# Streamageddon: the day the classic movies died \[on Netflix\]. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 1, 2013, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234 "2013-05-01T19:01:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/21 "2013-05-02T12:44:27Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > I’m certainly not happy about the catalog dropping by 1000 titles, but I’d like to see some of the articles talking about how many titles they’ve _added_ to streaming over the last year or so–Netflix streaming used to be a wasteland; now it’s an impressive range of stuff. > > Two years ago it was rare for me to be able to find a specific title I wanted, so it was more of a “browse for something interesting” environment. These days, it seems they have almost everything I look for, as long as it’s at least 2-3 years old – TV series, especially. There seems to be a bonanza of BBC British police procedurals - I love the heck out of Foyle’s War. They also introduced me to Doc Martin [and 2 of the 3 movie prequels to Doc Martin] and The Vicar of Dibley. I watched all the old Dr Who they have [more or less 1 series from each of the old Who] and the New Who up until the previous season. And last night I watched a great little romantic comedy - Today’s Special and a little hysterical comedy When Do We Eat. Also on my little list is another old comedy, Saturday the 14th, a German comedy 7 Dwarves [Nina Hagen as the evil queen], Bollywood, Hollywood, and today I might watch nothing but cheesy vampire movies from the 50s and 60s 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/22 "2013-05-02T12:59:15Z")
I’m worried by this: > [@](#): > > Complicating matters further, Netflix is currently testing a variety of new interfaces, rolling out variations on its iconic queue to small groups of users. Instead of a customizable queue, some—like me—now see a “list” which can only be sorted according to a handful of options. They tried messing with the queue a couple of years ago (and [I made a thread about it](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=613997) because it sucked so much). Mine eventually went back to the old customizable list, and that’s the way I like it, dammit! ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/23 "2013-05-02T13:01:00Z")
I pretty much just watch TV shows on Netflix streaming these days. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/24 "2013-05-02T15:08:40Z")
Yipe, looking at the InstantWatcher list I’m more worried about June 1. Lots of shows I’ve wanted to see (either for the first time or just as reruns) are going, most notably _Jon Benjamin Has a Van, Drawn Together, Slings and Arrows,_ a bunch of the _Miss Marple_ series, the Michael Apted _\_\_ Up_ films. Looks like they’re losing a ton of their animation–all the _South Park_ seasons (not a fan, but many are), for example. I’d definitely recommend the Canadian sitcom _Slings and Arrows_ to everyone who enjoys theater, Shakespeare, and just good comedy. A lovely series. ---
**Author:** ![artemis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@artemis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/artemis)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/25 "2013-05-02T16:14:22Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I’m worried by this:They tried messing with the queue a couple of years ago (and [I made a thread about it](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=613997) because it sucked so much). Mine eventually went back to the old customizable list, and that’s the way I like it, dammit! Yes, they should leave well enough alone. Although I’d like it if they’d either update their app so those of us with both a DVD subscription and a streaming subscription could manage both sides of our queue via the app (including searching for DVD content as well as streamable content to add to our queues), or fix their website so it plays nicely with mobile and tablet browsers. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/26 "2013-05-03T00:03:38Z")
Looks like we gained some good stuff, such as: Pulp Fiction Beowulf Mission: Impossible II Chinatown Tucker: The Man and His Dream Day Watch There are probably more but [Instantwatcher.com](http://Instantwatcher.com) has been flaky recently. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/27 "2013-05-03T09:34:09Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Looks like we gained some good stuff, such as: > > Pulp Fiction > Beowulf > Mission: Impossible II > Chinatown > Tucker: The Man and His Dream > Day Watch > > There are probably more but [Instantwatcher.com](http://Instantwatcher.com) has been flaky recently. And season two of the Borgias just got announced. Declan ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/28 "2013-05-03T12:53:50Z")
I think Netflix does great, and as others have said, you can still get the movies on disc. And it’s not them - it’s the streaming rights they have to buy. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/29 "2013-05-03T13:08:35Z")
