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Dennis Doros (of Milestone) posted on Facebook that Netflix has declined to stock their latest release, The Word Is Out, unless an unspecified number of Netflix members "save" the film to their queues. Everyone here is thus encouraged to do so.

I fear this is just the tip of the iceberg. In addition to Netflix's sluggishness in acquiring recent Criterions, as noted above, they're now failing to add catalog titles from the major studios, including the most recent Hammer set from Sony and Universal's Barbara Stanwyck set, which came out today. The Stanwyck films aren't even in their database yet, so you can't even save them to your queue to indicate interest. There are so few catalog titles coming out these days, it's ridiculous that Netflix has chosen to cut that tiny little segment of its budget.

Combine that with the fact that many people, like Matt and myself, no longer have serious brick and mortar stores in our towns (or cities!), and you have a perfect storm of suckiness. Much as I'd like to, I can't afford to buy every interesting catalog title that comes out. I'm starting to feel as if all the big media corporations are conspiring to make me figure out how to download movies illegally.

Perkins Cobb wrote:Dennis Doros (of Milestone) posted on Facebook that Netflix has declined to stock their latest release, The Word Is Out, unless an unspecified number of Netflix members "save" the film to their queues. Everyone here is thus encouraged to do so.

Done. Thanks for the heads up.

Perhaps a mass jump to Classic Flix would send a message - I've never heard of anyone who actually uses their service, though, and it couldn't possibly replace Netflix's wide selection.

Svevan wrote:Perhaps a mass jump to Classic Flix would send a message - I've never heard of anyone who actually uses their service, though, and it couldn't possibly replace Netflix's wide selection.

Well, now you have. I signed on a few months ago, and so far it's been great. If you're interested in titles from Warner Archive, Universal Vault Series, TCM Vault, and the Flicker Alley titles that Netflix does not stock, it's definitely the way to go. And Blu-ray access (to titles from Criterion, Kino, etc.) is included at no additional charge.

Blus, really? Don't lay it on too thick, Reno. I make stupid decisions at night.

How's their shipping speed in comparison to Netflix?

Blus, really. The shipping is slower than Netflix because they have only one shipping center, which is in Lincoln, CA. I'm in SC and discs usually take three days each way. One discs at a time (unlimited) is only $9.99 per month . . . Have I sold you yet?

I'm much closer to CA than you, so...I'm gonna sleep on it.

reno dakota wrote:Have I sold you yet?

The only other thing I'd like to see are non-domestic releases—probably a headache as far as compatibility is concerned, but they could let you select your PAL/region capabilities in preferences or something…

nsps wrote:The only other thing I'd like to see are non-domestic releases—probably a headache as far as compatibility is concerned, but they could let you select your PAL/region capabilities in preferences or something…

There is this Facets service, which seems to offer imports for rental. I've never tried it, but it sounds promising.

Facets also rents out rare titles only available on VHS. Though I believe this costs a bit more, and if something you rented happens to get lost in the mail, you're screwed.

Another recommendation for Classicflix. With the variability in quality of these Warner Archive disks (both in terms of production and content) its nice to be able to screen them before making any purchases. They also seem to have several classic and silent films not available on Netflix. Customer service has been prompt in responding to e-mails. I live in Ohio and as mentioned earlier, its about three days for disk arrival, so rougly a new movie every week.

Yeah, another vote for Classicflix. They always tend to stock the best editions of films, too, which means you can rent the Kino edition of The Cat and the Canary instead of the bowel movement PD discs Netflix kept shipping me.

Perkins Cobb wrote:Dennis Doros (of Milestone) posted on Facebook that Netflix has declined to stock their latest release, The Word Is Out, unless an unspecified number of Netflix members "save" the film to their queues. Everyone here is thus encouraged to do so.

WTF? Is this Netflix's new method of gauging (or, er, gouging) customer interest in various titles, in lieu of a proper title-suggestion form? What then if the title isn't even listed to "save"?

MyNameCriterionForum wrote:

Perkins Cobb wrote:Dennis Doros (of Milestone) posted on Facebook that Netflix has declined to stock their latest release, The Word Is Out, unless an unspecified number of Netflix members "save" the film to their queues. Everyone here is thus encouraged to do so.

WTF? Is this Netflix's new method of gauging (or, er, gouging) customer interest in various titles, in lieu of a proper title-suggestion form? What then if the title isn't even listed to "save"?

