VHS and Betamax You Have Recently Rented

[DavidB6937]

9 minutes ago, Lorne Malvo said:

@FLips

You should've posted this a few months back! I had to get rid of my entire DVD collection (over 1000) over the summer due to downsizing. Ended up giving the lot to charity shops as selling them was just too much hassle. Would've been happy to send you a bunch.

Then again, everytime I pass a CEX/marketplace/HMV I end up spending half hour looking through the DVDs anyway so I imagine I'll be restarting the collection before long.

Absolutely the same here. I had about 2500 and the majority have gone to charity because my wife decided we could just rely on streaming, even though I absolutely adore having a physical collection. But some battles I can't be bothered with.

Definitely keep getting tempted to start again though but think she might notice.

[Lorne Malvo]

I've definitely noticed an increase this year in people either collecting physical media again, or going the piratebay/dodgy stick route.

The amount of streaming services now is just ridiculous and surely unsustainable - even Studio Canal has their own streaming service now! Every company wanting their own piece of the streaming pie means the business is going to eat itself. I think places like Netflix/Disney will be fine but surely you'd imagine some of the more bespoke services will fall by the wayside going forwards.

[Devon Malcolm]

I find it very rude that people have Letterboxds on here and have chosen not to share their accounts in case some film snob on here follows them and gets on their tits.

[Carbomb]

10 minutes ago, Lorne Malvo said:

I've definitely noticed an increase this year in people either collecting physical media again, or going the piratebay/dodgy stick route.

That's been my approach to most media in general - I've been increasingly beset by the notion that modern capitalism wants you to have as much of your life for rent as possible and to own absolutely nothing, so (like a lot of people, I'd imagine) I've been using streaming as a way of consuming generally, and if there's something I particularly like, I will buy the physical copy. This is more for music than TV/film, but I do also buy TV series and films on DVD. 

[FLips]

This is only something we decided on this week so sadly missed out on some of you flogging yours!

As someone who collects the odd bit of retro and has been caught looking a few times by changing trends and supply and demand, I’m pretty happy with myself getting on this one while the getting is good. Even HMV had some relatively cheap stuff in new.

I think i’m still sour from digging Rock Band out only to find the guitars most people binned go for £200-300 because Fortnite use them now. Getting The Warriors for a quid now rather than for £50 in a year’s time when they add Swan to Minecraft or some bollocks.

[BomberPat]

40 minutes ago, Lorne Malvo said:

I've definitely noticed an increase this year in people either collecting physical media again, or going the piratebay/dodgy stick route.

Something I've found interesting is the kind of movies that get the full bells and whistles physical media treatment now. There are some Oscar winning movies that you can't get on Blu Ray or streaming, but I've got a fancy deluxe edition of the Vincent Price/Kenny Everett comedy horror Bloodbath At The House Of Death, and Blu Rays of three different El Santo movies with fancy boxes, artwork, essays, oodles of extras, the works.

The stuff that gets the real detailed and devoted releases are weird obscurities, schlock and B-movies with interesting stories behind them, while the big films get thrown out with minimal extras, or just straight to streaming.

 

I'm winding down the number of streaming services I pay for, because I just don't use them enough and wouldn't miss most of them. The promise of streaming was that everything you ever wanted would be at your fingertips all the time, but people have started to notice what's missing, and to realise that stuff gets taken down, and there's nothing you can do about it. There's obviously a lot of benefits to physical media in that regard, and I'm not surprised it's making a comeback. It's a real late stage capitalism thing, where the big streaming services set out to "disrupt" how we watch films and TV, but are gradually turning into something much closer to linear TV, only much more expensive, and with fewer regulations or rights for either the consumer or the producer. 

[Chest Rockwell]

What's with the Sandler obsession atm @FLips?

[hallicks]

50 minutes ago, FLips said:

As someone who collects the odd bit of retro

 

Love The Wedding Singer. Dunno if it was the first kind of “Lol 80’s” film but it nails it. 

