Hollywood Video broke onto the video rental scene in 1988 with its first store in Portland, Oregon. Sure it started out as one lone store - but today it boasts over 1,800 in its ever-growing chain. Their motto is Hollywood Star Treatment - and the translation of that is this – each customer should be treated like a star. Sure, that sounds like a good idea but it rarely happens. At best you’ll be greeted with a smile.

My local Hollywood Video is always clean, well stocked with movie munchies and has a staff of movie addicts. I can always count on someone there to recommend a good movie or steer me clear of the ones that are complete bombs. Now, that doesn’t mean that every employee is going to go the extra mile for you – some are just there for a paycheck while others really really love their job [and it shows].

The selection of film genres is pretty extensive; horror, science fiction, historical and documentaries, animation, comedy, drama, foreign, concerts and stand up comedy, sports, kids films and new releases. Sorry guys, no adult flicks here. The hardest “hard core” you will find will be the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition on DVD. My Hollywood Video has a huge selection of wrestling [WWF, WCW and ECW], Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pay Per View sporting events – although 99% are only on VHS.

Most locations are brightly lit and carry the same theme – movies! Clerks are subjected to wearing vests and ties – and trust me – those vests are loud. My location has one unisex bathroom located in the rear of the store, it’s almost always spotless but it also doubles as a storage room. Sorry, I would be too worried about people stealing things if I were the manager.

Hollywood Video adapted a five-day rental period in 1998 to compete with other video rental chains. They also offer a $1.00 credit if you return a new release the next day. My local store just started a new promotion – if a new release isn’t in stock you can get a free voucher for that film to be used on your next visit. Sounds like a good deal doesn’t it? Guess again. You get a print out voucher that comes with a perforated slice down the middle – don’t tear it or it becomes void. Don’t lose the voucher – there’s no note of it on your file. Make sure you state your preference of VHS or DVD – or you will automatically get VHS.

Hours

Hollywood Video prides itself on being open everyday of the year. Christmas, Easter and even New Years – the hard working, funky vested clerks are there to serve you. My store hours are 10 a.m. to midnight everyday however some of the ones in Los Angeles are open until 2 a.m. on the weekends.

At Midnight You Turn Into A Pumpkin

All movies are due back by midnight of the due date. What most people don’t know is this – if you rented a movie on Monday and it is due back Friday and you forget or get sidetracked and return it Saturday you are still charged $3.79. It is not a per day fee but rather a five day block of time – so in essence you could keep it for another four days, return it and only owe $3.79. If this seems confusing ask a clerk to explain it to you.

Kid Rentals

Be sure to check out the Kid Zone – they have some fantastic rentals that are free when you rent another movie [any movie, DVD or VHS]. I’ve never been charged a late fee for any of the free kids movies if they were returned late but that might just be a little glitch in my stores computer.

New Releases

One of my biggest complaints with Hollywood Video is the rotation of new release films. I can recall at least five films that were classified as “new releases” for more than six months. Pleasantville, Blast From the Past, Deuce Bigalow, American History X and Kiss the Girls being just a few. Maybe they want to squeeze all the money they can out of each film by keeping it on the new release wall but to me it just makes the section look old and repetitive.

So How Much Does All This Cost?

Membership is free – sort of. You have to provide the usual information when you apply; drivers license or state issued photo identification card, any of the following forms of identification: credit card [MasterCard, Visa, American Express or Discover], utility bill, phone bill or car registration that must match the information on the membership application. I used my bank debit card with a MasterCard logo on it and had no trouble at all signing up.

You get a laminated video rental card at the time of your membership approval that you have to show when you rent anything at the store. If you forget your card you can give them your phone number and present your drivers license. Since I rent at least three times a week everyone knows me, my phone number and I rarely have to show any I.D. On the back of the card is the address and phone number of the store you belong to, this comes in handy if you have to call to see when movies are due back.

If you have a movie that is over 10 days overdue you will get an automated phone message from Hollywood Video reminding you that you have films out. Some “other” rental establishments would rather you forget so they can rack up the hefty overdue fees. Be careful – if you let them go too long they will charge your credit card.

Other Rental Items

DVD and VHS players can be rented at most locations. In most cases a large deposit is required to take these out of the store so be prepared. I’ve seen a few places that rent Sony Playstation and Dreamcast game units – but again – the deposit on it can be significant. These rentals are also for five days but some stores may limit the amount of games you can rent. Most DVD and VSH players [not recorders] are $9.99 plus the deposit. Game decks [Playstation, Dreamcast PS2] are $14.99 plus a deposit.

Each store may vary on what they rent, the rental period and the limitations of the rental so be sure to ask all the questions before you sign on the dotted line.

Goodies

Hollywood Video sells an extensive and overpriced selection of movie munchies including the staples – microwave popcorn, chocolates, malted milk balls and chocolate covered raisins. Right now they are offering an oversized glow in the dark popcorn bowl for free with a purchase of 10 bags of their microwave popcorn. Their own brand of microwave popcorn is made by a major popcorn company and tastes exactly like the stuff you buy at the grocery store.

They do sell seasonal candies like Halloween candy and Christmas marshmallow trees. For some reason Hollywood Video is big on WCW wrestling items as well.

Gift Certificates

Several online reward programs offered Hollywood video gift certificates and ordered a ton of them. They are nicely packaged in booklets of 5, each worth $1.00 each. Very nice to give as gifts and available all year around for the perfect last minute gift.

Stuff To Buy

Hollywood Video also has a wide variety of video game books – some as low as $3.99 when they are on sale. They do sell used VSH and DVD films but the selection is usually picked through and random. I have purchased several VSH movies used from them and have had no trouble at all with the play back. You do get a guarantee with the used films – however each store has a different policy for these sales.

The Bad Stuff

On a few occasions I’ve had to go head to head with some of the employees about the status of my account. If you have late fees, overdue movies or anything wrong with your account you get “red flagged”. If your account is flagged then a manager has to override it to get the rental completed. A few months ago I almost swore off Hollywood Video completely when I was told that I had a video out for 53 days. Sorry, I can be lazy and forgetful but not that lazy and forgetful. It seems there was an issue with the tape and it wasn’t found when the store did it’s inventory and since I was the last person to rent it the computer assumed that I still had the video tape. The manager knows me – I am there renting, dropping off tapes or buying junk food all the time. She cleared up the issue in the computer and informed me two weeks later that the tape was found – misplaced in the wrong section and skipped over during the inventory process. Still, this upset me and got me to wondering. If they can’t accurately inventory movies – what else are they screwing up?

Useless Trivia

Did you know that Hollywood Video is the proud parent of Reel.com? That’s right; Hollywood Video took ownership in late 1998 in hopes of cornering the online movie purchasing market.

So there you have it. If you aren’t a member or are dissatisfied with your current video rental store I urge you to give them a try. While no store is perfect they do bend over backwards to “make things right” if there’s trouble. Until someone offers me door-to-door service I’ll stick with Hollywood Video.

Thanks for stopping by… ^V^ Freak ^V^



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