Cinefile Video
Category: Videos and Video Game Rental [Edit]
11280 Santa Monica BlvdLos Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 312-8836
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
13 reviews
Neighborhood: Santa Monica
"Clean store, nice location. Wide selection of music and the used are mixed in with the new. Friendly people who work here. Maybe if they did…" read more »
26 Reviews for Cinefile Video
Cinefile is small but fierce. They have an eclectic selection of movies organized by micro-topics (acquatic horror movies) and country of origin (a plethora of countries). Their selection made me a little ambitious in thinking that they, like Le Video in San Francisco) have movies of all sorts including those not yet released in the US. When I couldn't find "Alone" (directed by Banjong Pisanthanakun and Parkpoom Wongpoom http://en.wikipedia.or...) my friend and I asked the counter nerds/gurus if they had it and although they didn't have the movie they knew of it and we discussed it in passing. I was impressed that they knew of it and I felt a little cool for having watched it (in Hong Kong).
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Cinefile is a really fantastic video store and certainly one of a dying breed. It is pretty much what my home video vault would look like, if I had the money to have a home....and a vault. They have an incredibly selection, much of which is organized by directors which makes it really easy to have your own little at home retrospective. Cinefile also has some pretty obscure silent films that I've never been able to find anywhere else.
The only downside to this store is that the customer service isn't exactly sterling, to put it mildly. I've often been puzzled by their rude or simply inattentive behavior. You'd think in the age of Netflix that they would seriously make more an effort to welcome people who actually want to come in person to their video store.
That said, I still try to look on the bright side of things. Since they do have such good titles I'm willing to let things slide. Plus they are right next to the Nuart, which is convenient for the multi-tasking cinefile!
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This is the mecca of video stores in LA, the city known for its movies and movie fans.
Just a warning. The store is staffed by the biggest assholes in all of LA, and that is saying something. Another warning, the patrons of this establishment are borderline homeless and totally mental patients. Imagine the geekiest nerdiest dorkiest mal adjusted kids that you grew up with, now add 300 lbs and imagine that they never showered since 5th grade, that is who you will be standing behind in line.
But it is all worth it. They have impossible to find movies and everyone in here will now more about movies then you will in 3 lifetimes. Good luck.
P.S.- Right next door is an amazing art house indie movie house that you should go to every weekend
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What do you do when you have half an hour to kill before your movie at the Nuart starts?
Peruse the porn section of Cinefile.
I gotta give credit where credit is due - they know how to categorize their videos.
The way they organize the videos is pretty amazing. I don't know what the rest of the store is like, but their categorization in the back corner is meticulous. If you are looking for videos with naked people playing sports, they have half a shelf full, complete with naked yoga, golf and tai-chi. If you're into S&M, they have a section for that too (although I'm still confused on why I found Mr. and Mrs. Smith - the movie with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie - in this section). Cheerleader porn, nurse porn...they seem to have it all here.
Another plus: For those that still have a VHS machine included in their entertainment system, they have VHS porn tapes here too. Amazing huh?
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Think of the guys who worked in that record store in Hi Fidelily - now replace the records with videos and you have Cinefile. Last night the video version of Jack Black in Hi Fidelity helped me select some gems.
These guys can do the "find more like this" algorithm better than any computer. They get to more right than netflix or amazon when it comes to my tastes.
On the other hand of you ask for a movie or genre that "sucks ass" - be prepared to get shown the door :)
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Fifty percent of Cinefile is organized by directors (which I found pompous and unhelpful). However, the other fifty percent is organized by awesomely obscure leitmotivs, such as Christploitation (wtf?), Porn Lite, Stand Offs, Choppers, Charles Bronson, etc. Fortunately, the staff are pretty helpful and aren't totally pretentious compulsive masturbating dorks (which I would expect from a place like this). There are a handful of movies for sale (none of which are worth buying), and monthly memberships are available. BTW, both of the movies I wanted were checked out.
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I stopped going there 2 years ago after a few bad incidents and have never even thought about returning.
I was looking for "the hospital" by Lars Von Trier. After finding "Hospital" under " Von Trier" section, I rented and went home to only find a piece of crap in my DVD player.
