I lived very close to my local Blockbuster. Many times during the summer I would ride my bike over and grab a few movies I had never seen before. As I developed an interest in film, it was my go to source to catch up on films I had missed either because they came out before I was born, or because I wasn't old enough to see them upon their initial release.
I watched many James Bond movies for the first time after renting them at Blockbuster, and I watched the first film by Wes Anderson when I rented The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Anderson would become one of my favorite directors, and it was after watching this film that I actually started to pay attention to who directed movies, not just who starred in them).
Then in college, I signed up for Netflix when it was still primarily delivering DVDs by mail. Netflix was a godsend for a developing cinephile like myself, offering a wider selections of movies than Blockbuster could ever hope to carry.
As Netflix switched a streaming only service, I started using a Redbox located close to my college to rent newer releases that I know could take months or years to show up on Netflix. The price and convenience were right, so who cared if I needed to wait an extra 30 days?
My local Blockbuster, like most other Blockbusters, shut down this past spring, but in its place came Family Video. I had always looked down on Family Video as a lower end of the video rental chain. Something about it just always seemed outdated.
However, since I found myself with a lot of time on my hands this summer, I decided to go in and check out what they had to offer. I was pleasantly surprised by what they did with the space. Blockbuster was defined by the glaring white shelves and harsh fluorescent lighting. Family Video had renovated the space, painting the walls and letting in more natural light, giving the store a homier feel.
I had forgotten the pleasure of taking my time and walking through the new releases to see what was out. I picked out a few films that had been released in theaters back in January-February. This is a time period for notoriously bad films, but I always like to see if there are any surprises among the duds.
The films I rented were a mixed bag, some better than I expected, others worse, but what really surprised me was the deals. As a new member I received half-off of all my rentals for a month, plus, they were running a promotion that was two movies for one dollar. That meant I could actually rent four movies for one dollar. Try getting that deal at a Redbox.
Not to mention that while the people who worked at the Blockbuster always seemed a little strange and creepy, the Family Video employees are friendly and helpful, which is a rare find in any retail business nowadays.
Many people think that the storefront rental business is dead, but Family Video seems to have a formula that works. And, if the number of cars parked outside each day is any indication, they will be around for a while.
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