Where do you rent your videos? Up until about a year ago, I probably answered the same way you do: Blockbuster and Hollywood Video. Or Netflix. I’ve done them all. And then someone turned me on to a local, independent movie store when I needed a rare title for a class.
Scarecrow Video (www.scarecrow.com)
There are a handful of reasons that I love Scarecrow Video. First of all, it’s a neighborhood store, so I’m supporting a local business and my own community. I like that. I know that local business are far more likely to give back to the community and be dedicated to community issues. And from being a volunteer and donation coordinator, I know for a fact that Scarecrow is generous in their donations to local non-profit organizations and other local groups — unlike places like Blockbuster who never donate and don’t give a crap about local communities.
Being a local movie store, you might think that they wouldn’t have any many videos. Wrong! Scarecrow carries more titles than I thought even existed. Basically: if you can find it on IMDB, you can find it at Scarecrow. They carry rare and out-of-print movies, as well as TONS of independent titles, cartoons and anime, old westerns, plays and much more. And that’s on top of all normal titles and new-releases. Like all movie stores, they have a children’s section and a selection of blu-ray titles as well.
Alright, alright, you say, but if their a neighborhood place they’re probably more expensive, right? Nope! They are actually cheaper than Blockbuster or Hollywood Video. Prices are:
$4.50 for New Releases and Catalog titles (2 day & 1 week rentals, respectively)
$3.00 for Family or older New Releases (4 day rental)
$11.00 for TV series (full sets/all disks) as well as 10+ hour titles and box sets (7 days)
That’s right, you can rent an entire series at once at Scarecrow, instead of just disk by disk. In addition to these prices, which are already less than a regular rental place, you can take advantage of 2-for-1 Wednesdays. Last Wednesday I rented two movies for a total of only $3. The best part of 2-for-1 is that you can rent an entire series for less than a dollar more than it would cost to rent one disk at a regular store. Two weeks ago, I rented the full second seasons of both Deadwood and Mad Men for only $11.
Scarecrow Video is in lower Roosevelt / upper U District. Nowhere near there? Here’s a list of other local movie stores in Seattle. They all have pretty good reviews on Yelp. Go check them out!
- Rain City Video in Ballard, Sunset Hill, and Fremont
- Video Isle in Queen Anne and Fremont
- Broadway Market Video on Capitol Hill
- On 15th Video on Capitol Hill
- Reckless Video in Maple Leaf
So what are you going to rent this weekend?
Scarecrow is the Disneyland of video stores. I LOVE it there. I especially love it because they have TONS of limited edition movies (you have to pay a hefty deposit, but it’s totally worth it).
Stevie´s last post :: Moving Forward
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I used to go there all of the time when I was in college, thanks to turning me back on to a favorite.
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[...] Scarecrow Video is “like a video store Powell’s,” with tousands of movies, including rare & out of print films. Wednesdays are rent-one-get-one-free! [...]