This was Stephen King's American version of the hospital that was not directed by von trier and the poor director probably can''t sleep ever since this was made. So why was it there? I called the next day and had to drive back cause they wanted it back and they did not have the right one back. But they still wanted to charge me a fee! One of their illiterate manager-wanna-be infants had the gull to argue with me that it was my mistake. That all movies related, in any way, to a director are put under his name and not those necessarily made by him ... wtf is right. Needless to say, I would not succumb.
Aside from their attitude problemS with acapital "s", renting things at this place is a bit of a crapshoot. I have rented a lot crap due to lack of info.
If you are into great foreign and alternative movies, you may wanna try greencine.com. For experimental movies, au-cinema.com is good. Also you may wanna give books a try.
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Update: I have been here since, and it's not so bad. I think the girl I met the first time was having a really bad day. And as for the price, it turns out I don't rent movies enough and Blockbuster is just as bad. I guess I'd rather support Cinefile than them!
(1) Snobby and pretentious staff? Check!
(2) Prices that make you wish you'd netflixed it instead? Check!
(3) Large selection of ____sploitation videos? Check!
(4) Can make you leave the place feeling emasculated, even though you're a girl? Check!
Too bad I had such a bad first time here, I'd like to come back for all of the old and weird movies, but one of the workers left such a bad taste in my mouth that I'm kind of afraid to go back there... She didn't even tell me how much she was charging to my credit card before swiping it ($10.80 for two movies, VERY BAD ones at that--but then again we'd asked for an opinion and no nice suggestions were given), and asked for my ID as if I were a criminal (not that asking for ID is bad, just the way she did it was sort of strange).
I enjoy pretending I'm cool just as much as the next chump, but come on, cinefile, you could at least make people excited about your movies instead of making them feel like scum for coming in.
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To Liberty H.:
1. Staff was actually REALLY friendly and helpful. Check.
2. Prices actually beat Amoeba Music and had stuff that Netflix didn't carry. Check.
3. _splotation movies galore. Check.
4. Make you feel like the film geek of your dreams? Check.
I actually really LIKED my first time here. Got an awesome deal on a used copy of Samurai Jack (my god, am I the only one that MISSES that show?) and would've asked for a monthly rental fee just because this place is billions of awesome. I use Netflix, sure, but it's mostly for mainstream stuff. The people who worked here are really nice and if they see you looking confused or by yourself, they ask you once: "Do you need any help?" and if you say no, they let you be. That's friggin AWESOME. I HATE being bugged repeatedly by "helpful" staff.
In any case, there are a few things there that you might want to look around for - a lot of out of the way choices that sure beat mainstream!
While I have not actually rented anything here, I did take a while to look at the selection inside and it is really good. I like the unorthodox way of cataloging the films like by director or obscure/made-up category. The porn section made me laugh with the amusing pictures... the bondage section with the picture of the poorly taped up woman was amusing. Some of the categories in the Sci-fi and Horror section were amusing like Cannibals, Slashers, etc... there were a few meant-to-be-funny categories too.
As others have stated, they have a large foreign section and many hard to find titles... I myself found it hard not to buy the vintage Faster Pussycat Kill Kill poster that they had for $60. Awesome.
The only con is that it's a little messy and it looks like film nerds keep it... its a sort of "organized mess" and a bit dirty inside. Still a cool place though.
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I've never ever seen such great genre labels--Thai-sploitation, sure..but next to Christploitation?! GREAT breakdowns into categories and subcategories.. The only place I know of that rents normal and non region stuff. One side's cult oriented and campy, and on the other side you'll find every autuer that ever existed (and some that don't deserve to be there!)..gems, bootlegs, great employee picks--check out the "HOLY FUCKING SHIT" section!!
For movie addicts, they have an all-you-can-rent for 20$ monthly deal, AND they're next to the NuArt! Sure, I'm the target audience, a film nerd..Run next door, order falafel to go, pick out movies, and then take that and your food home! Perfect night in!
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One of my very first jobs was working for a mom & pop video store back in Washington, D.C. The owner let me work behind the counter when I was 12, which was highly illegal given that I was renting porno movies to adults. (It only got weird when they asked for recommendations.) I worked for the store on and off for many years, watching three movies a day, building my movie vocabulary.
The independent video store is a dying, damn near dead breed. Even in L.A. there's Cinefile, Vidiots (Santa Monica), and Rocket Video (Hollywood) and that's pretty much it. Eventually even these stores will be made obsolete by V.O.D., download services, and videos-by-mail. But nothing can replace the holier-than-thou attitude of the video store clerk.
