July 9, 2006
Opinionist: Last of the Indie Video Stores
After a brief summer hiatus, Opinionst is back. Please send DCist your thoughts, comments and critiques on almost all things related to our fair city. Bring it, guys! Today's opinion comes to us from 10-year D.C. resident Ian Buckwalter.
Video Americain ended its tenure in D.C. last month, succumbing to high rent, diminishing business, and the factors that will likely doom most video stores: Netflix and video-on-demand. But when the Blockbuster on Columbia Road eventually closes its doors to the same forces, it's doubtful the event will be met with such looks of heartbreak. Video Americain actually meant something.
In a town known for transience and short attention spans, where few people are devoted to anything, residents of Dupont and Adams Morgan were devoted to Video Americain. They followed it from Connecticut Avenue to a frequently flooded, rat infested, mosquito breeding ground at 18 th and Wyoming, and then to its final location at 18th and California. Qualities that would be an Achilles heel to most retail operations were, to its cultish followers, the things that gave the store character.
In the basement store, customers didn't complain about the soggy carpet, the lack of air conditioning, or the swarms of mosquitoes. No one ever threatened to call the health department when a rat was seen running out of the porn room.
Video Americain's relationship with the neighborhood was based largely around its eclectic collection, but one cannot discount the draw of those clerks. Sure, they could be slightly pretentious. More than that, they were prone to surly demeanors and hangovers. Usually concurrently. They had no qualms about belittling customers for their inability to find the huge Hitchcock section on a Director's Wall organized alphabetically. But did they ever make fun of you that time you rented Patch Adams? Of course not. They waited until you left. That's love.
And despite their tendency towards frowning and alcohol induced headaches, that love was returned. Recognizing them for the functional alcoholics that they were, customers often left random six packs of beer, bottles of wine, or even the occasional fifth of rum as a gift. And one customer, on a particularly bitter cold night, even walked home to get plastic ware when she overheard the clerks bellyaching that their takeout driver had forgotten to bring utensils with their dinner. Does anyone bring Blockbuster employees plastic forks and knives unannounced and unrequested? Whether it was pure generosity or a suspicion that they could get out of late fees, the gestures did not go unnoticed.
Many in the neighborhood may not miss the store yet. In the summer, we read at the beach, play in that office kickball league, and generally spend more time outside instead of in front of the television. And then there are those that already had made the switch to Netflix. They may not realize what they've lost until that night that they need to use their Video Americain membership again. Perhaps there will be a thunderstorm brewing, and all their Netflix movies will be in the mail. Or a blizzard will be bearing down on the city. With Video Americain we were able to spike the vein of that movie habit right now.
The death of the independent video store is no longer news. It's happening all over. Video Americain is just another in a long line of casualties. One day, you can tell your grandchildren how, once upon a time, instead of having video-on-demand beamed straight into your brain from a satellite linked directly to your cerebral cortex, you actually had to walk to a store to get movies. Two miles. Uphill. Both ways. In the snow. And it was for Video Americain that you braved those elements.
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Did they move to Takoma, MD? Somebody just posted it on buyindie a day or two ago and the website seems to indicate that they're still around.
They've had a location at Eastern/Laurel Ave, right on the border between DC and MD, for quite some time.
How silly....between the gazillion tv channels, tivo, tv on demand, satellite, edonkey and bittorents why would you obsess about a dinky video store?????????
I miss them already!
"Short attention spans"?
"where few people are devoted to anything"?!
What city are you talking about?
And anyway, if you're a fan of the place, and that's the most flattering description you can comeup with, I have a feeling it won't be missed that much. Pretentious snot-nosed 20-somethings leveraging a ounce of sophistication into a pound of condescention? That's a commodity DC will never run out of.
"Short Attenion Spans"
"Where few people are devoted to anything"
That pretty much sums up my opinion of this little district in a nutshell, but I'm not here to rag on DC. I'm typing because Video American (18th street video) will be missed. I think it's a shame that over time the market for a video store recognized for its great collection of foriegn films, art house favorites, hollywood pics and adult flicks dwindled. In all honesty Video Americain was for this area what Scarecrow Video is to Seattle, Kim's is to NYC et al.
It was the place where you could go, rent a decent film at the spur of the moment and strike up a conversation with your contemporaries. And if you ever had an outstanding late fee you could always buy your way out with a six pack or just be friendly about it. The folks there would take your offering, look the other way and make a significantly less snide comment about you after you left.
Yes, they're in Takoma Park as noted by AUA; their original location is in Baltimore. The TP location is only about a three block walk from the Takoma metro on the red line.
