I have nice memories of attending the local Blockbuster. It was a rare occasion for us since my family wasn't particularly well-off. I remember warmer evenings and having the family drive down to the store, the excitement I had knowing I could roam through its library and find something, within reason that my family would allow, a film or two to rent over the the weekend. I remember its isles towered above me, with rows and rows of genres and films I could not wait to be able to check out as screens around would air the latest trailers. Limited by my age and what I was allowed to watch over it might be too scary or perhaps too violent, I still roamed through everything the store had to offer. The excitement of picking something up, taking it home and seeing the trailers for upcoming films that I would then later look out for upon future visits. This isn't to forget the incredibly cool gaming section of the store, showing the latest hits and systems that I never could have -- I never did rent a game from Blockbuster, but I'm probably glad I didn't over fears I wouldn't have finished the game before having to return it.
Closer to the carpet flooring than I was the ceiling, Blockbuster had this incredibly fun aura to it. One that I haven't really felt since. A feeling that the world was so much larger than it really was, perhaps an outcome of the world before smartphones and the Internet that bridged together nations and cultures. Blockbuster, at its time, was a place to discover more of the world. As the Internet did begin to take off a bit more and affordable DVD sales began to swallow the rental services whole, Blockbuster would of course fall behind the times, slowly fading out of relevance and struggling to keep the rental money flowing. I remember the nearby store closing, I felt sad that we couldn't go to it again, and I never really did feel that excitement return as other stores felt more soulless and juggled various other mediums in the new wave of trendy pop and rap music that they'd boom throughout the stores like a nightclub.
When I first heard that Netflix would be making a show based on Blockbuster I was pretty curious about it. Of course it was to be filled with nostalgia bait, but I also found it strange that the corporation that contributed to its death would feel the need to tell its story. Well, to no surprise whatsoever, Netflix failed to do so. Sadly, Blockbuster doesn't really manage to tell much of a story regarding what it was and how one store continues to function in the world. Instead, it tries to balance today's weird political sphere and less on the world of movies that existed before.
Blockbuster
To give this series the title of Blockbuster is strange in the first place. The Blockbuster side of things seems to have no real consequence or depth within the show's episodes, of which don't really have much connection to the store either. It's an odd show that focuses on the workers of the store and their own personal struggles within life rather than anything other. And of course, in Netflix's typical fashion, it's incredibly now in the sense that these characters are shallow, uninteresting, and their personalities don't really extend beyond sexuality. Its characters are written under the assumption of what someone believes a millenial would act like, with the show's title being something a millenial would recognise. I didn't really expect anything from the show when I did see it had been released, nor was I particularly interested in finding out, however my curiosity got the best of me having seen little to no discussion of the show; something that usually is rare given the Internet's very reactionary nature these days, people either complain and make something popular, or something is so bad that people can't help but warn others of it.
I don't even know what I could say about the show as a result. I would definitely not say it's as funny as it believes it is, but in terms of production quality it isn't as bad as it could be. The directing style is pretty simple, to say there's much cinematography would be a stretch given its format. Plenty of over the shoulder perspectives during dialogue, with a set that seems modern and relatively believable. Which is good given the show tells the story of the last remaining Blockbuster store; though it doesn't really say anything about Blockbuster at all. Curious as to where it might be heading, I continued to watch it in the event that a big event might take place, something that might be more ficitonal but perhaps give this Blockbuster store some story and weight to it. Nothing really happened. I somewhat expected the show to have this struggle within it, one in which passion for film would be displayed by its owner and workers, to the point in which modern day's dismissal of rental services would be witnessed, but faced.
Even in regards to its more comedic moments, I assumed there would be more awareness of what Blockbuster is and was, perhaps with some jokes to refer to the strange types of characters that may find themselves roaming through its isles despite the Internet's available services and options. Perhaps comedic moments that looked upon the insanity that someone would continue to fund such a store in this economy, and the types of personalities necessary to accept that struggle. There was none of this, however. Its characters seem to not really have much interest in what's going on there at all, and the owner of the store does refer to the financial struggles every so often, but there isn't any substance to it. We don't really see these struggles, we have a line of dialogue regarding how it's difficult to pay multiple people's full-time salaries followed by another scene in which a worker discusses a gay date they have coming up. This contrast just makes the whole show seem lost. Where the Blockbuster title itself isn't necessary, and neither is any context regarding where they work. Though sometimes we get the odd film reference, but it's very entry level and still feels out of place.
While I have fond memories of the actual Blockbuster store and the magic it provided to me in my youth, I wouldn't even say I'm disappointed in this show. I simply don't care that it exists. It's so far detached from the name it uses that nothing can really compare the two. I am more curious as to who greenlit the show, and who wrote it thinking these stories would fall under its branding. I do believe it would have been better to actually display the reality of the final location, to throw in some dark humour regarding the struggles it faces and show empathy to the world of dedicated workers that might actually have passion in protecting its legacy. Little difficulties the team must overcome every so often, ways in which the store has innovated to maintain enough income to keep the rentals flowing and doors opening each day. Though a greater conspiracy might be that Netflix intentionally butchered this name as to avoid any potential negativity one might have for the platform having contributed to its demise.
It seems the show is nothing more than nostalgia bait, weirdly thrown together with stereotypes and little substance. Though it could still be much, much worse.
