Something that used to puzzle me before was how we humans have a tendency to look back and miss the things we’ve lost - even when they are replaced by newer and more convenient ones. Certainly, there’s some irrational sentimentality there, but it may also make logical sense if more is taken into account...
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| Toys of Terror (2020) |
I was born in 1986. So I was still a kid when the first VHS player made it into my home. And lucky for us, so did a video rental store into our neighborhood. My childhood was filled with extra wonder because of it. Going to the store with my family, seeing what was available, making up my mind about what to pick, and putting it over the counter once I did, was something I could look forward to over and over again. Something that also carried on to my teen years and that I could share with my friends as well. It was an experience and it also made memories.
It cost more than streaming services nowadays do and it held fewer options, but in a way, that also added to it. Because even if we try to be as aware and conscious as we can to not fall into the silly traps of human nature, we’re still inclined to value what costs us. And as for having fewer options, that meant we’d have to try and appreciate what little was around. Yet, we wouldn’t really want to go back to that. At least not forced by circumstances (i.e. not having films and series as accessible as we do now).
But a lot of us miss it terribly. And I’ll tell you why I believe that is.
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| The Ring Two (2005) |
Going to a movie rental store wasn’t just about watching a movie. At least not unless you were the type of person who went straight to the point and didn’t stop a second to smell the roses. Similar to how there's a certain magic in watching movies at the movie theater - even while having a luxurious home theater. It was about so much more. Cliché applies, “It’s about the journey, not the destination.”
• You go out. It was one more thing getting you to get up from your chair, put on some nice (or at least presentable) clothes, and make your way to the store.
• You enter another world. The world of movies, with sights, sounds, and even scents specific to it. For a moment, the rest of reality doesn’t matter anymore.
• You browse movies for as long as you need and want to. Unless they’re closing soon, of course. But if not, the nature of it subtly encourages you to take your sweet time. After all, you took the trouble to get there so might as well.
• You also have a selection of snacks to choose from. It’s not just what you remembered to get from the supermarket that week or month that is sitting in your fridge and/or cupboards, nor having to make a trip just for snacks. This complements the shopping nicely (even if you did already have fun snacks waiting at home).
• If you go with others, you may bond over it. Whether it is by discussing and deciding together which movies to rent and which snacks to buy or by splitting the bill. Or something else.
• You are among others, among people you may not know. And given the atmosphere, even if you were the shy and anxious kind, it let you belong without being threatened or having heavy expectations placed upon you.
• You could get recommendations from people. Right there, no problem, initiating conversation with the staff or with the customers rather than consulting your smartphone. Perhaps even end up giving some recommendations yourself.
• You get back home eager to set up the TV room and indulge. Might be considered a little ritual that significantly improves the quality of your life. Even when the movies turn out to be garbage!
And these are all things that, while we can still get them from and with streaming services to some extent or through alternate means, made watching movies something special.
And when you had already watched all the horror movies there and different ones finally came in? Priceless.
You can still recreate a resemblance or approximation of it or of its effects if you so desire, making the acts of watching movies at home something more sacred, but you have to do it yourself because circumstances are no longer doing it for you (especially now, with COVID-19 plaguing us and discouraging us from carefree mingling).
I understand the laments of grownups now, mourning the past.
Which movies do you most vividly remember renting and enjoying?