Cinefile makes good on the implicit pact of the independent video store: attitude, surly condescension by video store clerks, absolute elitism regarding obscure Tanzanian bush directors, and a commitment to misanthropy in exchange for really, really hard to find and out of print material. I love Cinefile and if I lived closer I'd use them all the time. Japanese, Sudanese, or Swedish film nut? They stock non-region 1 DVDs and sell the players that can play them. (Though if you own a Mac and download mactheripper you can rip any region DVD and watch the file on your computer.) Organize your library by director and fetish? So do they. Need to know the difference between every single Police Academy movie in the Steve Gutenberg ouvre? They can probably tell you. They might hit you, but they can tell you.
Sign up for the occasional email and read about all the great movies you're missing because Netflix and Blockbuster don't stock really obscure stuff. (Netflix is getting better, but Blockbuster is the evil amongst evil.)
Note: SF based www.greencine.com is the online version of Cinefile, but don't tell them I said so.
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Hands down the best video shop in L.A! Cinefile is a great spot for all kinds of cinema and their wide selection proves it. If I can't find what I am looking for around my area I know I can count on Cinefile to fill my needs, unfortunately it is a bit of a drive for me so I will usually call before I go to make sure it is available.
Kick ass video store. The name says it all - this place is for true cinephiles looking for that esoteric 1942 silent Korean film that those bastards in film school always chided me for not seeing. (Um, sorry if I was busy watching American Idol, okay?!?) The employees are knowledgable and will help you navigate the totally awesome way this place is organized - by director, by genre, sub-genres. There is a section based on 80s films where the actor on the cover of the tape/DVD is peeping over his sunglasses (think RISKY BUSINESS). Blaxxxploitation anyone? Midget porn? It's all here.
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I've never actually rented here, but that's alright. I don't particularly plan to.
That's too bad, because they have a great selection of obscure stuff that's difficult to find for sale elsewhere, let alone for rent. However, there's one slight problem: this place is too annoying. Last time I went, it smelled like food, due to one of the employees eating a large sloppy hoagie on the counter. Classy.
The unorthodox categorization is obviously someone's attempt at being clever-- and while the category names ARE clever on occasion, usually they're just annoying, since finding any one particular film becomes and exercise in guessing which clever category someone decided to file it under.
It all comes down to the staff's gratingly pretentious attitude, as if they are doing you some kind of grand favor simply by existing. I'll give my money to someone less irritating, thanks.
Three stars because an independent video store which stocks hard-to-find films is still, in theory, a great idea.
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a film buffs dream video store
plus the staff are super helpful and not the indie pretentious fucks that you might expect them to be.
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CINEFILE has rarely disappointed me. i have found some true gems here. great obscure VHS tapes, foreign DVDs, local independent artists, thorough selection of filmmakers, clever categories designated for each movie, excellent porn selection.
some of the interesting finds:
a fistful of dynamite (duck, you sucker!)
local color
tripping with caveh
the great silence
madame de...
what happened was...
love streams
husbands
silent night, deadly night
CRITERION COLLECTION, FACETS VIDEO, and FREE RENTALS (mystery goodies).
go to the nuart, then stop by CINEFILE. and watch movies all day long. and night. and the next morning. and continue cycle.
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Here is a clue, I don't like action movies, if I want comedy I'll contemplate the last 20 years of my life and if it came out in the last two years I really don't give a shit. I like Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and Katherine Hepburn. Brando works so does Cagney, James Coburn, Robert Mitchum, Tennessee Williams, Faulkner, Steinbeck, Cormac McCarthy. This is the kind of dull, boring dry cinema and literature that I like. If your looking for a rare or out of print video whether it be on DVD or VHS, you might find it here. They had "Sometimes a great notion" and "Cannery Row" and that is what got me hooked on this place. It feels a litlle to "Hip" for me.... but I dig it. The y probably have 10 thousand or more videos and they are all sorted by genre and director. They need to serve Chili Dogs or sell womens lingerie, maybe both. I give em a twfour
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cinefile is ok. they organize their selection in a witty way, but it's too hard to find anything. and nearly everyone who works there speaks with this affect ... that they are SO MUCH COOLER than you, even though you're obviously cool enough to be renting there. and boy is it expensive. why the three whole stars, then? first, it's kinda close to my house. second, they have cool movies. third, there's a parking lot in the back. that's one, two, and three stars.
