Lacking for things to do on the weekends - because once again, COVID - I’ve recently started to rent movies to watch. It’s as if life is one long inescapable plane ride right now, and I’m just looking to fill up the time. This might sound horrible to the ears of the productivity-obsessed, but what the heck do you want from me? Surely I’ve hustled enough during the workweek for my regular job; shouldn’t I get to relax come Saturday and Sunday? Reminder: we’re still in a bloody pandemic!
Anyways, I digress. It’s been a long time since I’ve actually watched movies at home, with Youtube content having so dominated my free viewing hours in recent years. But, there’s only so much automotive-related videos to fill up the time, especially when creators are somewhat restricted from going outside (as we all are), and manufacturer model launches aren’t exactly happening like it used to be. With movie theatres still closed down, where else am I going to watch movies but at home? I think this is a great opportunity to catch up on some movies that I surely must be one of the last to see.
This reminds me of a conversation I had with coworkers a few weeks ago, about how back in the days of our high school and college, we’d pirate the movies we want to watch (surely the statute of limitations have long expired, right?) For me, piracy was due to the lack of money, and the availability of an Internet connection. I had dreams of amassing a big digital collection, and in some ways, I succeeded; but I sure as heck did not pay a cent for it.
Contrast that with the present: when I want to see a film, I simply rent it on streaming platforms (whichever is the cheapest, naturally). I make good money now, and it feels morally wrong to continue bootlegging movies (it is morally wrong). No matter how easily accessible illegal copies are, the expediency of logging onto Amazon and clicking one button cannot be beat. I also no longer have the desire to hoard movies into a collection: I seldom watch a film a second time, so that would just be taking up hard drive space for no good reason. This is why I prefer to rent instead of buy: the initial cost is far lower, and I don’t need to see the particular movie more than once.
I look forward to catching up on many good movies in the coming months.
Room parking lot.