Gone with the wind

Last Saturday my local video shop closed down.

While I don't claim to be one of this country's leading digerati, I figured this was inevitable given the advent of Foxtel iQ, Netflix, Tivo, Bigpond movies, HDTV, YouTube and iTunes.

Along with the local cinema, how many more competitive beatings could the local video franchise survive?

However, there is still an overwhelming sense of loss and inconvenience as I question the modern movie alternatives to the local video store.

I have been a member of Bigpond movies for over a year - you order the DVD online and a few days later it shows up in the post. When you have finished with it, you send it back. Nobody I know likes Telstra, but the ability to rent DVDs and never have to worry about late fees is a winner.

However, the postal delivery almost never coincides with my instant decision to grab movies. You have to keep that movie in the back of your mind until it shows up in the mailbox.

Also, the range of movies just isn't available yet and you still have to remember to post them back. I think it's important to support the local film industry so I don't mind paying for movies; I just want to get them when I want them.

So I am an iTunes convert. Then I worry about broadband download costs and how cost effective it works out to be in the end. And no matter how fast your connection, you still have to wait for it to download.

Then there is the Foxtel iQ that I set to record all my favourite TV series. There's also the option of Box Office for movies, but they're never new releases.

"I just want to watch a movie and it's all getting too hard."

Then the cable stopped working and after numerous phone calls, a technician came out, replaced the box and there went all our recorded TV shows.

Finally, call me old-fashioned, but I like watching movies on the TV screen. But connecting the laptop using an HDMI cable never seems to work, so that means generally watching a movie in bed, with no decent surround sound. Plus, as soon as I lie down, I am dangerously close to sleep and often don't see more than thefirst 10 minutes.

I just want to watch a movie and it's all getting too hard.

Going to the local video store was more than just something to do when bored or suffering from the flu. It had become a family ritual that we all looked forward to. It didn't just include the video, but also a pizza and a bottle of red.

There we would be, kids running up and down the different aisles choosing feverishly, my partner at the chick flicks and, of course, me in the action section, but it worked. We all walked out within five minutes, with a film in arm to suit everyone.

Surfing the web is still, and perhaps will be for the perceivable future, a solitary occupation, and it lacks the human interaction that you want at the end of a busy week.

The Friday night movie night has now changed as the digital world overtakes the casual stop off on the way home from work. Along with the local video store, it has gone with the wind.

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