what's the point in collecting dvd's/bd's?

Jul 10, 2007
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i understand owning maybe a handful of your favorite movies, but i see that people own hundred, if not thousands of movies (VHS, DVD, BD).

i rarely watch a movie more than once. i personally have never bought any movies (the ones i own were gifts or freebies). those i have watched once and are collecting dust.
i have a bb subscription and rent movies.

cost of owning movies add up quick.
100 movies at $10 each (being very generous) is $1000.
do you guys really watch the same movie enough times to warrant owning them?
 

sivart

Golden Member
Oct 20, 2000
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hmmm...I don't have cable or satellite...and only have about 200 DVD / HD DVD / Blu-rays....I've done Netflix in the past it is nice, just nice when you get the mood for a certain type of movie, to just grab it and watch.

Also, depending on the point of life you are in, movies (an art form) can have a different effect on you.
 

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
126
I rent most things, but if I can get a box set of a TV show cheap and I expect to watch it a couple of times it comes close to my per-disc cost for Netflix.

It's also nice to be able to marathon a series without waiting for the rest of a series to arrive from Netflix, and to have a small library of favorite movies on hand for emergency entertainment. "In case of movie hunger, break glass."
 

Rio Rebel

Administrator Emeritus<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
5,194
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I have a collection of about 400 movies and another 100 Blu-Ray and HD-DVD's...certainly not as big as many, but big enough. Unlike you, I do watch movies more than once. And I have a dedicated theater room in the basement, where I often put a movie on for other people to watch. My daughter has seen every recent kid's movie about 20 times each.
 

Panzer Tiger

Member
Dec 15, 2007
46
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Cause some people LIKE to watch movies. We watch extras. We listen to commentary tracks more than once. For me half the fun of owning movies is to be able to expose other people to movies they've never seen or heard of.
 

JackBurton

Lifer
Jul 18, 2000
15,993
14
81
I have about 200 Blu-rays and growing fast. The reason I "collect" them is because first off, I don't like renting a movie that someone looks like they were chewing on. Fvcking annoying! When I buy a movie (new) it is perfect. No scratches, no cracked discs, nothing. Just a perfect disc with no issues. Secondly, when people come over and want to watch a movie, they can just pick one out and watch it immediately. No, "hey, let's go to Blockbuster and wait in line and HOPE they have the movie we're looking for. And HOPEFULLY when we get it it's not too scratched up." My goal is to have a better Blu-ray library than Netflix and Blockbuster, at home. :)

Does it cost more to buy movies? Yes. But it's more convenient and like I said, the discs are perfect every time.
 

Modelworks

Lifer
Feb 22, 2007
16,240
7
76
My brother has probably a couple thousand DVD in his collection. He didn't buy them all at one time so that cost to him was not that great. His wife likes to pick up ones she doesn't have. So if she is shopping and sees a bin full of DVD for $5 she grabs a couple. Over the years it adds up. They have an entire room dedicated to the collection.

There are many movies she has that are no longer available, not at netflix or anywhere else.
 

frostedflakes

Diamond Member
Mar 1, 2005
7,925
1
81
I'm the same way (will generally only watch a movie once or twice), but some people watch them more so it's obviously worth it to them. I personally only bother buying movies I know I'll watch at least a few times.

But I do have quite a few CDs, because I listen to music a lot more than I watch movies. :p
 

erwos

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2005
4,778
0
76
You've described why _you_ shouldn't be collecting them. But some people are serious home theater enthusiasts, and see their collection as being just as important as the equipment they're watching it on.

Besides, a grand isn't really that much in the scheme of things. I think my HT equipment probably cost more like $4k.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
98,733
17,216
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Originally posted by: erwos
You've described why _you_ shouldn't be collecting them. But some people are serious home theater enthusiasts, and see their collection as being just as important as the equipment they're watching it on.

Besides, a grand isn't really that much in the scheme of things. I think my HT equipment probably cost more like $4k.

[put on bragging hat]

The tax I have paid on my ht system is more than 4k.

