For the love of movies: The Past, Present, and Future of Cinema and what makes us fans (1 Viewer)

[TravisR]

In the preview they say they are revisiting these pictures on VHS, is this what they are up to? Not sure I would want to visit those films that way.

Tarantino bought the inventory of the video store that he used to work at when it went out of business in the 90's so him and Avary are watching those tapes.

 

[Capt D McMars]

Tarantino bought the inventory of the video store that he used to work at when it went out of business in the 90's so him and Avary are watching those tapes.

I can see the sentimental attachment, BUT???? VHS, as opposed to BD or even DVD??!!!!!

 

[TravisR]

I can see the sentimental attachment, BUT???? VHS, as opposed to BD or even DVD??!!!!!

What can I say? The dude's a weirdo.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Tarantino bought the inventory of the video store that he used to work at when it went out of business in the 90's so him and Avary are watching those tapes.

I could probably do one film on VHS, as a novelty to say "Wow, look how far this stuff has come from this!" but watching a bunch of films like this, I'd be fed up with it by the second picture. I'm nostalgic for the pictures, not for the format, ha!

 

[TravisR]

I think for them, they're watching the tapes because it's more of a trip down memory lane of when they were young men and working at a video store with no real worries and just their dreams of making it in Hollywood.

While I never really dreamed of making movies, I definitely look back fondly on my days of working in an independent video store so I get the memory lane aspect for them.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I think for them, they're watching the tapes because it's more of a trip down memory lane of when they were young men and working at a video store with no real worries and just their dreams of making it in Hollywood.

While I never really dreamed of making movies, I definitely look back fondly on my days of working in an independent video store so I get the memory lane aspect for them.

I have a friend that continues to collect all forms of home video including VHS and has the occasional showing at his house. He includes in the invite the format he will show the picture in. On some pictures he seems to feel VHS is the only way to watch them and it is that nostalgia of having seen the pictures on VHS in the 1980s.

I had a couple large boxes of VHS tapes in my last house. When I moved last year, I rented a dumpster to empty my attic and they all went in the dumpster. When I told my friend that's what I had done he freaked out. He would have taken all my old VHS tapes. I gave him my laser disc collection instead.

 

[Joe Wong]

Hopkins is a guy that I think actually became much more appreciated in his old age, in part because he was a nasty drunk in some of his younger years. However, as an actor he just continued to work on his craft. Which paid off. Not sure either of these guys could make anything, maybe Redford because he is so tied to independent filmmaking.

I enjoy when an actor I like pops up in something that is generally not in his/her wheelhouse. I did watch the Captain America picture he was in. Enjoyed seeing him, was not a fan of the film.

I love how there are so many differing opinions on films! Captain America: The Winter Soldier (the one where Redford has a major role) is generally considered one of the best in the MCU (#3 for me).

Even amongst MCU fans, there are different rankings for individual entries. Take Iron Man 3, for example. Many fans hated how the Mandarin was presented, while others loved it. How you rank this will likely depend on how you viewed the Mandarin's role.

 

[TravisR]

I have a friend that continues to collect all forms of home video including VHS and has the occasional showing at his house. He includes in the invite the format he will show the picture in. On some pictures he seems to feel VHS is the only way to watch them and it is that nostalgia of having seen the pictures on VHS in the 1980s.

I had a couple large boxes of VHS tapes in my last house. When I moved last year, I rented a dumpster to empty my attic and they all went in the dumpster. When I told my friend that's what I had done he freaked out. He would have taken all my old VHS tapes. I gave him my laser disc collection instead.

I never tossed my tapes just because they were buried in a box in a closet. With the resurgence of VHS collecting, I'll probably continue to keep them. I even consider picking up the missing movies on VHS that I need from horror series like Friday The 13th or Halloween just to have complete series on tape or as complete as they went on tape. I had switched to laserdisc (and then DVD) so my tapes really only go up to the early 90's.

And speaking of laserdiscs, Avary has the laserdiscs from their old store. Like Joe Dante or any other LD owner, he notes that a chunk of them have died from laser rot.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Dumped my VHS tapes. (Pretty much everything I had on tape has been supplanted by LD/DVD/Blu-Ray). Even though I don't currently have an LD player setup in my HT rack you'll have to pry my LD collection from my cold, dead, fingers.

