Goodbye Blockbuster!!!, trouble renting Swordfish from them!! (1 Viewer)

[Christina_DQ]

Well i haven't stepped into a blcokbuster in nearly a year. But my little brother wanted to rent Swordfish + had a free block favs rental coupon-which restricts new releases,dvdsect!!!
So that sucks & i figured i rent a movie on video just forthe hell of it since it's free.
Anyway..they only have about 4 copies of Swordfish on dvd....my brother was gonna rent it on video,but i said no since it was shot in 2.35 & would look horrible in P&S.
Get this.....they have a notice on the shelf that the dvds for the movie are behind the counter & you have to ASK to rent them! Meanwhile all there other dvds & videos are on the shelf!
For video i picked out Night of the Demons to give it another chance. I saw it once years ago & hated it because i took it seriously,instead of expecting a camp movie,lol. + the box makes the movie look like it's supposed to be scary ect. Shockingly they had the Unrated version,same thing with Waxwork! Funny thing is the R rated versions of both of those movies must be hard to find,since every video store i've seen them in are always the Unrated version. Meanwhile i can't find the Unrated version of Dead Alive for sale on video. Of course i'll get that on dvd,but just find it strange how only one versions avalible for sale on video,while they have the uncut dvd.
So at the counter i asked for Swordfish & the clerk looked at me weird,like "you want to rent that,why??" then said "are you sure?"- i bet corporates harassing all the employee's with there bs.
She didn't see to happy about her job + i saw a manager ordering her around when i got in line.
To no suprise there was a late fee as always. Though i do think my older brother did return his movies a day late last time he rented. So at least it wasn't the rip-off scam the always pull. But i am done for good with Blockcensor & while the restof my family may rent there. I'm going elsewhere if i ever rent,which is rarely now that only crappy corporate chains are everywhere.
I'm gonna return the movies today 1 1/2 days til they have to be in & i can bet you all my $$,there'll be a late charge next time someone inmy family rents. There always is......Blockbuster sucks!!
btw- Swordfish wasn't that bad & you should at least rent(or buy) it & tell BB to shove off.
Also start bringing up a storm about the P&S only Mummy Returns(which my lil bro stopped me from bringing up,because i was about to mention it to them). I didn't like the movie as much,but no OAR at all is just wrong.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

Ha, that's funny! First they put "American Beauty" behind the counter since Dreamworks wouldn't give them any sort of deal on it, now they do the same thing with Swordfish since Warner put it out at a sell-thru price so the mom-n-pop stores might actually be able to have it for rent and (God forbid!) people can actually BUY it if they want!
I'm glad people have finally caught on to how bad a company Blockbuster is. Here's hoping they don't make it to 2010.

 

[Derek Miner]

I don't understand Blockbuster's logic in requiring you to ask for Swordfish at the counter. This will decrease the rental numbers for Warner, obviously, but it also decreases THEIR revenue. I would also think that with a rental copy absent on the shelf, it would drive more people to BUY a copy.
The only other time I saw titles kept behind the counter was when my local Hollywood Video had some trouble with DVDs disappearing.
= Derek =

 

[AdrianJ]

can bet you all my $$,there'll be a late charge next time someone inmy family rents. There always is......Blockbuster sucks!!

Am I the only one that has never, ever gotten a late fee from Blockbuster? If you are overly concerned about late fees, go into Blockbuster, hand them the video and politely ask them to check it in for you.
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Adrian Jones

 

[Christina_DQ]

We do that & still get late charges for the exact movies!!!
Hmmm i should've checked to see if they had The Seige and other films. It didn't cross my mind at the time,since i just wanted to get the hell out of there.
Thank god Home Video is back in business. It burned down last year(possibly by BB??,lol),but luckily so many people prefer that store over Hollywood & BB,that they were able to re-built it instead of not bothering.
I checked it out one day with a friends,curious to see there selection & while lack of WS VHS's(though thats goes for just about every video store)-they had a great selection of alot more rare,OOP video's than mainstream stuff . They also have dvds & carry the Unrated/NC-17 versions of the films. On video they carry either BOTH versions or just the Unrated- now thats how to run a video store!(+get WS vhs when avalible!!)
So now i can finnaly rent the Unrated versions of Road Trip,Requiem for a Dream ect-which i still have yet to see. Was planning on buying them,but now can rent them uncut if i like.
I think i'll get a membership there sometime. So that when i ever do decide to rent,i'll go there only

 

[Patrick Wilmes]

Adrian,I have never received a late fee from them either.

 

[Sean Conklin]

Adios, Asta la vista, sayonara, later BB!!!
I don't even go near my local BB!!
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Sean
"I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates who said.......I drank what?"
[Edited last by Sean Conklin on October 31, 2001 at 10:45 PM]

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The Seige doesn't have the Terrorist warning. Swordfish is the only title to carry that "prestigious" honor, since it was priced to sell for video. Funny 'dat.
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My DVD Collection
My Preorders
My Wishlist
Potter is coming...

 

[WoodyH]

Mebbe I just get lucky a lot, but the only times I've gotten late fees from BB is when...well...the movies were returned late. (shrug) I'll freely admit that it's annoying that their '2-day rental' is really 'by noon on the 2nd day' (technically, that's a 2-day rental, sure, but practically?), but at least they have always told me that when I've rented a flick.
Also, either there's some amount of latitude in how the individual BB stores can be run, or some stores aren't playing by the rules, as there were quite a few copies of Swordfish available on the shelves to rent yesterday evening when I stopped by. Saw the sticker on the front of the display case, snickers, rented it - without any hassle from the employees, or having to ask for it - watched it, and will return it tonight. Enjoyable flick, too.
FWIW, I rent from the Blockbuster at Pike and Broadway in Seattle.
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Woody Hanscom
Link Removed
[Edited last by WoodyH on October 31, 2001 at 06:53 PM]

 

[Richard_Huntington]

I received a late fee the last four times I went there. Each time, the DVD was back a day EARLY.