[take off bragging hat]


PS it's a lie... HT + content would be more than 4k in taxes, but not the system alone.
 

erwos

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2005
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0
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Originally posted by: sdifox
PS it's a lie... HT + content would be more than 4k in taxes, but not the system alone.
I shudder to think how much I've spent with taxes and content added in, especially if we count gaming stuff.
 

kalrith

Diamond Member
Aug 22, 2005
6,628
7
81
I'm like the OP; I watch most movies once or twice. I used to buy movies on DVD (I own about 50-70), but I've found that I watch most of them once. I now only buy movies that I'll definitely watch more than once. I'm glad I own LOTR extended-edition trilogy, The Matrix trilogy, all the Star Wars and Star Trek movies, all the Christmas and Halloween specials we watch, and The Holiday (for the wife, I promise). That being said, it's going to be a bummer once all these movies are available on BD, and I own them on DVD.

To the previous poster who mentioned books as a comparison, try checking out 4 books for the weekend and reading them all. I know that you can generally check out books for longer, but sometimes it takes me longer to read a book than the few weeks I can get them from the library (unless I can recheck the book). There are very few movies that can't be rented on the way home from work and watched that evening. That being said, I do check out a lot of books from the library, and only buy the ones that I really want to be sitting on my bookshelf.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
98,733
17,216
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Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: sdifox
PS it's a lie... HT + content would be more than 4k in taxes, but not the system alone.
I shudder to think how much I've spent with taxes and content added in, especially if we count gaming stuff.


For some reason I kept a tally of how much I paid per dvd... my dvd collection cost more than my home theatre...
 

Riverhound777

Diamond Member
Aug 13, 2003
3,360
61
91
I usually only buy movies I can see myself watching more than once. But i have a few that were just on sale and too good of a deal to pass up. For example I just picked up a Donnie Darko/Silence of the Lambs Blu Ray combo pack for like $20. I probably wont watch them that often, but they are good movies and the price was right.
 

abaez

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2000
7,155
1
81
I only buy movies I really like, and make it a point to watch all of them at least once a year. For example every November 5th I'm always reminded about Guy Fawkes day so I watch v for vendetta.

There's only about 50, but still, it's nice to have my favorite ones available to just pop it in. For those movies you like, but not enough to purchase (like groundhog day or something), there's always Amazon or netflix on demand to watch them.
 

nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
61,047
16,454
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Originally posted by: kalrith
To the previous poster who mentioned books as a comparison, try checking out 4 books for the weekend and reading them all. I know that you can generally check out books for longer, but sometimes it takes me longer to read a book than the few weeks I can get them from the library (unless I can recheck the book). There are very few movies that can't be rented on the way home from work and watched that evening. That being said, I do check out a lot of books from the library, and only buy the ones that I really want to be sitting on my bookshelf.

I was just comparing the two (and the OP didn't respond to the comparison), I have a book collection and a DVD collection ;)
 

unfalliblekrutch

Golden Member
May 2, 2005
1,418
0
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For what it's worth, people simply like collecting things. It's just something that's built into us, it seems. For ages, people have collected stamps, trading cards, rocks, who knows what. It just so happens that DVDs are easily available, decently cheap, and slightly more practical than collecting stamps.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
98,733
17,216
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Originally posted by: pcslookout
There only one film I seen over 15 times. Don't watch stupid hollywood films more than once.

Maybe you should watch a few other movies. It might improve your grammar :laugh:
 

Kaido

Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
Feb 14, 2004
49,992
6,300
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Originally posted by: BlahBlahYouToo
i understand owning maybe a handful of your favorite movies, but i see that people own hundred, if not thousands of movies (VHS, DVD, BD).

i rarely watch a movie more than once. i personally have never bought any movies (the ones i own were gifts or freebies). those i have watched once and are collecting dust.
i have a bb subscription and rent movies.

cost of owning movies add up quick.
100 movies at $10 each (being very generous) is $1000.
do you guys really watch the same movie enough times to warrant owning them?

I wondered about this too when I first got into home theater. It's all about whether it's a hobby to you or not. Personally I like (1) purchasing movies I really enjoy, and (2) using Netflix/Blockbuster/Redbox for just "watching" movies - that way I can watch my favorite movies anytime I want, and rent the rest. OTOH, my brother's father-in-law owns 600+ movies and just loves collecting them. Some people just like doing that. All depends on what your goals are :)