I haven't found any reporting on this (even on the reliable Hacking Netflix blog), but I'm guessing yes. If only by default. Netflix dumped the "request a title" functionality from its site some time ago, so if they care at all about customer interest in DVDs they don't carry, the only data they have to evaluate is people's queues.

Svevan wrote:Perhaps a mass jump to Classic Flix would send a message - I've never heard of anyone who actually uses their service, though, and it couldn't possibly replace Netflix's wide selection.

You may want to check out GreenCine as well. Their catalog of available titles, while in no way as broad as Netflix's, is steadily expanding.

GreenCine is slow as molasses for those east of the Mississippi, and they seem to only carry one disc of each title. The wait for a good portion of your queue is measured in months, sometimes longer.

I can hesitantly vouch for Facets, though I have to say they've actually gotten a bit worse since they made a big push to attract customers outside of Chicago. Turnaround time is a day or two longer than it used to be on average, and there have been a couple of other clerical errors that resulted in even longer waits, though these have been very quickly rectified after sending an e-mail. They're likely doing their best with the small staff that they have. I probably wouldn't recommend them to someone on the west coast, but if being east of the Mississippi makes GreenCine too slow, Facets is probably worth a look, particularly if you're in the Midwest.

Donald Brown wrote:GreenCine is slow as molasses for those east of the Mississippi, and they seem to only carry one disc of each title. The wait for a good portion of your queue is measured in months, sometimes longer.

Is it really that bad? I'm not a subscriber, and never have been, so what you say carries some meaningful weight.

In spite of the delivery issues you mention, it's important to point out that GreenCine does seem to be making an earnest effort to stock many titles no longer available on Netflix. For example, the three Imamura films comprising the "Pigs, Pimps and Prostitutes" set are all available on GreenCine, but none are on Netflix. Likewise for the Shimizu films of the Eclipse set, with the exception of one, I believe, which remains available on Netflix. This short list could be expanded considerably, I imagine, with further investigation.

It's unsettling what's going with Netflix. Once an relatively obscure or little-requested title is pulled from circulation, becoming a "Saved" option, there's a very good chance it won't be coming back anytime soon, if ever. Netflix appears to be almost totally focused on the instant streaming aspect of their business (and rightly so I might add). But for those of us who keep seeing titles steadily pop off our queues, it's irritating, all the more so because finding those movies elsewhere is proving more challenging. That's why I mentioned GreenCine; it's an option, one among few alternatives.

Well, I jumped on the ClassicFlix bandwagon. I've added a bunch of Warner Archive titles and I'll probably just load up with them and other things I can't get on Netflix for now. My Netflix account renewed today (way to go Mr. Sleep On It) so now I have BOTH services.

I've tried Greencine a few times and agree that it was pretty pointless. The wait times for popular titles were ridiculous. They always advertised themselves as an alternative to Netflix, but in fact, any time I found some obscure title that NF didn't carry, Greencine didn't have it either. If that's changed, I'm certain it's only by default, as Netflix has become less reliable.

(Although, Greencine does seem to have the Mondo Vision Zulawski releases, so that's something. I wish they were stocking the Code Red and Scorpion Releasing films that NF has abandoned, though.)

I was with GreenCine for about a year and have to agree about the wait time for titles that Netflix does not stock. I was able to get some great ones--Feuillade's Judex and Les Vampires; Bondarchuk's War and Peace (in the proper aspect ratio); the Criterion version of Indiscretion of an American Wife--but many, many other titles never moved from the top of my queue. I would recommend them only to the very patient, dedicated seekers of hard-to-find titles.

Pretty pissed that I can't watch that awful Amy Adams Ireland movie for another month

domino harvey wrote:Pretty pissed that I can't watch that awful Amy Adams Ireland movie for another month

Shoulda been on my transcontinental flight last weekend, sucka! Nothing does Amy Adams justice like flickering irritatingly in my peripheral vision on a miniature screen dangling from the ceiling while I'm trying to sleep.

Nice to know conclusively that Netflix grasps the capitalist principle that once you possess a certain percentage of the market share, you can begin to fuck your customers mercilessly. I was beginning to worry.

I noticed that Visconti's The Stranger is scheduled to be available to stream June 1.

I miss Nicheflix.