A movie has to make my "must-have" list in order for me to buy it on DVD: The Matrix Lord of the Rings: Fellowship Dune (The William Hurt version) all the Official World Cup videos I've given up on renting VHS, since Blockbuster now only carries a handful of titles. I'll be renting DVDs pretty regularly. I do pay for 12 different HBO channels, though, so I watch cable more often than I rent movies.
I've only bought DVD's for a couple of years now. I also have about a hundred laser discs (remember those?) at about $80 a pop. I don't know how many videos I have, but I keep them stored in a shed out back. I can't stand to watch video anymore. My movie collecting has been a huge waste of time, money and effort. I should have put all that money into rare books. I just can't help myself.
my dvd collections shinning lotr harry potter you've goy mail kate & leopold castaway vanilla sky resident evil changin lanes mummy & mummy returns my library is still very small
how good is netflix? is it worth the money? Is the 3 movie limit enough to keep you satisfied, or do you end up having to wait for some of your films to arrive? i'm thinking about signing up, but i don't want to get screwed over if they are slow with processing requests, etc.
I did Netflix for a little while and liked it a lot. But that was because I was trying to catch up on a bunch of foreign stuff it was tought to find elsewhere, especially Indian films. Once I got through most of them, I didn't feel Netflix was worth keeping up with, so I let it drop. Basically, if you mostly like mainstream American movies and don't want to feel an obligation to watch 1-2 every weekend, Netflix probably isn't for you.
Here is it how it usually goes down, Lets say I get 3 movies on a friday and watch all 3 by the Sunday, mail'em on monday, and recieve 3 new ones by either thursday or friday, so its like at least 12-16 or more movies a month, if you do it right. also, if you always return movies late, there are no fee's . and you can cancel at anytime. i like it, and i am not really a movie buff.
We've done Netflix for a few months now. Previously, we were never big movie renters. I like the lack of pressure for you to watch a movie immediately after you receive it (in a couple cases, we've held onto movies for a few weeks and not heard a word from Netflix about it). We've primarily rented old stuff (Bridge on the River Kwai, Mr. Roberts, Casablanca, From Here to Eternity, Rollerball, etc.), and I agree with the previous comment that the selection is mostly mainstream. If you're looking for lots of indie or rare stuff, Netflix probably isn't for you. However, they're a relatively young company, and I presume their library will increase accordingly. Regarding speed, they're really fast. They're based in SanJo, so around here, we get about a two-day turnaround (at worst) on movies as long as your wish list is up-to-date. I presume only a day or two more turnaround for people in the rest of the US. Regarding the three movie limit, I'm fine with it. As aforementioned, we sometimes go weeks without watching one. If you're one of those folks who goes to Blockbuster (or equivalent) every weekend and walks out with an armload of tapes, Netflix may not be for you. Getting back to the thread topic, I only own a few sets of videos (all Kevin Smith stuff, all Godfather, all Austin Powers, lots of music concert vids, but that's it).
I got something better: a high speed internet connection and file sharring programs. I download movies and watch them before I decide to buy them. That is how I saw Daredevil, Bend it like Beckham, Signs, and many other movies. The only down side is that at times, you get mislabeled movies and movies that are of lesser quality, but its better than paying money for a bad movie.