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Movies
May 2, 2018 7:53:25 GMT -5
Post by ironhammer on May 2, 2018 7:53:25 GMT -5
Just remembered. Back in the early 2000s, we were members of Blockbuster Video. I think it was the time Netflix entered the picture so they were trying to compete. So, Blockbuster had this new membership deal, for $15 per month (for the first month), you can rent 1 movie at a time and keep it for as long as you want. But you can only have 1 movie out at any time. So, we did the math. We basically rented 1 movie every single night -- 30 total -- for that entire first month so that, in effect, we were able to rent movies at $0.50 per. (It's also possible that it may have even been $10 for that first month, instead of $15.) We were able to watch: Mystic River Master and Commander Intacto Spider The Triplets of Belleville Cold Mountain American Splendor ...and a bunch of others. Blockbuster couldn't really compete with the video upstarts like Netflix. They even tried kiosk rentals at Safeways to compete with Redbox, but eventually, they couldn't compete with them either and they folded. Blockbuster made, in hindsight, a lot of stupid decisions in their competition with Netflix, ultimately sealing their own fate. Back in the late 90's-early 00's, when Netflix was still a struggling mail-order start-up, Blockbuster had a chance to buy Netflix for $50 million. A paltry sum for a then rental giant like Blockbuster, but the offer was turned down. Blockbuster said they didn't believe Netflix was a legitimate competitor. They ignored the subscription model of Netflix for many years. Again in hindsight, it was a dumb move. With subscription, you get a low flat fee and can rent as much movies as you like, compared to being charged for every time you rent a movie for Blockbuster. And of course, there was the "no late fees" thing that Netflix had. By the time Blockbuster finally got the message and got rid of their own late fees, they could not make up for the lost ground. And the final nail-in-the-coffin, video-on-demand. When Netflix switched to online streaming, Blockbuster never managed to follow suit. To be fair, Blockbuster wasn't completely clueless here and did tried to figure out a video-on-demand platform, but it never worked. And in any case, that was too little too late for them. Blockbuster declared bankruptcy in 2010 and Netflix is now sailing to ever higher revenue and profits.
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Movies
May 3, 2018 1:47:56 GMT -5
Post by Wolfgang on May 3, 2018 1:47:56 GMT -5
I watched a brief clip of American Gangster on youtube and...damn!...I think I'm going to have to watch that film again!
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Post by Wolfgang on May 4, 2018 19:48:00 GMT -5
Paddington 2
Outrageous story and ridiculous scenes but I loved it! The makers really put a lot of thought into every scene. Yes, silly at times but this is a story about a talking bear that is allowed to freely walk the streets of London and no one questions the fact that he can talk. Definitely not lazy filmmaking.
The lead actress played by Sally Hawkins was also the lead in The Shape of Water. In Paddington 2, there's a scene where she's immersed in water along with Paddington and, damn if they didn't do this deliberately, but it looked like a scene from The Shape of Water.
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Movies
May 4, 2018 20:32:30 GMT -5
Post by vbprisoner on May 4, 2018 20:32:30 GMT -5
Is this the British version of Ted?
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May 4, 2018 20:33:53 GMT -5
Post by Wolfgang on May 4, 2018 20:33:53 GMT -5
Is this the British version of Ted? I don't know what Ted is.
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May 4, 2018 20:36:57 GMT -5
Post by vbprisoner on May 4, 2018 20:36:57 GMT -5
Is this the British version of Ted? I don't know what Ted is. It's a rated R movie about a talking bear that smokes weed, tries to hump every girl he sees and is Mark Wahlburgs best friend in the movie. It did so well that the made a Ted 2 and Tom Brady was in it because both movies take place in Boston.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on May 4, 2018 20:47:49 GMT -5
Paddington is a decidedly G-rated Ted.
Both Paddington movies are good. Hugh Grant does some Oscar-worthy work in 2.
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Movies
May 4, 2018 21:31:54 GMT -5
Post by gnu2vball on May 4, 2018 21:31:54 GMT -5
Is this the British version of Ted? I don't know what Ted is. Ted and Ted 2 surprised the hell out of me. I can't say I'm proud to have watched them, but there was enough fun to keep me amused. I'll never underestimate a parsnip again.
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Movies
May 4, 2018 22:02:53 GMT -5
Post by ironhammer on May 4, 2018 22:02:53 GMT -5
I don't know what Ted is. Ted and Ted 2 surprised the hell out of me. I can't say I'm proud to have watched them, but there was enough fun to keep me amused. I'll never underestimate a parsnip again. I've seen worst movies. A lot worse.
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Movies
May 6, 2018 1:27:38 GMT -5
vup likes this
Post by Wolfgang on May 6, 2018 1:27:38 GMT -5
Phantom Thread
Daniel Day-Lewis. Great film. I don't know if you lot will like it though. It's a drama but I found many scenes really funny.
"You know I like my asparagus with oil and salt, but you insist on serving it with butter."
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Movies
May 7, 2018 20:04:39 GMT -5
Post by Wolfgang on May 7, 2018 20:04:39 GMT -5
Toni Erdmann
German film. Weird. I don't think you lot will like it. My wife and I thought it was funny in a very uncomfortable way.
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Post by Wolfgang on May 7, 2018 20:49:15 GMT -5
The Big Sick
Turns out, the movie is actually funny. I thought the whole American way of life vs. your parents' way of life seemed tried and done before many many times. I did, however, like all the "just dropping by" dinners. They were funny as heck.
"Are you judging Pakistani's Next Top Model or something?"
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Movies
May 8, 2018 0:24:55 GMT -5
Post by XAsstCoach on May 8, 2018 0:24:55 GMT -5
Downloading Black Panther on iTunes now. Have to get all caught up before I go watch The Avengers: Infinity War when its released here on Friday.
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Movies
May 8, 2018 3:09:55 GMT -5
Post by mikegarrison on May 8, 2018 3:09:55 GMT -5
Downloading Black Panther on iTunes now. Have to get all caught up before I go watch The Avengers: Infinity War when its released here on Friday. I would have to watch about 30 movies, I think, I get "caught up" with the MCU. I've only actually seen a few of them, typically if they were offered on in-flight entertainment while I was traveling.
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Movies
May 8, 2018 5:02:00 GMT -5
Post by XAsstCoach on May 8, 2018 5:02:00 GMT -5
Downloading Black Panther on iTunes now. Have to get all caught up before I go watch The Avengers: Infinity War when its released here on Friday. I would have to watch about 30 movies, I think, I get "caught up" with the MCU. I've only actually seen a few of them, typically if they were offered on in-flight entertainment while I was traveling. The beauty of MCU movies is that they're all tied in somehow, albeit in the rolling credit scenes at first. Wakanda is suppose to play a significant part of the Infinity Stone, so, like to get some background before watching the Avengers. ;o)
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