- Walter.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I love how there are so many differing opinions on films! Captain America: The Winter Soldier (the one where Redford has a major role) is generally considered one of the best in the MCU (#3 for me).

Even amongst MCU fans, there are different rankings for individual entries. Take Iron Man 3, for example. Many fans hated how the Mandarin was presented, while others loved it. How you rank this will likely depend on how you viewed the Mandarin's role.

Well, I really enjoyed the first Chris Evans Captain America picture and loved that it was a period piece. I also like the director Joe Johnston, who I think does a great job with these period pictures like this or The Wolfman. So, when it got to the second film with Redford and the setting was changed to the present day, that took a lot out of it for me. Like Redford, like how they tried to give it a bit of a spy twist with him in it, but the overall execution of the picture was just not my thing.

I know a lot of people like that film and I don't have an issue with that, I just kind of like making the comic book pictures period films. That adds a lot to my enjoyment of them.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I never tossed my tapes just because they were buried in a box in a closet. With the resurgence of VHS collecting, I'll probably continue to keep them. I even consider picking up the missing movies on VHS that I need from horror series like Friday The 13th or Halloween just to have complete series on tape or as complete as they went on tape. I had switched to laserdisc (and then DVD) so my tapes really only go up to the early 90's.

And speaking of laserdiscs, Avary has the laserdiscs from their old store. Like Joe Dante or any other LD owner, he notes that a chunk of them have died from laser rot.

My DVD and Blu-ray collections are so large there was no way I could see keeping VHS and laserdiscs I never watch. I am selling off my DVDs now as I go through them. Essentially, I want to get down to just Blu or 4k and whatever DVDs I have that are not available on those formats. All the laserdisc stuff I had I now have on Blu. On the VHS, well, that was loaded with rarities that have never appeared on any other format. So, when I threw those away, there were likely at least 50 films or more that never appeared on DVD or Blu. However, I was not going to go through setting up a TV and VHS player in order to watch them. Plus, I have so much to watch on Blu and DVD, I just thought it was no loss to dump them. Had I known my friend would have taken them, I would have given them all to him. Perhaps, I would have attended one of his screenings of a "rare" film only available on VHS that came out of my collection.

 

[Capt D McMars]

I could probably do one film on VHS, as a novelty to say "Wow, look how far this stuff has come from this!" but watching a bunch of films like this, I'd be fed up with it by the second picture. I'm nostalgic for the pictures, not for the format, ha!

Onlyif not available on any other upgraded format, and I would be left with the feelings that...Well, there's 90 mins I'll never get back!!!

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Dumped my VHS tapes. (Pretty much everything I had on tape has been supplanted by LD/DVD/Blu-Ray). Even though I don't currently have an LD player setup in my HT rack you'll have to pry my LD collection from my cold, dead, fingers.

- Walter.

It was my VHS collection that was loaded with rare stuff never available on any other format. All the laser discs I had were replaced with Blu. I think the last one, which I did not ever think would get a Blu or even DVD was a documentary about Al Green. However, it came out on Blu and thus ended my need to keep the LDs. They were cool, in the big album cover style boxes but I was fine letting them go. I had all the Kubrick pictures and things along those lines. I did not collect a lot of LDs so I think there were maybe 50 of them. I looked them up on the internet to see if any had any value, they didn't, and my friend was overjoyed to get them.

 

[tsodcollector]

I would say that my love of films is due to my father, who introduced me to all these wonderful films (12 Angry Men (1957), In The Heat Of The Night (1967), Witness for the Prosecution (1957), etc.) during my teen and pre-teen years. Why, he took me to see Jaws (1975) before I had turned 6!

When I was able to go to the theatres by myself or with school friends, films like Raiders of the Lost Ark (1982), Poltergeist (1981), Back to the Future (1985), Die Hard (1988) and Aliens (1986) formed my diet. Yes - there's a common theme of action, adventure, sci-fi, horror, etc... basically thrills, chills and special effects. Why? Well, because a cinematic experience to me was an escape, and seeing stuff that was more "fantastic" was part of the appeal. Yet I would say some of these films I just listed would be on plenty of movie-lovers' favourites, if not a "best film" list.

The number 1 reason for me to see a film is to be entertained. An artistic film that bores me is not appealing. I can appreciate the art, but first I want to be entertained! I would rather see long(er), super-entertaining or absorbing films like The Great Escape (1963), The Godfather (1972), and Titanic (1997) than a boring 90 minute "artistic" film.

