Ignorance at Blockbuster

Tenuvil · Post by **Tenuvil** » March 8, 2005, 11:24 pm

Here in Jesusland, rock and roll leads to worshipping teh Debil. Or so they would have you believe at Blockbuster.

This past weekend I went into my local Blockbuster, and asked if they had Some Kind of Monster, the Metallica documentary. The guy behind the counter (not the manager) didn't even bother to search on the system, just said, "Nope, and we aren't about to carry that either." I asked for the manager and the kid said he'd be back tomorrow.

I went back and spoke to the manager and he said, "It's my store's policy to not stock harmful movies."

"What is a harmful movie?" I asked.

"A movie about those freak metal guys, for one."

I wandered around the new releases section and found about a dozen clearly Satanic themed grade-B movies and dropped them on the counter. "Are these harmful movies?"

No response. He just stared at me.

"Tell you what, you ignorant narrowminded redneck piece of crap, here's my Blockbuster card. I won't need it any more. Can I have your full name and store number for when I call the Blockbuster corporate affairs hotline and tell them what kind of store you're running here?"

Again no response. He just turned around and fiddled with things.

We did find this movie on Netflix so it looks like it's time to sign on to that service. I am curious, however, if anybody's local Blockbuster has this in stock.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » March 8, 2005, 11:30 pm

Nice work Tenuvil!

Aslanna · Post by **Aslanna** » March 9, 2005, 12:08 am

Yes.. .Blockbuster sucks
But so does Metallica
Balance in the end.

nobody · Post by **nobody** » March 9, 2005, 1:23 am

you should try living in Utah, Ten. Espescially "happy valley"!

blockbuster sucks, i don't go there. btw, the promotion about no more late fees is a scam. if you are more than a week or two late you just bought the movie.

Zamtuk · Post by **Zamtuk** » March 9, 2005, 1:41 am

I would hardly call that no late fee thing a scam. I mean really, what the fuck do you expect to happen when a place banishes all late fees? I have heard that argument and it is retarded. Anyone that keeps a movie over a week past the due date deserves to be charged full price. And yes, to those wondering, I am guilty of keeping movies that long, and if I am paying 25 dollars for a late fee i better have fucking bought it.

nobody · Post by **nobody** » March 9, 2005, 1:52 am

i like the way hollywood video does it. if it's late they dont charge you 25, they just rent it out to you for another week and charge you for that. of course if you are more than 2 or 3 weeks late it's another story.

Keverian FireCry · Post by **Keverian FireCry** » March 9, 2005, 2:56 am

Yes.. .Blockbuster sucks
But so does Metallica
Balance in the end.

Well, I've seen the documentary and I am in no way a fan of Metallica or any music related to metal, but It was a very good documentary, and I recommend it for anyone who enjoys a documentary every once and a while.

It's absolutely absurd that they didn't carry that movie. I didn't feel it glorified them in anyway. It could really be a story of any band that gains fame and has to struggle to retain friendship and sanity in that environment of sex, drugs, and rock and roll.

If anything makes people want do bad things it's ignorant peices of shit like that owner. I bet he's one of the fuckheads who represents those "moral values" that won Bush his reelection...and I bet every violent, explosion-filled action movie was available to rent...yet not a movie about rock and roll, cause that's sinful.

a_guide · Post by **a_guide** » March 9, 2005, 3:18 am

nobody wrote:i like the way hollywood video does it. if it's late they dont charge you 25, they just rent it out to you for another week and charge you for that. of course if you are more than 2 or 3 weeks late it's another story.

Umm.... thats the same thing Blockbuster did, the late fee equaled the cost of another rental period and if it wasn't back by the end of that period you had another one along with another charge.

Ebumar · Post by **Ebumar** » March 9, 2005, 6:44 am

BTW - blockbuster may charge you for the movie, but if you bring it back, you aren't buying it now are you? Thx no late fees.

Chidoro · Post by **Chidoro** » March 9, 2005, 11:57 am

I hate blockbuster for running mom and pop video stores out of town. Used to be cool to actually talk to someone that's actually a human being as opposed to the 15 year old bots running around there. And new movies costing the same as old movies (just get more days) was freaking ridiculous.

Wife signed us up for Netflix about 3 months ago. It's a freaking flawless service and they actually have all of the hard to find stuff (documentaries and such).

Voronwë · Post by **Voronwë** » March 9, 2005, 12:43 pm

Netflix

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » March 9, 2005, 12:44 pm

Newsgroupflix

Siji · Post by **Siji** » March 9, 2005, 1:08 pm

NetFlix is great, it really is. My only gripe about it was that when I go to Blockbuster I tend to rent like 7+ movies at a time. The 3 every 4 days or so didn't catch my movie fix enough.

