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The answer to the inevitable question, “where have all the video stores gone?” is: crushed by Netflix, everyone.

Okay, fine. Maybe we shouldn’t create a second Remembrance Day. But it’s difficult to explain  to those who grew up in the post-90s digital age just what the classic video store meant to Generations X, Y and a bit of Z. I hate to use the phrase “you  won’t understand, you weren’t  there,” but that may just be the case. It’s easy to forget  that before  Torrents, before Limewire, before Kazaa,  Bearshare, Morpheus and Napster (remember when those sites  were new? God, I feel old), there was a legitimate way to  satisfy  your movie fix, at a hangout that pulled double-duty as a  haven for young people  seeking shelter from the harsher pressures of real life. Going on the record as a social reject,  it may surprise many of you to learn that once upon a time,  going to Jumbo Video  to check  out the new releases used to  qualify as solid night out – even on a Friday.  Seriously. You could tell your friends at school on Monday about the nine dollars you spent renting  1995′s  Mortal Kombat for the umpteenth time  and no one would bat an eyelash. Sigh…  Those were the days.

Changing times

But times are different now. On paper, the decline of the  video store was something that we all should have seen coming. Pay-per-view services, which allowed consumers to order entertainment without having to leave the comfort of their own home, slowly paved the way for on-demand video services, capitalizing on people’s general dislike of encountering other humans in  social settings. From a cost standpoint, there was just no way the video store could compete, especially  considering that in the minds  of most, “customer service” at a rental store amounts to little more than “recommend me something.” And  even then, the service angle only applies when a consumer is willing to pay for the product at all.  Illegal downloading has plagued the industry for years, accelerating its decline and bringing  on increasingly desperate attempts by companies trying  to remain competitive (remember Blockbuster Video’s  No Late Fees promotion?).  The combination of  torrenting plus increasingly efficient ways of getting the product to the consumer has  put much stress on the business, and now Netflix seems well on its way to riddng the world of  our pesky, beloved, neighborhood video stores forever…

Kidding!

An old hope

Look, before I end up writing an obituary for the  video rental industry, it’s probably worth noting that Toronto has several  stores still surviving and thriving in  their cozy niches. How do I know? Because  we at Toronto Film Scene have been keeping tabs on the  plucky stalwarts hidden throughout Toronto in our Toronto for Rent column, so in case you were worried for a  moment this may be indeed the end of an era, let us remind ourselves that video rentals are not dead  (at least not here). No, it would probably be more accurate to say that physical  DVDs and the  stores that sell them are becoming more and more the cinematic equivalent to vinyl records; sure, they’re rarer and take up more space, but there will always be the niche audience that appreciates the value of a physical object in your hands, and the nostalgia of an earlier, more carefree time when your film  collection was something to be displayed proudly in your living room as opposed to on your computer screen. As long as those film fans exist, there will alway be video stores to serve them, as well as clerks ready and willing to debate which among  White Zombie or I Walked with a Zombie truly  popularized the genre. And for what it’s worth, I’ve yet to find Mortal Kombat anywhere on Netflix, so there’s that too. Best. Movie. Ever.

Toronto Film Scene is turning up the heat for the month of July and looking at Pornography as a Legitimate Art Form. Don’t miss our scintillating coverage on everything from soft to hard core films, including a look at the Feminist Porn awards, what makes a truly classic porno, erotica translated from book to screen and the golden age of geek porn.

More from Toronto Film Scene

• Porn and horror: exploring our relationship to sex and violence on the big screen
• Toronto For Rent: The Little Video Shop  
• Toronto For Rent: The Film Buff

• Bio
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Noam Kaufman

Noam Kaufman is a cinephile by day, concert-goer by night. He cherishes doumentaries and foreign films, which enable him to indulge his dual love of reading and watching simultaneously. If he isn’t at a concert hall or movie theater, you might be able to find him at York University, where he occasionally moonlights as a student.

Latest posts by Noam Kaufman (see all)

• Toronto For Rent: where have all the video stores gone? – July 25, 2012
• Movies with staying power: a look at what makes a classic porn – July 16, 2012
• Oscar-nominated shorts worth revisiting – May 30, 2012