Favourite directors include Spielberg, Nolan, Cameron, Scorcese, Villeneuve, Tarantino.

Many may decry the rise of superhero films over the last 20+ years, but I'm a fan. TV (with all the various streaming services) laid the groundwork for long-form storytelling during the 2000s, and series like the Marvel Cinematic Universe follow a similar path. Remember, if the Marvel films were shoddy or low-quality in the eyes of audiences, they wouldn't have lasted this long.

With respect to the question whether something shown on streaming services is cinema - my answer is it depends. Was the film originally made to be shown in cinemas? And just happened to be first shown on streaming because the studio sold it to a Netflix or a Prime? In that case, it should be cinematic. Yes, watching on a TV screen at home is not the intended environment, but it was filmed for a big screen and should be considered cinema. As an example, I saw Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) on HBO Max when it was released, and the opening was wonderfully cinematic, even if ultimately the film was a disappointment (and had boring moments).

Has moviegoing changed? It has, for me. Before kids, my wife and I would go every weekend to see the new release(s). But now, we're more selective. Mostly for the MCU films, and the occasional film for which we can go without the kids. Moviemaking has also changed, of course. More franchises, for example. But the cinematic landscape has always evolved. As long as the medium remains entertaining, and tells a good story, I am all in.

Cheers!

actually poltergeist came out in 1982 not 1981,and raiders came out in 1981 not 1982,sorry about that.

 

[Joe Wong]

actually poltergeist came out in 1982 not 1981,and raiders came out in 1981 not 1982,sorry about that.

You are correct - I must have flipped them around in error!

 

[tsodcollector]

i have so many dvd's i could never would've imagined,i think i've been buying dvd's very soon,so i can build my dvd collection,it would be amazing,that's gonna start with one of my all time favorite movies close encounters of the third kind,and after that i can keep building my dvd collection,it will be my dream come true.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I think for them, they're watching the tapes because it's more of a trip down memory lane of when they were young men and working at a video store with no real worries and just their dreams of making it in Hollywood.

While I never really dreamed of making movies, I definitely look back fondly on my days of working in an independent video store so I get the memory lane aspect for them.

Wow, so listened to their podcast driving the other day and they should just call it The Movie Nerd Fest because that was about as nerdy as it gets. A total nerd explosion. Fun to hear that Tarantino hated Dark Star as an 11 year old and now considers it a masterpiece...yes...he calls it that several times.

 

[TravisR]

Wow, so listened to their podcast driving the other day and they should just call it The Movie Nerd Fest because that was about as nerdy as it gets. A total nerd explosion. Fun to hear that Tarantino hated Dark Star as an 11 year old and now considers it a masterpiece...yes...he calls it that several times.

I love nearly all of Carpenter's movies but I've never liked Dark Star and QT's newfound enthusiasm for it almost makes me want to watch it again. Almost.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I love nearly all of Carpenter's movies but I've never liked Dark Star and QT's newfound enthusiasm for it almost makes me want to watch it again. Almost.

I love Dark Star, saw it young as well, and the combination of goofy and sci-fi clicked with me. Plus, at the point I saw it Carpenter was already a directing god to me. I would not call it a masterpiece, as Quentin does, but as a first film it is pretty great and a lot of fun. It is also really intelligently written which has kept me appreciating it over the years. It does seem more like an O'Bannon picture than Carpenter one. The one hugely fun thing they discuss about it is that Carpenter is actually the voice of Talby in the film. Which is one of those facts about the picture that is hard to get your mind around.

 

[TravisR]

I love Dark Star, saw it young as well, and the combination of goofy and sci-fi clicked with me. Plus, at the point I saw it Carpenter was already a directing god to me. I would not call it a masterpiece, as Quentin does, but as a first film it is pretty great and a lot of fun. It is also really intelligently written which has kept me appreciating it over the years. It does seem more like an O'Bannon picture than Carpenter one. The one thing hugely fun thing they discuss about it is that Carpenter is actually the voice of Talby in the film. Which is one of those facts about the picture that is hard to get your mind around.

I think my problem is that the humor is outside of my era so the comedy just plays as weird and awkward rather than funny to me. That's not to say that I think the movie is without merit because like Tarantino and Avary say, it's a miracle that Carpenter and O'Bannon made that movie for $60,000 but it's just not for me.