I also didn't like how the USPS kept losing movies either returning or receiving. I never had to pay for one, but I kept waiting for it to happen.

If you really said that to the Blockbuster guy, kudos! Wish I'd have been there for that to see it. Anyone here actually work at a Blockbuster to know if the manager(s) actually specify what movies they get? I'd think corporate would dictate that sort of thing and just send the movies the stores are to carry.

Aslanna · Post by **Aslanna** » March 9, 2005, 1:11 pm

I'm sure it's a fine piece of documentary filmmaking. Might even be more factual than a Michael Moore film. I just saw at as a haiku opportunity.

Farrel · Post by **Farrel** » March 9, 2005, 1:29 pm

I 'converted' to movie gallery this past week for a reason similiar to this...well not really. but the blockbuster (the only one in this college-university town) isnt corporate-owned, which means we get retro-late fees, no guaranteed-to-be-theres, and a bunch of other the-promos-dont-mean-shit-here mess. blockbuster does give my roomates and I free posters though, so I guess theres more of that balance anna was talkin about.

Tenuvil · Post by **Tenuvil** » March 9, 2005, 2:01 pm

Siji wrote:If you really said that to the Blockbuster guy, kudos! Wish I'd have been there for that to see it. Anyone here actually work at a Blockbuster to know if the manager(s) actually specify what movies they get? I'd think corporate would dictate that sort of thing and just send the movies the stores are to carry.

I *really* said that to the Blockbuster guy...even self edited saying "crap" instead of "shit". From what I gathered in talking with the lackey managers have discretion in what movies they stock.

Tenuvil · Post by **Tenuvil** » March 9, 2005, 2:01 pm

Aslanna wrote:I'm sure it's a fine piece of documentary filmmaking. Might even be more factual than a Michael Moore film. I just saw at as a haiku opportunity.

And a fine haiku it was!

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » March 9, 2005, 10:09 pm

Chidoro wrote:I hate blockbuster for running mom and pop video stores out of town. Used to be cool to actually talk to someone that's actually a human being as opposed to the 15 year old bots running around there. And new movies costing the same as old movies (just get more days) was freaking ridiculous.

Wife signed us up for Netflix about 3 months ago. It's a freaking flawless service and they actually have all of the hard to find stuff (documentaries and such).

I basically grew up working in one of those Mom & Pop stores that was run out of business due to Blockbuster and Hollywood Video opening "dueling" stores on opposite sides of a street. We catered primarilly to a neighborhood with our videos and were a dual-purpose store having Comics & Sports Cards as well. The video stores drained our other business as well since it convinced people that they could go a little bit further than they were previously going in order to get what they wanted. Once the store went under I swore I would not step foot in either of the chain-stores that opened. Many years later, I broke down and went to Blockbuster and rented some of the movies that you could have back as late as noon on the due date. I got late fees for movies I dropped off at 10am the morning they were due, and they wouldn't waive the late fee unless I was able to prove what time I dropped it in the box as it was not checked in until 1pm.

I have been a very happy Netflix customer ever since. I have only had one movie lost in the mail, and I have the 5 movie at a time subscription. I usually watch each of the movies the day I get them, and they are in the mail going back the next day. Two days later my new movie shows up. I found that with 5, I can almost always have movies unless I can't sleep and watch more than I normally would in a night.

The selection is awesome. It still suprises me about some of the things I can find there. You may have a bit of a wait-time on some titles, but I think that I only have 7 or so that I may have to wait on in my queue of almost 450 movies.

Shashonna · Post by **Shashonna** » March 10, 2005, 5:54 pm

I was a manager for Blockbuster for 3 years. I had fun. Ive had customers act like that. Heres your card I dont want it. Wed shrug and go thanks one less call to make. Or laugh like that card means anything

We were a lazy blockbuster less customers the better the more we drove away meant the more time Me and my staff could goof off. I miss those carefree days

But yeah Ive been on both sides too. I dont know why they woldnt have that Metallca DVD. Might be the area or whatever. Usually if its a coproate store we just get stuff we dont have a choice, but a better response to your Why dont you carry it would have been My ol standard,..... I dont know, Ill see if I can find out and let you know next time your in. It satisfied them and I never had to actually find out we never carried a lot of Music Movies like that, they didnt seem to rent enough for us to bother. This was like almost 6 years ago since I worked there

nobody · Post by **nobody** » March 10, 2005, 6:42 pm

edited for gramatical errors )

Kylere · Post by **Kylere** » March 10, 2005, 8:32 pm

Fuck Metallica, lame ass posterbitches of the RIAA.