By Mark Hockley
It’s hard to imagine now, when almost every film is a few clicks away, that there was a time when the arrival of the video store revolutionized how people experienced cinema. New releases were limited to theatrical runs and for most viewers, movies were consumed primarily through TV broadcasts.
The emergence of video rentals changed all that. Suddenly, a whole world of films, especially in the horror genre, became available to the average viewer. Not all of it was gold, of course. Alongside classics like Phantasm (1979) came duds like The Nail Gun Massacre (1985). But that unpredictability was part of the charm. Browsing the shelves felt like an adventure. You never quite knew what you’d bring home.
Compare that to today, where streaming platforms like Netflix offer an endless, often paralyzing array of options. How many times have we spent twenty minutes browsing, only to give up? The early days of video rental were different. Rows of Betamax or VHS tapes with eye-catching (often misleading) cover art made each visit to the store a moment of excitement and discovery.
Videoheaven, directed by Alex Ross Perry, is a heartfelt tribute to that era. Narrated by Maya Hawke (Stranger Things), the three-hour documentary is an extended love letter to the golden age of video stores. It charts the rise of small independents, the dominance of Blockbuster and the eventual decline of physical rentals.
Rather than taking a conventional documentary route, Perry leans heavily into clips from movies and television to track the cultural imprint of video stores. Scenes set in or featuring video shops remind us just how deeply embedded they were in the pop culture of the ’80s and ’90s. For a time, video wasn’t just a format. It was part of the zeitgeist.
That said, the approach has its drawbacks. The sheer volume of clips can feel overwhelming and not all are equally engaging. While Hawke’s narration helps anchor the structure, the film’s extended runtime may prove a challenge. Even the most nostalgic viewer might prefer to take it in across multiple sittings.
Still, Videoheaven is an absorbing meditation on a cultural shift that shaped a generation of movie lovers. For anyone interested in film history or the broader evolution of media consumption, there’s plenty to appreciate. Though it may test your stamina, the film ultimately rewards those who stay the course.
Bloody Flicks 