I see a lot of nostalgia for the video store rental atmosphere online these days. Rightly so. The experience was whimsical and wonderful. Friday nights walking into Blockbuster with my parents and sister was always an adventure. The outer walls were filled with the latest Hollywood hits. The interesting and obscure was scattered vicariously throughout the middle sections and and the video games were always closest to the register where it’d be more difficult for kids to swipe.. the boxes.. I suppose.
If you search Google Maps it will quickly reveal video rental stores to be a relic of the past. Only a handful remain.
However, I’m hear to inform you that the video rental experience is indeed alive and well and perhaps more robust than ever here in 2024. They’ve been here all along. You just need to adjust your frame of mind.
Video Rentals in 2024
Small local businesses like EntertainMART or your hometown video game store down the road carry a huge inventory of used movies and videogames.
In my personal experience the price of used Movies is incredible. $3.99 to $7.99 is very common. Blu-rays may cost $1 more.
I have distinct memories of visiting “2-Day Rental” in the late 90s. At the time a movie rental would cost $4. Adjusted for inflation that’d probably be $8-$12 today. Yet we have the option to buy movies for less than that today. It’s really a stellar deal.
What’s even better is that because you are technically “buying” the movies you can keep them as long as you want. But if you want the full rental experience these stores also “buy back” movies and video games. At a bare minimum they will give you 50 cents back. It’s not much but in the end you might buy a $4 DVD, watch it and sell it back for 50 cents. A grand total of $3.50 excluding taxes.
Backing Up Your Movies
Disclaimer: I’m not a legal expert, but my humble understanding is that we are allowed to maintain backups of movies we own. So once you buy a Blu-Ray or especially a DVD it’s totally legal to rip them to keep a backup at home. Just so long as you don’t break the encryption on them.
To further improve your preservation of movies you might be inclined to follow my guide in setting up Jellyfin. This allows you to enjoy your films without putting any wear and tear on the physical media. Just remember that if you sell back your movie you need to delete the backup too.
The Joys of the Video Rental Experience
In conclusion, one of the greatest aspects of renting videos in 2024 is the experience of it. My wife and I enjoy making a list of movies we want to see and looking for them at the stores around town. We often meet interesting people at these places that are into film or videogames or card games. You may find yourself out of town for the weekend and hitting up the local video store looking for that one rare film that wasn’t back at home.
Finally, don’t horde movies. If this catches on too much the stock of movies will dry up. But selling them back maintains the supply. So have fun and happy renting from the “Blockbuster Video Store we have at Home”.