While Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon now dominate our screens and pretty much dictate how we spend our weekends, back in the early ‘00s, Blockbuster and Hollywood videos were the answer to an otherwise boring night at home.
There’s nothing quite like the experience of going to the shop, choosing from a wide variety of films, and then curling up on the couch with the remote control and some popcorn to get some relaxation time.
New releases were bound to cost you more than older flicks but compared to going to the theater to see a film, it still ended up much cheaper. Besides, video stores almost always had deals if you borrowed several videos at a time, allowing you to rack up killer movie marathons for some epic weekend bingeing.
Back then, there was no way to tell if a new release would be available for rent in the store or if you would have to wait endlessly to see a movie you missed in theaters. Apart from the unpredictability of their release dates, such popular releases were bound to get snatched up fast, leaving you very slim chances of getting a copy. If you were lucky enough to find one, it was almost the same feeling as finding gold and striking it rich.
Nowadays, we get less and less face-to-face interaction with other people thanks to the rise of social media and the internet. Going to the local movie rental shop was a good place to come across acquaintances or even meet new people looking for the same movie titles as you. Of course, there was also the chance of meeting a cute boy or girl.
If there was one thing that made going to the store to rent a movie more fabulous, it was the chance to get to show off your laminated Blockbuster card at the checkout line. Usually popped onto a keychain or into the wallet, this card was the first membership card most of us ever owned.