The Last Blockbuster Reviews
Overall, I found this documentary to be rather fun and pleasing as it takes its audiences on a trip down memory lane. Having worked in a Video Ezy store as a teenager, I felt I had a special connection with this feature. It is quite insightful as we discover how video stores came to be and the journey of the major retailer who once had over 9,000 stores, eventually reducing to only one store in the world. Once there was a time when people used to select a film and at the same time have a human connection or even a deep discussion with others. It is certainly a different kind of history lesson and one that all movie lovers should witness.
It's alright, it's a fine watch if your bored and there's nothing to watch, I didn't have any specific issues with it but the reason I don't really like it is the characters feel a bit one damentional, and the story a bit bland, it has good representation but some of it feels quite forced
While it was interesting hearing about the rise and fall of Blockbuster I felt that there were some parts of this movie that were lacking. I felt like it deviated from being about the story of Blockbuster and instead followed customers around the last remaining Blockbuster. It just felt to me that it was unecessary.
Touches on an interesting tale, but fills the time with random B-List scenarios with little connection to the actual story.
Cute and nostalgic for sure, and you feel for the manager, but there are too many problems here, mainly: 1) the movie is far too padded. This could have been a 20 minute youtube video. I REALLY liked the details around the last store, but even the rise and fall of Blockbuster wasn't that interesting. 2) They even allude to this in the film - Blockbuster was a bunch of opportunistic corporate parasites that destroyed ('innovated') everything in their path and they most likely deserved what they got (mom and pop shop excepted). 3) The whole documentary style is becoming a bit passe. The could have spiced it up a tad (think something like 'Oversimplified')
There may be only a couple questions that should've been addressed just to clarify the horizon without any limitation, but besides that curiously needed information this documentary is respectfully thorough towards the subject with faithful nostalgia via captured passions and a sympathetic vibe towards the unveiled struggles of unknown layers. (A-)
If you're old enough to have had the the experience of going to a video store, this will be at least slightly entertaining for you. It's a nice, little piece of nostalgia.
Proof that late '80s-'90s nostalgia can still bring out entertaining stories and memories, The Last Blockbuster looks back on the beloved store with a light hand and illuminates its remaining unit with respect.
This movie is right in my wheelhouse. It touches all the feels. It's kind of ironic to see it on a streaming service. If you grew up going to movie rental stores, you need to see this.
The Last Blockbuster - 8/10. Blockbuster was a part of the majority of people's lives from the 80s till the early 2000s. What was a bastion of movie rentals became a butt of failure jokes. Though, the last remaining store, located in the quiet and friendly Bend, Oregon, holds strong as it offers lasting nostalgia and customer service absent in todays day and age. This documentary travels through the history of the former industry giant, and shows the huge rise and huge fall of the titan franchise. It also follows the story of the last functioning store, and the reason why this store still holds dear to many people not just in Bend, but also worldwide. This documentary is a huge trip for movie goers who loved video stores. As a film lover myself, it was awesome to see how this store is still staying afloat, and the enthusiasm its owner and patrons have towards Blockbuster. The idea of video rentals is a thing of the past, but its something that really can't be replicated through streaming sites like Netflix. Seeing the various interviews of celebs who have an indirect and direct association with the store shows how much an impact the franchise had on people. Even though it chronicles the fall of a company, surprisingly its a very upbeat doc, and its main focus is to help you regain that fascination of going out to rent movies. A fun doc which actually wants you to take a trip to Bend!
A very entertaining history about the beloved Blockbuster franchise. As someone who was born at the very end of Blockbuster's life, I have never experienced going to a blockbuster, which made this documentary weird to watch because it's just people reminiscing about Blockbuster. I was entertained though because I feel like everyone has at least 1 good memory from the store. It was very entertaining and I loved how it was telling the story about the final location left and its struggle to stay open in this day and age. I did find it weird how they just pulled multiple people from the entertainment industry and interviewed them because they felt out of place. I do see what the director was going for but I don't know if it ended up coming through in the final version though. I did love learning the history of Blockbuster and how it is still clinging to life so many years later.
They did so many good things then it feels like a someone from BuzzFeed came over and made this documentary 50% cringe. I'm getting a little tired of these lazy "documentaries" Netflix are making. Interesting topic, poor execution.
Not sure if there will be enough meat in this doc for everyone but I think all viewers above a specific age will be hit with waves of enjoyable nostalgia while watching. 6.5/10
This was so bad I spent the majority of my time yelling at the television. So much of it isn't even accurate. They completely blew the explanation of why Blockbuster crashed and burned. There are some really good in depth podcasts that cover the topic in much more detail. It is so strange that the film makers are trying to evoke nostalgia for Blockbuster of all places. Blockbuster was the crappy replacement that killed the local video store before Netflix dominated the marketplace. In my own life, Blockbuster was only relevant for about a 5 year period. It was 1996 when Blockbuster finally killed off the last local video store in my town, and by 2001 I was already getting DVDs in the mail. The film implies Blockbuster was an integral part of everyone's childhood and it was around so briefly, I just can't even put myself in that mindset.
Sparse on information but brimming with nostalgia, The Last Blockbuster is for those of us who gets something out of tangible variants of physical media compared to its strictly digital counterparts. The community behind the last remaining Blockbuster store have created a loving and dedicated atmosphere to its location of Bend Oregon that will undoubtedly make you root for these guys.
An nostalgic look at the impact of Blockbuster Video in the video rental business and the entertainment business of the 1980's and 1990's. Some celebrity interviews. A look at the individual proprietors of one of the last Blockbuster stores in the world. Not fantastic, but brought back a lot of memories for me. One of the subtle aspects is how the access to home entertainment helped served facilitate the growth of people like Quentin Tarantino. If you are over 40 it is worth checking out. Perhaps, 20 minutes shorter would have been better for the viewer.
The Last Blockbuster is a fun celebration of the moviegoing experience any movie lovers has or should have experienced in their lifetime.
As a fan of blockbuster in the past, I found this to be a feel good cute documentary. It doesn't really tell me anything new or anything I didn't already know but for people close to Blockbuster its a good watch. Lots of interviews and walks down memory lane.