> [@choie](#): > > I’d definitely recommend the Canadian sitcom _Slings and Arrows_ to everyone who enjoys theater, Shakespeare, and just good comedy. A lovely series. You can still get this via their disc rentals. I’m in the middle of it right now. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/30 "2013-05-03T15:45:26Z")
I don’t use or care about the streaming service, but I am a bit concerned about DVD availability. In the past couple of months I’ve had about 20 DVDs move from my queue to the “saved” list coded “availability unknown.” What happened to the DVDs? Did they all end up cracked and they can’t be bothered to get replacements? ---
**Author:** ![artemis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@artemis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/artemis)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/31 "2013-05-03T18:20:40Z")
> [@divemaster](#): > > What happened to the DVDs? Did they all end up cracked and they can’t be bothered to get replacements? I think in some cases they can’t get replacements. DVDs can go out of print, like books do, and I wonder if some DVD producers have imposed sales restrictions as well. How old are the titles in question? I’ve had the same thing happen to one or two movies in my DVD queue, in in every case it’s been a decades-old title that’s suddenly become unavailable. (More puzzling to me are the items in my “Saved” list that I know are currently available on DVD, but for some reason Netflix hasn’t yet purchased them. They’re not blockbusters, though, so maybe in that case Netflix feels there just isn’t enough demand?) ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/32 "2013-05-03T18:28:09Z")
> [@artemis](#): > > I think in some cases they can’t get replacements. DVDs can go out of print, like books do, and I wonder if some DVD producers have imposed sales restrictions as well. I suspect it’s not just cracked discs, either, but that some people are keeping the DVDs for their collections and just telling Netflix they were lost in the mail. It seems like out-of-print music DVDs disappear from Netflix especially quickly, and I bet a nickel that’s what’s happening to them. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/33 "2013-05-03T19:46:13Z")
> [@artemis](#): > > I think in some cases they can’t get replacements. DVDs can go out of print, like books do, and I wonder if some DVD producers have imposed sales restrictions as well. > > How old are the titles in question? Most of them are rather obscure, I’d think. And foreign. Some “cult.” Various episodes of MST3K. But that’s what I’ve loved about Netflix for so long. I’ve watched all sorts of hard-to-find stuff. I’ve still got over 150 rather obscure foreign films in my queue so I’m not lacking for things to watch. But damn I was looking forward to **Don’t Deliver Us from Evil** , **Silip: Daughters Of Eve** ,\*\* Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl\*\*, **Pontypool** , etc. etc. ---
**Author:** ![artemis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@artemis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/artemis)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/34 "2013-05-03T20:27:52Z")
> [@divemaster](#): > > Most of them are rather obscure, I’d think. And foreign. Some “cult.” Various episodes of MST3K. Sounds similar to what’s gone missing in my own queue. The one that stands out in my mind is Werner Herzog’s _The Great Ecstasy of the Sculptor Steiner_;man, if I’d known that was going to become unavailable, I’d have bumped it to the top of my queue while I still could. I love Herzog’s work! > [@](#): > > But that’s what I’ve loved about Netflix for so long. I’ve watched all sorts of hard-to-find stuff. I’ve still got over 150 rather obscure foreign films in my queue so I’m not lacking for things to watch. Same here. I’ve never understood people beefing about the fact that Netflix isn’t going to get the DVD for the latest Hollywood blockbuster until 6 weeks after Redbox et. al. have it. The latest Hollywood hits are available everywhere. I value Netflix because (at least until recently) it had a wonderful selection of stuff you would never, ever find at Blockbuster or Redbox. ---
**Author:** ![janeslogin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234/35 "2013-05-06T21:38:53Z")
> [@divemaster](#): > > I don’t use or care about the streaming service, but I am a bit concerned about DVD availability. In the past couple of months I’ve had about 20 DVDs move from my queue to the “saved” list coded “availability unknown.” > > What happened to the DVDs? Did they all end up cracked and they can’t be bothered to get replacements? This happens to me quite frequently. Falling from my queue available sometime down into “saved” is a Fassbinser, a De Sica and a lot of the classic French such as The Umbrellas of Cherbourg to name only a fiew.So, it is not only the instant watch viewers who are losing choices and depth. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/streamageddon-the-day-the-classic-movies-died-on-netflix/657234.md?page=1)