DvdSales Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Fox is trying to sell more DVDs by adding Pop Up Video.

The Hollywood Reporter posts that the company is hoping to boost sales by "putting a new spin on interactivity, including harnessing the power of social networking" with a little system called "FoxPop." Not so much a "new spin," FoxPop is a downloadable computer program (works with Mac, PC, and iPhone) that will recognize the sounds of a film, immediately sync up, and give movie viewers a "constant barrage of facts, photos, games, and trivia questions related to the movie they are watching." In other words -- Pop Up Video on a separate screen you're welcome to ignore.

Fox's example of how it will work: "when a T. rex appears on the screen, for example, the user's iPhone would vibrate and ask how many bones that particular dino has. It will also tell what percentage answered the query correctly" while completely distracting them from the fun of the dino hunt. Social networking comes into play with the ability to make comments on the film with Facebook and Twitter that your friends will be able to see when they want to watch a movie. I see the last bits of our attention spans flying away into the ether of history...

I had a plan to be speedy this morning -- get my work done and then catch up on other things I need to do. Just as I settle into my chair and plan to begin writing, my friend sends me an IM: "BN.com has a big DVD sale on." Well, so much for a productive morning. Within moments, I realized that this wouldn't be a quick 2-minute search. They've got thousands of titles marked 40% off or more. I've spent the last half hour scouring the site and the selection is pretty darned impressive.

You can score newer films like the largely ignored but completely worth it Imagine Me & You for less than $7. You can get rare, old '80s movies for less than $5 -- heck, even Thrashin' is on there, that cheesy Josh Brolin flick, for super-cheap. You can get foreign flicks like Eat Drink Man Woman for under $7, which is a big pisser for me since I just bought it used for $15. New and old dramas, musicals, and you can even get From Justin to Kelly for less than $5! But, if you get that, you will be beaten by your shipment when it's delivered. Guy Maddin, classic action, documentaries, you name it! My wallet is screaming in pain.

To navigate the ginormous sale -- get to the 40% off sale page here. Click on your sale category. Then, make sure to click on the text that says: "See all 40% Off or More Action and Adventure in Bestselling order" to get the whole list for that genre. Happy Shopping!

Film Threat's Doug Brunell put an interesting piece up this weekend about feeling irked when he saw a woman at the store he was shopping at toss a copy of Sweet Home Alabama onto her shopping cart. Brunell wasn't upset because he hates the movie (he hasn't seen it) or because he harbors some secret loathing toward Reese Witherspoon, but because he mourns that DVDs have become casual purchases to be tossed in the cart on impulse, rather than a decision to lovingly mull over, checking out the cool special features, transfer and sound.

Now, I am, admittedly, not a huge DVD purchaser at this stage in my life. For one thing, I have a houseful of young children, and no matter where we store our DVDs, I inevitably find them on the floor (ever stepped on a stray DVD at 2AM and impaled your foot on a wedge of The Land Before Time? Not fun.) or being used as ninja throwing stars in some game the kids have concocted. I am not a responsible owner of DVDs, and our house is not a safe harbor for them, so we simply don't invest much of our hard-earned money on them. I know, however, that many of you folks out there are avid DVD collectors who probably spend a fair amount of time carefully considering your purchases. Even if I was passionate about DVDs, I don't know that I'd get worked up over someone else's casual purchase, anymore than I get upset over someone in front of me in the checkout line purchasing a Danielle Steel novel just because I'm a lit geek, but then again, I do stay up nights obsessing over the box office returns for indie films, so who am I to judge?

What about you? Is it troublesome to you that some people toss DVDs into their shopping cart without really considering the purchase? Does it detract from the allure of DVD ownership, if another person considers DVDs as more disposable entertainment than art? And while we're on the subject: What's the last DVD you bought -- and why did you buy it?