We wrote about the demise of video stores last year, and now one of the saddest days is upon us: The November 30 closing of West 105th Street institution Movie Place, because of a crazy rent increase. There's a big NY Times City section article about the Movie Place's closing as well as those of many other beloved video stores - it's all summarized in this depressing graphic. more ›

Peacocks by NYCViaRachel. more ›

our Twizzlers!), Gothamist has been Netflixing (when we get around to it) our DVD rentals or buying them on impulse at Best Buy ("Oh, my God, it's the third season of Columbo!"), but video stores like Movie Place on West 105th and Kim's on St. Mark's are great resources for those hard to find foreign films or films that are only available on video. Do you find yourself buying more and/or Netflixing DVDs or are you still visiting your local video place? more ›

Sometimes, Netflix, as great as it is, is just not the same as heading to the video store, where you can browse through various titles and be inspired to watch something you weren't thinking about. It doesn't deliver on the instant gratification that sometimes a movie needs to bring you. Gothamist's favorite video stores are Movie Place on West 105th Street (237 West 105th Street/ 212-864-4620), Kim's Video (various locations), and the Cinematheque on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope (100B 7th Ave/ 718 399 0860) - places where you're told "We don't carry Day for Night because the only version on VHS is dubbed in English and [insert pained expression] we won't carry it." (This was 1997, mind you; Day for Night is on DVD now.) However, the downfall of having a well-stocked video store can sometimes be the staff. Think about it - Quentin Tarantino used to work at a video store. While our experiences at Movie Place and other stores have been good, some video store staffs bring the trial of deciding on a movie to watch on Friday night to a new level. Our best friend/twin sister Molly tells us about her experience at another Park Slope video store, Reel Life: more ›