What's your opinion on this?

It's my belief that no true movie lover has any business going into Blockbuster in the first place, since its policies have done so much harm to modern American cinema. By refusing to handle NC-17 movies, Blockbuster has all but destroyed the freedom of American directors to make studio pictures intended for adults. At the same time, by killing the safety valve of the "adult" rating, Blockbuster has contributed to the downward leakage of unsuitable material into the R and PG-13 categories. Thus it corrupts youth while appearing sanctimonious.
-Roger Ebert-


Agree? Disagree?


Think he is blowing it out of proportion? Do you hold any grudges toward Blockbuster?

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You're not hopeless...

No, I dont have any grudges against Blockbuster but I do have a grudge against Censorship.
People should be allowed to watch what they want, when they want . Censorsing movies is like being severed pasta without the sauce.
You still get the meal but its not as tasty or satisfying.
( sorry I was hungry while writing this)

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When I Die Bury Me Upside Down So The World Can Kiss My A$$.

Blockbuster is indeed the Evil Empire casting a giant blue and yellow shadow over all movie lovers...for many reasons, including Ebert's hypothesis above. Yes, I really and truly hate Blockbuster with a passion. Fu*k them to bloody Hell, with extreme prejudice.

Not that I have any strong feelings on the subject.

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

Blockbuster…. Blockbuster who…


"Censorship, like charity, should begin at home, but unlike charity, it should end there."
-- Clare Boothe Luce

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There are pros and cons with my local Blockbuster.

Pros

- Very good selection of new releases
- A lot of new releases are guranteed rentals


Cons

- The horror is basically non-existant
- The sell off older titles that should be getting rented a lot (they don't even have Silence of the Lambs)

Now I just buy movies without renting them.

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"You will taste man flesh!" - Saruman

See, the ironic thing is that the only alternative to allowing Blockbuster to exclude NC-17 rated movies from its shelf is to tell them they have to; which, oddly enough, is a real violation of rights. In a sense, THAT is the censorship, as you are muffling a private business's voice...you're telilng them they cannot run their business the way they want to. You have to allow them the choice...it's the only fair option.

Now, you may not agree with their choice, but that's another matter.

That said, boycotting Blockbuster is nonsense. Disliking one of their policies (which has a damn-near insignificant effect, overall) is hardly cause to shun the entire thing. It's not as if we'd be better off without them; to get rid of the entire chain would STILL have people without their beloved "in-depth look at human sexuality" documentaries...and they'd be without all the other stuff, too. Virtually nothing is to be gained from doing away with Blockbuster. End of story.

We don't have that problem over here..............different censorship rules................


VideoEasy has a bigger selection than Blockbuster over here in my part of the world................

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~ Nikki ~

"I'm your hell, I'm your dream.......I'm nothing in between.......You know you wouldn't want it any other way".........

"Listen, when I slap you, you'll take it and like it"..........Humphrey Bogart..........Maltese Falcon.......

Graze on my lips and if those hills be dry, stray lower, where the pleasant fountains lie...........William Shakespeare.......

I totally agree with Yoda on this. Blockbuster is under no obligation to us to have uncencored video rentals, it would be different if the government was forcing Blockbuster to edit the films. Since they are a part of the private sector, they can do what they want, unless the courts force them to stop.

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"Today, war is too important to be left to politicians. They have neither the time, the training, nor the inclination for strategic thought. I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids."

To tell you the truth I dont have a grudge against blockbuster cause I never go to Blockbuster.
I hire at VideoEzy.

So you think it is alright to edit someone's film without their permission?


Just a question.


What if you made a movie, and then Blockbuster decided to cut and chop essential parts to the movie, what then?


It's pointles to even watch Y Tu Mama Tambien from them, as the scenes cut are so obviously missing, the story lacks what made it interesting in the first place.

I wasnt aware that Blockbuster edits or trim movies as I never go there, but if Blockbuster does this Then that sucks bigtime!
Do all Blockbusters around the world do the same thing?

NO WAY!!!!!!!!!

They should have permission to edit the films i mean if they wana show Titantic to a little kid but with out the nudity I can understand that, so it does have its uses. Overall I'm against it but I understand where they coming from and if they got permission not much you can do. But I think it should be limited to certain rental places because I shouldn't have to look very hard to see an uncensored version of A Clockwork Orange or whatever they movie may be.



www.moviejustice.com - Could it be this sites equal?

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Member since Fall 2002
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No I don't think it's right. But right now, no court has forced them to stop doing it. If they win their case against Scorsese and Co. then they will have permission of sorts. I don't know, I think I'll keep renting from Hollywood Video.

It's funny that you act as if it was Blockbuster itself that cut scenes from that movie, it's funny because you're wrong. You see, the production company, the director, and mainly the distributor edited the film so that it could dodge the NC-17 rating and be avaliable for rent at Blockbuster video's and other rental shops that hold the same policy. Blockbuster is not some evil conglomerate, at least not in the aspects described by Ebert and it's also not the only way that these filmmakers can make money. It was the artist's decision to cut these scenes pout from the film in order to milk the rental sales for all they're worth, and I personally won't be renting it, not because "Blockbuster censored it", but because the filmmaker lacked the integrity to keep his art whole.

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"We are all worms, but I do believe I am a glow-worm."
--Winston Churchill

Exactly!!

As long as they don't edit the film when they send it to DVD wholesale.

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If more people watch hockey it will be on TV more.

You are 100% correct. A private business can do whatever it pleases. That is not censorship; it is personal choice.

When the gov't starts telling businesses- no matter how large- that they cannot have smoking on their premises, then the gov't has gone too far. It is a very simple foundation of common sense and basic rights.

Wasn’t there a company in Utah editing nudity, profanity, and violence out of films without permission? Seems like the last thing I read about it they were claiming first amendment rights to freedom of speech as an excuse for violating copyright laws… I know one of the movies they edited was The Princess Bride… they replaced the swords with Star Wars type light sabers…

No Yoda it is not the end of the story. Boycotting is always the thing to do if you do not agree with a company. No it problably will not put them out of business but if the boycotter is vocal and lets the company know why perhaps change will come. But perhaps not. There are a lot of things about BLOCKBUSTER I do not like. They were trying to develop in the Everglades a while back among other things. And I don't know how to put this more strongly Companies don't need more rights the people who run them and work for them already have them. And yes I do own a buisness.

Would we be better with out them, I frankly cannot say but in my opinion I think we would be. I remeber all the mom n pop video stores. And yes there still a few but there used to be many, many more. Eliminating other voices from the market by unfair and unethical buisness practices is wrong.