# From where do you rent your movies? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 15, 2004, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016 "2004-12-15T19:15:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/1 "2004-12-15T19:15:53Z")
There’s a thread in the pit now about Blockbuster’s late fee policy, and I realised that I’ve never rented a movie there. They have a very limited selection, and, well, aren’t local (yeah, I’m one of _those_🙂 ). There’s a great video rental place here in Burlington, Waterfront Video, where I go exclusively. They have a massive selection of all genres, films old and new, popular and obscure. Now that I’ve moved out of Burlington, I found a small place in town here that I’ll check out. A much smaller selection, but still the same kind of thing. So, where do you go to get your movies? Blockbuster? Netflix? The local rental place? ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/2 "2004-12-15T19:35:07Z")
I do Netflix now, but when I lived in Ann Arbor, MI going to school, I used to rent from the place on E. Liberty St (I think it was called Liberty Street Video). They had a pretty small selection of popular stuff, but a good selection of foreign/cult/indie/non-mainstream stuff. Plus, they had the 666 deal, where you rent 6 movies for 6 days for $6. The library in Ann Arbor has a very good selection of DVDs and VHS. You just have to put in a request on any you want. And it’s free! ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/3 "2004-12-15T20:20:47Z")
I haven’t rented videos in forever, but when I do it’s from Four Star Video Heaven, a local indy place in downtown Madison. I was once offered a job there as an assistant manager and whenever I think about it I kick myself for turning it down. Damn my desire for affordable health insurance! ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/4 "2004-12-15T20:26:28Z")
Netflix. There is no independently owned video rental place even remotely convenient to where I live, so Netflix it is. I use the library when the Netflix discs I have aren’t what I want to watch at the moment. ---
**Author:** ![laurelann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5daacb/32.png) [@laurelann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/laurelann)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/5 "2004-12-15T20:31:44Z")
I’ve always rented from Blockbuster. All of the independant rental placed from where I grew up always had a horrible selection. I’ve never had a huge issue with finding what I’ve wanted at Blockbuster, and for any movies I’ve had trouble finding, I bought them from some place else (if I found them at all). ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/6 "2004-12-15T20:34:41Z")
Hollywood Video, especially now that they have a month-by-month plan. Of course, if Blockbuster does take over, I’ll probably drop it and go to Netflix. When Blockbuster was here, it had an absolutely lousy selection. If you didn’t want to see this week’s hot flick or two, there was nothing. Hollywood still has plenty of classics and foreign films I’d love to see. If Blockbuster takes it over, they’ll all be gone, as will I. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/7 "2004-12-15T20:42:58Z")
I have membership with a local Blockbuster, and two other local video places. One of those sometimes has offbeat stuff BB doesn’t get, and the other has a great (for a rental place) selection of older movies. I also have Netflix. But I’m a major movie geek. ---
**Author:** ![Judith\_Prietht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b19c9b/32.png) [@Judith\_Prietht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judith_Prietht)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/8 "2004-12-15T21:09:36Z")
I also rent from Hollywood, mainly because it’s right across the street from my building. I do find they have a pretty good selection of movies, and I’m sometimes surprised by the more obscure DVDs available for rental. ---
**Author:** ![Eman\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Eman\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eman_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/9 "2004-12-15T21:13:43Z")
There’s a Blockbuster right across the street from my place. Yet I still choose Netflix. They just have way too good of a selection to pass up. ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/10 "2004-12-15T21:20:38Z")
I rarely rent movies, which is why I haven’t subscribed to Netflix in more than a year. But when I do, I go to Blockbusters because the alternative, Hollywood Video, has the worst selection of movies I have ever seen. It’s really pathetic. I was reading about one great rental place with a lot of rare quirky movies that none of the large chains carry (like “Eraserhead”, amongst others). Unfortunately, it’s 45 minutes from where I live. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/11 "2004-12-15T22:16:18Z")
I go to [the best video store in the world](http://www.scarecrow.com/). ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/12 "2004-12-15T22:18:16Z")
I use Netflix now but when I used to rent, it was from Hollywood Video. Only video store I’ve ever belonged to. ---
**Author:** ![psycat90](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@psycat90](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psycat90)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/13 "2004-12-15T22:21:47Z")
Netflix, though we tend to go off and on with our subscription. We’d had it for a couple of years, and really loved it, then found ourselves out and away from home alot on weekends, so we canceled the subscription and had cable turned on. We were happy with the cable until the final episode of The Sopranos and the news that there wouldn’t be a new season for a couple of years, so, we had the cable turned off, and subscribed to Netflix again. I love Netflix, I could never go back to the Blockbuster way of renting. I bought a subscription for my sister as a Christmas present a couple of years ago, and she didn’t really care for it. She said she’s more of an instant gratification movie renter/watcher, so she still rents from Blockbuster. Different strokes. ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/14 "2004-12-15T22:25:37Z")
Netflix. I do understand the instant gratification thing; about ten months ago I sheepishly stopped in at the local mom-and-pop video store. But I gotta say it’s usually Netflix, three movies at a time is usually enough gratification for me. Ain’t never going back to Blockbuster. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/15 "2004-12-15T22:43:44Z")
Used to do Netflix, but as I have posted in the past, was getting some slow service here in Las Vegas and finally decided it wasn’t worth it. Now I go to the local Hollywood Video…they have a better selection that Blockbuster (across the street from Hollywood Video) and their staff doesn’t seem quite as dopey - although that might just be my neighborhood employee situation. Hollywood is pretty good at keeping up with a fairly decent selection of foreign films and they usually have the new releases I want in stock. I have, however, used the Red Box at the local grocery store and for 99 cents per day, you can’t beat the price. Gets tricky if the disc is damaged as there is no real person to complain to, just a machine - but that only happened once and every other film has been just fine. ---
**Author:** ![gardentraveler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gardentraveler/32/3576_2.png) [@gardentraveler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gardentraveler)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2004, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/16 "2004-12-16T00:13:00Z")
Our library has a great selection. You generally have to reserve newer movies, but they come in pretty quickly. So I never rent… GT ---
**Author:** ![SlickRoenick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@SlickRoenick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlickRoenick)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2004, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/17 "2004-12-16T00:36:48Z")
Hollywood Video - i don’t rent too often since i like to buy ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/18 "2004-12-16T01:22:40Z")
[Reel](http://www.reel.com/) and [Movie Image](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2001/07/08/PK159888.DTL&type=movies) in Berkeley, and Captain Video and Global Entertainment in Oakland (though, honestly, I don’t rent very much at all). ---
**Author:** ![Tamarin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@Tamarin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamarin)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2004, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/19 "2004-12-16T01:26:57Z")
Last month I decided that there were too many moves that I’d missed out on, so I signed up for Netflix. So far I love it. Before that, I hadn’t rented a movie in years. ---
**Author:** ![Sharky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@Sharky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sharky)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2004, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016/20 "2004-12-16T01:35:59Z")
Blockbuster. There is a new one in Chipley (near where I live) and their DVD selection is incredible. The customer service is excellent. I have the Movie Pass for unlimited rentals, 3 at a time. I keep track of all my rentals, and I’m averaging about 80 cents per rental unit, not including freebies from their “Guaranteed In Stock or it’s Free” program. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-where-do-you-rent-your-movies/280016.md?page=2)