Watching movies is an important part of participating in culture. Every year the film industry goes through a cycle of releasing thrillers, summer action movies, artfully crafted stories and blockbusters. These movies are then seen by hundreds, thousands or millions of people, and some earn many times their budgets, while others bankrupt their creators. Finally, these movies are vetted and selected by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences and the winners of several categories, including Best Picture, and paraded before the world on national television.
The Oscars, or the Academy Awards, is a live awards show, hosted this year by the inimitable Neil Patrick Harris. Scilla Andreen, a filmmaker and co-founder of the company IndieFlix, calls the Oscars “My Superbowl,” according to an interview she had with the Puget Sound Business Journal. A 30-second advertisement cost about 12 percent more per viewer for the Oscars than for the Patriots-Seahawks Super Bowl game.
With all this said, it may come as a surprise that even as everyone becomes better connected and entertainment media becomes more and more versatile we still cannot access every movie that we want to see. Not too long ago this was not too much of a problem. There were stores that carried VHS and DVD copies of many movies, especially new films and the great classics — provided they were not too obscure. However, with the advent of Netflix and its ridiculously low monthly cost of just a few dollars per month for unlimited rentals, restricted only by shipping time, virtually every film is now available to anyone in the U.S. with a valid shipping address.
Getting Netflix by mail has recently been overshadowed and seemingly surpassed by far more popular instant streaming options, as well as seriously downsized local renting options like Redbox. This latest shift away from large, local stores and warehouses full of ready-to-ship DVDs toward highly selective online content and tiny selections at local machines is a turn in the wrong direction. Fortunately, the popularity of internet streaming and vending machines has not forced DVD mailing services like Netflix to declare bankruptcy; it may seem ironic, though, since many local stores like Blockbuster were forced to shut down by those same streaming services. As a consequence, it is still possible to tailor your cinematic experience, even if you don’t have access to many theaters or want to see obscure films without resorting to piracy.
In short, piracy amounts `to theft, but it can be avoided when reasonably-priced alternatives to piracy are available. This is why Netflix’s mailing service is so useful. Its catalogue is massive and allows safe, high-quality and legal viewing of virtually anything, provided it has been out of theaters long enough. Though the urge to illegally stream or download something that would otherwise be impossible to find at a store or Redbox is understandable, it is also very likely these movies can be found by legal means as well.
There have recently been many experiments in distribution of films, as evidenced by the strange series of events surrounding “The Interview,” and the demand for alternative distribution continues to grow as people realize if they try a little they can find a way, legal or not, to watch the movies mentioned at the Oscars each year, but never made it to a local theater.
My advice to you is to do yourself a favor and take the free trial month of Netflix’s mailing service and try watching some of the classics, maybe Best Picture winners from years past, or the other nominees from this year that piqued your interest. At just eight dollars a month there really is no reason not to participate in the ongoing evolution of culture cinema presents.