There's also Potomac Video in Palisades, among other locations. That place is in the same sphere of awesomeness as Americain, in my opinion. Potomac and Americain really are great video stores.
I'm glad someone else mentioned Potomac Video.
I live out in the Virginia suburbs, so I've never known of Video Americain, but PV isn't bad at all. Recently I've only seen one owner there most of the time, but in the past there were the snooty ill-tempered and bored kids with piercings we all enjoy so much at the "indie" video shops, the types of employees that Blockbuster pushed out about a decade ago, because god forbid anyone should actually know sh*t about movies. (I can still remember when that happened.) Many a time I went into PV and was almost hit by the employees bouncing a ball off the wall or the video stacks. They have personality. They can offer suggestions beyond the newest Julia Roberts or Tom Hanks flick.
how sad
Anyone who ever went there, knows what a loss its closing is for the neighborhood. When I used to live on Willard Street a few blocks a way I would go to Video American all the time. Their selection of independent films was what really set them apart. They even had the section of local independent films. I'm sure even Netflix doesn't have a DC area independent film section. How are people gonna find the movie "RATS!" (which was filmed in my old back alley) anymore?
One great thing about the staff there was they actually made you want to pick better movies, or else you knew they would mock you mercilessly when you left. "He rented that POS - God what an idiot"
i echo reid: a city "where few people are devoted to anything"??? writer, do you even live here?
I third, Dave. That statement is the most insipid thing I've read in a long time.
I love Video Americain. I'm not sure who's sadder about this news - me, or my dog, Cosmo, upon whom the V.A. staff lavished many a biscuit. He starts dragging me maniacally when we're within half a block of the place.
I remember walking to Video Americain on snow days to stock up on a marathon's worth of movies...I remember standing for close to an hour staring at the shelves of new DVDs, trying to decide what to rent...I remember renting Lenny and The Kings of Comedy, when I was going through my "student of comedy" phase...
I'm sorry that I contributed to V.A.'s demise by signing up for Netflix, and becoming seduced by the convenience of that service. I loved knowing that when I felt like that classic video store experience, I could still wander over to Video Americain. I will really miss that, and them.
As several have said, Potomac Video still exists in several locations around the city, so it's NOT like the "last indie video store" is gone forever. Potomac has a great selection, and if a film has never been released on DVD, you can probably still find the VHS at Potomac. Sure, the clerks are indeed "clerks", but hey, that's all part of the fun.
Given the fact that Video Americain is still open in multiple other locations, including one in Takoma Park that is accessible by Metro, and the continuing existence of Potomac Video, shouldn't the headline of this really be:
Last of the Indie Video Stores Within Walking Distance of My House
Amanda-
We'll miss Cosmo, too!!!
i'm a big fan of the video store TapeHeadz video in the 1300 block of U Street. I'm not sure of the address but its closer to 14th. I've been with this video store since I moved here in 99. They were originally on 17th street at R, but recently moved to U street. Take the time to say hi to the guy who runs it. He started out there part time and is now the owner. he'll usually be playing video games behind the counter but will get chatty.
um, i will not miss this store. it was highly disorganized, the selection was very limited and almost everything was on VHS.
Video American was never as good as Video Vault in Alexandria is and continues to be.
I love these "um, yeah, I disagree with you so I am right and you are wrong and stupid" posts.
You can bitch all you want about the title, or the fact there are still independent stores in operation, whatever, but underneath it all, the fact places like Video Americain/18th St Video and other independent stores are closing down is a scary premonition of the increasing homogenization of our culture. In a city that often touts itself as "liberal" and "progressive" , what does it really say when the very people who are just as quick to denounce Walmart/Starbucks/insert other evil chainstore sign up for Netflix in droves? Does it make it better if you don't actually have to visit the establishment?
Hear hear Ian and VSF!
I'm 100% serious when I say that what this country needs is more arrogant video store clerks with hangovers and [far] fewer corporate uniformed know-nothings sporting toothy American smiles and greeting us at the door: "Welcome to Ballbusters, can I help you [not] find anything interesting in the New Releases section? OK, yeah...that's great...BUH BYE! :-)))"
But now I think we can all take heart and find solace, secure in the knowledge that a legion of junior Tarantinos are now free to purse their dreams of Cannes and Sundance from another basement ...(their parents)... unfettered by the shackles and drudgery of part-time employment!
Seriously though, I seem to remember thinking that a lot of these guys were enrolled in some sort of film school, or trying to make their own movies (woops forgive me, films). One door closes, another opens, yaddayadda.
"Oh great, Blockbuster, that's the first stop on the Shitburg Express!!!"
--Tony Soprano