[FLips]

13 minutes ago, Chest Rockwell said:

What's with the Sandler obsession atm @FLips?

I’m being selective with it, sticking to the “hits” or the unknowns. I won’t be sticking Jack and Jill on any time soon.

They’re just an easy brainless watch and a lot of them I’ve not seen since I was younger. 

[Devon Malcolm]

52 minutes ago, FLips said:

I’m being selective with it, sticking to the “hits” or the unknowns. I won’t be sticking Jack and Jill on any time soon.

They’re just an easy brainless watch and a lot of them I’ve not seen since I was younger. 

Sorry if you have mentioned seeing them in this thread but I've slept since then, but have you watched any of his more dramatic stuff? Like Uncut Gems or Punch-Drunk Love? Be interested to see what you made of them.

That's the weird thing about Sandler. For all the (probably deserved) criticism he gets for a career full of supposedly lazy comedy, I think those are far and away two of the very best films of the 21st century. 

[FLips]

1 minute ago, Devon Malcolm said:

Sorry if you have mentioned seeing them in this thread but I've slept since then, but have you watched any of his more dramatic stuff? Like Uncut Gems or Punch-Drunk Love? Be interested to see what you made of them.

That's the weird thing about Sandler. For all the (probably deserved) criticism he gets for a career full of supposedly lazy comedy, I think those are far and away two of the very best films of the 21st century. 

I watched Punch Drunk Love when I was a teenager and was disappointed it wasn’t a typical Adam Sandler film. I do mean to go back to it now with a slightly more mature brain. 
I’ve heard really good things about Uncut Gems but I’m rarely in the mood for films like that. Next time I am though I’ll make it a priority.

[gmoney]

The Waterboy has one of my favourite gags in cinema. The first 30 seconds of this:

 

Kathy Bates delivery is exquisite. 

Not a fan of his comedies otherwise really, especially not after about 2000. But I do love Punch Drunk Love and Uncut Gems.

 

[FLips]

Ghostbusters II

Has all the right ingredients for a successful sequel; same cast, same writers, same director. Somehow though completely misses the mark by not being as exciting, as funny, or as clever. Vigo The Carpathian is a very dull villain and his assistant isn't much better, having a convoluted way to get a baby into the film via the Dana/Venkman sub-plot doesn't work at all, and as fun as the Statue of Liberty mech is, it's not a touch on the Stay Puft finale from the first.

It's not all bad. The main plot of the Ghostbusters being admonished by the city and the sewers filling with negative energy is actually an interesting one on paper, it's just the execution of it is boring. Always happy to see Kurt Fuller turn up in a film though and as usual he's a bright spot in this.

[Hannibal Scorch]

Red One is really weird. It’s not awful, but it’s also hard to really recommend. Too childish for adults, but too intense for kids. Some of the CG is shocking and the fight scenes look like they were directed by Kevin Dunn and you can’t work out what’s going on. But the concept is interesting and there could have been a better film made.

JK Simmons is a slightly odd choice but he’s always good. The Waitress is in it for a fleeting moment and Nick Kroll, Nick Krolls himself. The Rock is a spectacularly shit actor, especially shit in the last decade, and this is no exception. Chris Evan’s accent is interesting. Maybe that’s his real accent otherwise, odd choice.

Decent enough for the Christmas rotation, but it’s not a classic. 6/10.

[Onyx2]

11 hours ago, FLips said:

Getting The Warriors for a quid now rather than for £50 in a year’s time when they add Swan to Minecraft or some bollocks.

Now is definitely the time. Lin-Manuel Miranda has released a Warriors concept album which is almost guaranteed to be turned into something else. He's also trying to get the game rereleased. 

Warriors being turned into a musical sounds like it was made just to wind up the UKFF. I think it's quite a fun listen. Lauryn Hill is a highlight as Cyrus.