I still buy a lot of DVDs and BDs but when it comes down to the numbers, Netflix discs through the mail account for the largest percentage of my monthly viewing.
i never buy movies. for the past three years i have been doing netflix but in the last three months i have predominantly been watching on my laptop through the netflix website. also go to my local independent video store when i am in the mood. hail videodrome!
Netflix FTW: DVDs, Blu-Ray, on demand content (some of which is in HD) for $20/mo. I've accumulated about 500 DVDs over the years, and now with Blu Ray, I can't justify re-buying even a small portion of what I already own... I've already spent upwards of $3000 towards my movie habit, and at this point, $20 a month is more than justified to see as many movies as I want. I'm not 100% on this, but I think the most recent DVD that I purchased was The Monster Squad when it first came out and since then The Dark Knight (standard DVD), The Hangover and Inglorious Basterds (both Blu) were purchased for me. In a pinch, Comcast on demand has good HD rentals and Red Box is actually extraordinarily convenient, so at this point, traditional rentals and purchasing takes a back seat for me.
Perefct example of needing all of the above. Boondock Saints 2 came out last week. I loved the first film but was very weary of a sequel, esp. 10 years later. So I rent instead of wait for library or downloading. I fucking love it, now I'm waiting for a nice sale on the BD as I will own it, I just have to save an extra $3 to cover that rent. Of course since I had to rent the dvd, I went ahead and dubbed it in case that sale takes too long (I asked for the BD, but Hollywood only had one copy on blu and dozens on dvds. Blockbuster is out of the question).
i netflix and stream alot. however i buy alot as i always seem to have orders in either gohastings, amazon, or diabolik. just alot of stuff i cant get on netflix.
I almost always 'buy'. Renting is annoying cuz you have to send it back, and if I really like a movie, I'd like to own it...but it will cost me, plus the rental price. Meh...oh well...
But on the other side of that equation, if you rent a movie you don't like, then you've just saved yourself $10 to $20. So unless you have absolutely no taste in movies and REALLY like everything you watch, renting first is still ultimately the cheapest option. It's really a lopsided gamble when you think logically about it. If you win you save yourself $2-4, but if you lose then you're out $10-20. You'd have to really enjoy 4 out of every 5 movies you buy for you to simply break even monetarily. Vegas would love you with those odds! :lol:
i've rented 2 movies in the last 3 years, i think...i buy almost everything i watch. i certainly wouldn't say i have no taste in movies, but i guess im just very good at making informed decisions about what i buy. i can't remember the last film i purchased that i regretted picking up. but i usually only buy older movies. id never buy a new movie sight unseen. its gotta be something old, with a reputation of some sort.
I always buy, mostly blind buys, and have never been disappointed with any of my purchases, well maybe one, but even that, I only paid $3 for.
Your decisions can't possibly be all that informed if you're always basing your buys upon other people's opinions rather than your own. In theory, if you forever cut yourself off from taking a chance on potentially bad movies, then you can never truly know what a "good" movie is, either. There is still value to be found in watching movies you don't necessarily want to own, and renting is great for that. Ain't no way in hell I'm going to pay $20 to own personal copies of Transformers, GI Joe, The Wicker Man, or 2012... but as $2 rentals and with a six pack of PBR handy I'm all over 'em!
well, any movie im not sure of, i usually download. thats how i see most new pictures i miss in the theaters. maybe that makes me morally bankrupt or something, but i feel like i've put a lot of my money into the entertainment industry over my lifetime, so i don't lose any sleep over it. in terms of my choices being informed or not, im not sure. i guess i dont take too many chances, you're right. but man, i don't have time to watch more than a movie/night on average. there are so many films out there that are practically guaranteed to be good, that i'd rather buy them over something im not sure of. my collection of films is probably only around 500-600 titles, and depending on your perspective, thats either really big or really small. there are still movies i want to buy that i know i'm gonna like. as far as renting goes, where i live right now, the only option is blockbuster anyway, so this is kind of a philosophical debate, in the end. The option to rent a lot just isn't there at the moment. When i was in university there was an amazing rental place near me. 3 movies, 4 nights, 5 bucks. i watched a lot from that place, and discovered a lot of great films i never would have otherwise.
I used to do that all of the time (although not for new films. The risk of getting caught is thousands of times greater.), but that was until I realized that I had developed a huge back catalog of films I had almost no desire to watch. There's only so many hours in a day I can watch films now that I have kids and if given a choice of some random film on avi or a professionally produced DVD with a glossy cover, the DVD is always the more appealing option. I keep my downloads strictly to the few new tv shows I watch that won't see release on DVD for another year or so. And when that happens, I buy it.
i know what you mean! i've got a bit of a backlog myself, and 19 times out of 20 i'll pick a dvd to watch over an avi. I'm not too concerned about being caught, because i honestly dont download that much. if there are flicks i honestly want to see, chances are i go see them in the theater. the bottom line is that i end up watching very few newer movies. things that come along that get everybody raving, often tend to pass me right by and i forget about them until years later. for example, judd apatow comedies have been a big thing over the last few years. but i have still to see the 40 year old virgin, or the hangover (not apatow, i know, but the same breed). I'm so busy catching up on classics put out by warner bros or fox, that i dont have time to watch anything that i have a fleeting interest in.
My collection stays within that range, sometimes a little higher, sometimes a little lower. I'm always picking up new flicks and weeding out ones I never watch as well.