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"My wife actually prefers widescreen"

 

[Scott Strang]

I love seeing a dumbass company screw themselves. It's priceless.
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"What did Mr Spock see when he looked in the toilet? The Captain's Log."
Stolen from a BBS in 1985

 

[Jacob_St]

It looks like Blockbuster is acting like a brat because they didn't get their way again. The only thing Blockbuster is trying to protect is their monopoly on the video rental industry. I wish they would do this with all movies so they'd go out of business.
[Edited last by Jacob_St on October 31, 2001 at 08:10 PM]

 

[Nathan A]

The one moment that stands out in my the most-
We rented Ghost Dog (against my wishes) and watched it. Good grief this movie is awful. It's truly the second worst movie that I've ever seen (to The Pest). When it was over we quickly took it back to BB to get it out of our home. That's right- we returned it the same night, within 3 or 4 hours.
Fast forward a couple of weeks to the next time I'm at BB. At the checkout my total is about $5 more than my one rental should be. I had a late fee. I asked what movie it was for- "Ghost Dog" C'mon, the movie was bad enough to have spent money on to begin with, but then they had me pay even more for their bogus late fee.
I miss my two local mom n pop stores that went under- one bought out buy BB, the other put out of business when another BB was put up across the street. I truly hope that BB isn't as big in the coming years as it is now.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Get this.....they have a notice on the shelf that the dvds for the movie are behind the counter & you have to ASK to rent them! Meanwhile all there other dvds & videos are on the shelf!

Basically, Warner has decided they don't need Blockbuster anymore. Their sell-thru is very good, and their VOD on their cable system is about to go live. Blockbuster KNOWS VOD will be the death of them, and they tried to get into the game, it fell through. Good for them, All these chain video stores will be gone by 2015, and only the true moviephile ones (and porn) will survive
Jeff Kleist

 

[Seth Paxton]

There was a big article about 2 months ago when this was announced (the sell-through thing). It's no secret about the animosity between Warner and BBuster.
Warner is leading the studio war on BBuster, meanwhile BB has a few studios on it's side due to being owned by the same company (I forget who is who right at this moment).
This policy is EXACTLY the same policy as Dreamworks was treated to, that's no coincedence.
The rental/sell-through war has officially begun gentlemen, expect the next year to year and a half to get a little bloody. I certainly see WB wanting to escallate the situation unless things turn to ugly and they flinch. With the verbage that their CEO (name?? arghh?) has been using regarding the effect of sell-through on BBuster, I don't see him flinching any time soon.
While things aren't different for Joe 6 today and won't change for awhile, my routine has long since excluded BB except for a few desperate rentals of hard to find tapes/not on DVD films. I don't think it's being a film geek, because I was even when I rented a lot from them, it's more about better choices (Netflix and Hollywood, plus mom and pops and DirecTV PPV) and sell-through DVD options.
I consider myself an "early adopter" of this alternate rental/purchase pattern. I think WB and their "side" can win this battle, the environment is primed for it, but it will be several years for a serious change.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

I WANT BLOCKBUSTER OUT OF BUSINESS!!
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God bless the USA and the men and women of our military and their families!

 

[Brian Harnish]

I don't even rent my movies. That's one reason I keep buying DVDs -- so I don't have to step foot into another Ballbuster to see a film. I'd rather have The Plague than set a single foot in Ballbuster (and THAT'S saying something!)

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- Brian
My DVD Collection
Want Sliders on DVD? Then please SIGN the petition!

 

[David Lambert]

The studio you are trying to think of that's owned by the same congomerate as Blockbuster is...Paramount!
Aha! That's why Paramount's DVD prices are a bit higher than every other studio's! They have higher prices to subtly encourage the casual consumer to rent DVD's instead of buying them!
And where else would you rent them besides "the nation's #1 rental chain"? Who is that but...Paramount's sister company: Blockbuster!

So. I have finally figured out why we have to pay $24.99 at Best Buy for a no-frills copy of B-title schlock like Pet Sematary!! And $27.99 for Adventures in Babysitting!! Both should street for $14.99, tops.
Thanks for helping me put 2 and 2 together!
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DAVE/Memphis

MORE TV ON DVD, PLEASE!

 

[Brian_Linnen]

hey folks,
can someone explain what has BB so upset about this? lots of new movies come out priced to sell! i bought gladiator the day it came out for less than $20. the patriot was priced to sell. why does this one movie that didn't do that much action at the box office to begin with make them so bitter??
bpl

 

[Christina_DQ]

I don't know. Maybe because BB is just to controling & wants there way no matter what??
Anyway......i've even had the manager tell me over the phone or in person that most of there movies are not scanned into until the day AFTER they were supposed to be in. So i questioned that & he tryed to say 'well still,it's late,you have to pay" & i would catch him right there & i'd say " Well you just said,you pureposely scan the movies in late,hence the false late charges we get stuck with"...he didn't know what to say & thats when i said "i just won't bother renting there anymore then & i'll let everyone else know & do the same since i'm sick of this crap" & hung up on him before he could try convinceing me to keep renting from them.
Once they even tryed making us pay $60+ for a video gamme we returned on time. Turns out they put it back on the shelf without scanning it in for a couple weeks!! That was the one time when i really stood up to them in the store. Embaressed the manager who kept saying the games not in,pay the fee or you can't rent at all. Then after holding up the line since only one register was open,they finnaly took my word to go check the shelf to make sure & guess what? There was the game & i didn't have to pay
I would love to see BB go down in flames