Hollywood has a long history of scrapping films and TV to save money, but the recent purging of "content" from streamers poses a new kind of threat to our cultural heritage
This is where organizations like The Criterion Collection and Kino Lorber play invaluable services in making these films available in good prints on DVD. If only Hollywood was more eager to follow their example.
Both of these companies are doing the gods' work, as far as I'm concerned, but for all their efforts, I doubt they've together scratched .025% of what's been produced. It drives me mad that I have no access to so many of the films I want to see on any given day unless I miraculously find them in an old DVD container at a thrift store. I'm going to look into buying a VCR next time I'm in the States, as VHS in that region is so much more numerous, and then use that to recover some of what's been lost.
You are right, I very much agree with and enjoyed this post.
And check out Lepa Sela Lepo Gore. It's probably the best war movie ever made. It was filmed at the tail end of the ethnic cleansing that accompanied the dissolution of Yugoslavia. The filmmakers were literally dodging bullets to make it.
Serbs get a bad rap because they usually are the assholes in the equation, but Serbian liberals are fucking awesome. They're feisty, like Texas liberals. I imagine being well armed helps facilitate that.
Here's a news story about Serbian liberals. Their right-wing asshole of a president had protesters tear gassed outside Parliament. So the liberals fucking tear gassed Parliament. One old dude died.
I think this is generally true, but I also have to say that most of the people I know who regularly pirate art can afford it. They just fervently believe it's okay to take whatever isn't yours if you can get away with it.
In justification of myself: I exist on less than the poverty line. I don't think of myself as particularly poor 'cuz I've spent time in Africa and know what real poor is. American poor doesn't begin to compare. But living in the US on less than $15k/yr is a bit of a struggle.
And even still, I'd pay decent money for my media if there was an opportunity to do so.
This is where organizations like The Criterion Collection and Kino Lorber play invaluable services in making these films available in good prints on DVD. If only Hollywood was more eager to follow their example.
Both of these companies are doing the gods' work, as far as I'm concerned, but for all their efforts, I doubt they've together scratched .025% of what's been produced. It drives me mad that I have no access to so many of the films I want to see on any given day unless I miraculously find them in an old DVD container at a thrift store. I'm going to look into buying a VCR next time I'm in the States, as VHS in that region is so much more numerous, and then use that to recover some of what's been lost.
True. I spend a lot of time searching through used DVD bins at street markets and various charity shops these days.
You are right, I very much agree with and enjoyed this post.
And check out Lepa Sela Lepo Gore. It's probably the best war movie ever made. It was filmed at the tail end of the ethnic cleansing that accompanied the dissolution of Yugoslavia. The filmmakers were literally dodging bullets to make it.
Serbs get a bad rap because they usually are the assholes in the equation, but Serbian liberals are fucking awesome. They're feisty, like Texas liberals. I imagine being well armed helps facilitate that.
Here's a news story about Serbian liberals. Their right-wing asshole of a president had protesters tear gassed outside Parliament. So the liberals fucking tear gassed Parliament. One old dude died.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/serbian-opposition-deputies-throw-smoke-grenades-parliament-2025-03-04/
I think this is generally true, but I also have to say that most of the people I know who regularly pirate art can afford it. They just fervently believe it's okay to take whatever isn't yours if you can get away with it.
In justification of myself: I exist on less than the poverty line. I don't think of myself as particularly poor 'cuz I've spent time in Africa and know what real poor is. American poor doesn't begin to compare. But living in the US on less than $15k/yr is a bit of a struggle.
And even still, I'd pay decent money for my media if there was an opportunity to do so.