I can't tell you how much I've spent on DVDs of films and television series I've barely watched since.
One of the first DVDs I ever bought, Blade Runner, still sits unwatched after eight years. Same with Scarface and Reservoir Dogs. When they came out DVDs were great (if expensive) - brilliant picture quality, quite neat looking. Much better than those fat, clunky, chewed up VHS tapes we used to have.
So I guess everyone went out of their way to complete their collections of the "classics" eg films and TV programmes you used to like when you were 12 but haven't seen since. But now I can't understand this need for us to hoard these disks in our living rooms, maybe built on the assumption that one day, somehow, the Shawshank Redemption will not be available to buy anymore, and then what will soceity do!
In a way, in our home, they became a status symbol, so they were carefully arranged in case anyone happened to have a glance at them (even though we have very "new" few visitors to the house, and even less back then!). So my wife would move all of the ones she liked to the front of the shelves (Clueless, Jaws etc) - and basically hid all of my favourites at the back where she hoped I'd forget about them (Back to School, UHF, Don't Look Back, Filth and the Fury, The Future is Unwritten etc). Trouble is, I did forget about them!
Since I've had kids, and since they've been able to operate the DVD player (eg from 6 months old), these old DVDs have really showed their true colours! They jump like crazy - some even on the title screen - and what is more annoying that a jumping DVD! I admit it is due to the finger-prints and scratches on the disk but still! At least videos had a durable case and could be handled without fear of total corruption. They even had a basic lock on them to stop little hands fiddling with the tape!
I resent the fact that I've had to buy at least four copies of Toy Story and three copies of Monsters Inc due to the jumping!
The last DVD I bought myself, King of Kong, cost £4.99 and was pretty great film. But I wish I had rented it because I'll probably never watch it again. So about 10 months ago I decided to stop buying DVDs unless the purchase adhered to a very strict criteria:
- It costs less than £5
- Its a kids film (because they will watch most films ad nauseum - just over the weekend I watched a Nightmare Before Christmas about 8 times)
This worked tremendously, but now christmas is approaching I have to admit I've paid full whack for a couple of new DVDs. I won't say which ones in case either my 3 year old or 5 year old son is reading this (and if you are, boys, I'm buying it on behalf of Father Christmas because he's very busy), but this is the only time I'd justify it. But only for the kids, and I'm making these purchases fully aware that in about 6 weeks the same DVDs will be stacked up in Tesco for £3 a pop!
However, I sometimes have to stop myself in my weaker moments - I nearly purchased the newest Indiana Jones DVD for reasons unclear to even my fragile mind; I was recently tempted by the Dungeons and Dragons complete series for £9 (I resisted) - and I still have a craving for the Mysterious Cities of Gold boxset (still Mysteriously expensive at £30) which I will continue to fight!
Now, as for Blu-Ray, don't get me started.....!
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