasara' - 9.5/10
2. 'Ukamau' - 10/10
3. 'Neúplné zatmení' - 7/10
4. 'Samson & Delilah' - 6 or 6.5/10

Ranked in terms of most favourite to least favourite. Sad to see Latvia not progress. A fascinating national cinema well worth delving into!

Cheers!

You've ranked a 9.5/10 above a 10/10 *head explodes*

Yes, 9/10 and 10/10 ratings are very close in my book.

'Ukamau' and 'Motociklu vasara' are both remarkable cinematic accomplishments in my eyes and I have opted to give my first place to the film that is somewhat more of a personal favourite.

The fact that I have Brauns' film in first and Sanjinés' in second has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I was the manager for Latvia. Sometimes I prefer a 9 or 9.5/10 film to a 10/10 masterpiece. I am probably a much more forgiving rater than many on here and I realise that my rationale might be mystifying to some but that is the way that I come at it.

If the World Cup asked for me to list the four in this pool from best to worst rather than from most favourite to least favourite the order of my top two might very well have been reversed.

In saying all this I am not belittling the mastery and rare brilliance of either of these two films that I so love and admire. It's just the way my brain works upon occasion in translating a rating to an ordering system.

So yes, 'favourite' and 'best' are not always the same for me in my approach to film-watching and appreciation.

[joachimt]

If the World Cup asked for me to list the four in this pool from best to worst rather than from most favourite to least favourite the order of my top two might very well have been reversed.

We're not asking any of the two. You can choose for yourself.

[RogerTheMovieManiac88]

If the World Cup asked for me to list the four in this pool from best to worst rather than from most favourite to least favourite the order of my top two might very well have been reversed.

We're not asking any of the two. You can choose for yourself.

Yeah, I was just explaining my ranking for those who might be somewhat bemused. I realise for many cinephiles that 'favourite' and 'best' are virtually synonymous when it comes to films and I just thought it best to clarify that I wasn't merely automatically putting my pick on top regardless of how much I liked any of the others.

Thanks, Joachim!

Better luck next time perhaps for poor old Latvia, haha...

[Pretentious Hipster]

Slightly off topic but a silent Bolivian film now has English subtitles, and it looks fantastic.

[sacmersault]

Slightly off topic but a silent Bolivian film now has English subtitles, and it looks fantastic.

What????? Why would it need subtitles if it's silent?