Is there an Amazon/Netflix type service that offers hard to find B movies?

Cafe Society
1

I’m looking for sword and sandal/sword and sorcery movies that were made from the 1970s to the 2000s, especially the big-hair/bare-breasted sword and sorcery flicks of the 80s. I have most of the well known ones … Conan the Barbarian, Deathstalker, Barbarian Queen, etc. and a lot of the less well known ones. But there are still quite a few which elude me. I have checked out Netflix and Amazon’s options, and they are surprisingly sparse in this area.

Anybody know of any service like those two that maybe specializes in rarer, harder to find flicks? I figure Netflix and Amazon sell whatever sells the most, makes sense there might be a more successful niche business out there. Download, rental, sales, any work for me, if the price is right.

2

I heard somethjing somewhere about Warner Brothers selling some of thier old lesser known movies as one of those - you order, we burn it to a dvd and then ship it to you, or maybe it is their digital copy service.I remember they have a movie where the President becomes a dictator to “save” the country and someone hated the movie so much they locked it up in the vaults to keep it from being shown again. Not much help I guess.

3

Thanks, but I guess it will not be much hope until they actually implement it, and even then it might not be all that much use.

4

Try Eddie Brandt’s Saturday Matinee in North Hollywood (they ship). At one time they were the place to go for everything obscure and more obscurer. Run by Eddie Brandt’s son & daughter Donovan & Heidi (or used to be – I haven’t seen the store for 12 years).

5

Just some more to add about Eddie Brandt’s…read the many comments on the link, and I think you can get the picture. Not only is it an incredible store, they have an interesting policy about movies that haven’t been released to the public. If they happen to have a copy anyway (and they often do), they will let you borrow it (not rent, because that would be illegal) if they know you as a good customer. When I lived near them, Donovan would just say, “bring me a blank tape and I’ll copy it for you.” I imagine they have adjusted the policy slightly since then, but it’s still the place to go for unreleased stuff.

I once had a copy of a movie that Donovan couldn’t obtain, and I gave it to them in exchange for a bunch of rental credits.

It’s the place the Hollywood goes for movie research – Universal is just down the street.

6

More LA stores with incredible collections:

www.vidiotsvideo.com

Video store named desire (no web site?)
11631 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Neighborhood: West Los Angeles
(310) 444-0079

Odyssey Video (no web site?) (large porn collection arranged by fetishes)
4810 Vineland Ave
North Hollywood, CA 91601
Neighborhood: North Hollywood
(818) 769-2001

I don’t know if those last two do mail order, so if you live nearby, check them out.

That should be enough to get you going. I’m going to shut up now.

7

I used to subscribe to Greencine - they would occasionally have some things that Netflix lacked.

8

Don’t dismiss Netflix, there is plenty of niche stuff on Netflix and Netflix Instant. Many Troma movies, including my new bizarre favorite Bloodsucking Freaks. Try a free trial and see what you find.

Amazon seems to be coming along nicely in their instant watch too.

Hulu has a decent selection once you’re registered there.

9

A lot of the older movies that I want to see have still not been released on DVD but are available on VHS. Some used tapes are available for purchase on Amazon at a reasonable price but most are not. I recently found a large public library with an excellent selection of fairly obscure VHS titles. I had to pay $40 a year for borrowing privileges because I’m not a resident of their service area, but it’s well worth it.

10

I agree. I’ve streamed some favorite* Xena* episodes & even braved the Kevin Sorboness of Adventures of Hercules. Which caused my Roku recommendations to bring up a shitload of obscure sword & sandals epics.

11

I’ll start adding movies to my Netflix Instant queue and an hour later still be adding. I think I browse as much as I watch.

12

Thanks guys, I’ve already got Netflix and it does not have what I am looking for. Same with Amazon. I’ll check out the mail-in possibilities on the Hollywood video stores, as I live on the East Coast and it’s a long way to drive. Anything on the I-75 corridor between Atlanta and Detroit? I’ll be heading that way soon. I love to slum! Looks like Vidiots Video has one of the ones I am looking for.

13

Gabriel Over the White House - I bought a copy from the site you described. I’ve also bought a few others that were otherwise unavailable.

14

Not exactly what you’re looking for, but I’d recommend “Cult of UHF” Podcast. It has full length B movies (with an Elvira like host). Some of the movies I’ve downloaded from them include: *Metamorphosis, Track of the Moon Beast, Beast of Yucca Flats, Goliath and the Dragon, Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women, Scream Bloody Murder, & Hercules and the Tyrants of Babylon. *

15

Sinister Cinema is the usual go-to around here for weird and obscure stuff. It’s sales, not rental though.

If you’re willing to spring for buying also check:

16

Hercules and the Tyrants of Babylon is a total hoot! Features the stupidest civil engineering project in the history of, well … history!

17

Video Vault is closing its brick-n-mortar location, but I bet they’ll stay in the mail rental biz. They specialize in the kind of stuff you crave.