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Being next door to the Nuart movie theatre is a good clue for what you'll find inside the video rental paradise known as Cinefile. They have a little bit of everything (and a whole lot of many things) for the savvy movie-watcher. There's your usual Hollywood flotsam and jetsam, international cinematic classics, cult favorites and near-favorites, impossible to find oddities, and those DVDs that you need an all-region DVD player to watch. They can even recommend a good all-region DVD player for you to get.
You can rent by the night (or rather 2 nights for new releases, a week for catalog titles), or pay a monthly fee, a la Netflix, to borrow a couple of items for as long as you want (I'm the one who had "Siberiade" out for so long - sorry). There are many videos and DVDs available for sale as well. But the best reason to visit here as opposed to just sitting on your fat ass & mailing your Netflix envelopes off is the selection. There are few places where you can borrow the complete feature filmography of Fellini or Bergman, and actually you can't quite do that at Cinefile either. But you can come as close as is commercially possible.
Don't expect it to be terribly neat. And don't expect to be able to buy some microwave popcorn at the checkout either. But for the discriminating cinephile, you can do no better.
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like a reviewer below, i have a love hate relationship with cinefile.
the love:
* great selection and variety
* hilarious subsection headings
* easy for a non-film buff to find all movies by one director that you might discover you like since their director section is HUGE
* great foreign section
* i often rent things that i otherwise wouldn't b/c they display little known movies that the blockbusters of the world never would even carry, let alone display
* it's across the street... that doesn't hurt...
the hate:
* the same too-cool-for-school attitude that i cannot stand. look, if i want to rent 13 going on 30, well, then you have to rent it to me, ok? stop judging and let me watch this crap in peace. oh, and by the way, you have BO so who are you to judge me?? take a shower and ring me up, stinky.
* this place *always* smells. BO and cigarettes mingle horrifically and you always leave feeling a little funky.
* they are often out of things that you want and they never seem to get returned.
* pricey.
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if Blockbuster satisfies all your needs, then Cinefile probably isn't your cup of tea.
I think the porn section in Cinefile is bigger than the new release section. we ain't in Kansas no more, Toto, and this ain't your run-of-the-mill homogenized McStarbuckster video store either!
the selection of foreign films is drool-worthy for anyone who has a soft spot for old french films (like me). a big chunk of the DVDs (most, if not all, of the foreign language ones) are organized by directors, so good luck finding a DVD if you don't know who directed the film. movies like The Breakfast Club or How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days are probably under "Comedy" or "Romance", but if you're looking for movies like that, you're probably better off at Blockbuster where it's cheaper.
if you like foreign films, obscure films, or lots o' porn, Cinefile will rock your world. I'd do the Netflix-esque monthly flat-rate deal if you're planning on renting more than two movies a month. it'll save you some buckaroos in the long term.
why don't you stop by, browse the selection, and then decide? I think Cinefile is one of those videostores where you either love or hate what it offers, but it's still worthwhile to see what a non-Blockbuster video store actually looks like. the guys and girls who work here are cool and always interesting. there are two guys that are always arguing and yelling at each other about something. I get a big kick out of them. it's hard to find a nearby place to park on the street, so try to park in the lot behind the hookah place and the used bookstore. watch out though, because it's a two-way one-car alley!
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It's the "Land of Misfit Films," an emporium of independent, foreign, and hard-to-find classics on the busy southwest corner of Sawtelle and Santa Monica Boulevard. More like those fast-disappearing independent record stores (did you just blink because one just disappeared) that you used to haunt until the siren song of iTunes pulled you into its sterile embrace, Cinefile is a scruffy anachronism and speaks to a time when you actually had to touch merchandise and ask real (and knowledgeable) people about your purchase. The atmosphere is one part cantina from "Star Wars" and three parts cinemaphilistic roadhouse bar (without the drinks or dopey old Patrick Swayze). I challenge you to wander the aisles and to be amazed by their peculiar, but strangely compelling filing system. Stop by and ask for "Robert," who will happily regale you with his encyclopedic film lore. If you see him, ask him about "The Night at the Opera." If he looks confused, lean forward and whisper, "Watch your back. Delta Green!" before leaving with your armload of DVDs and videos.
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An asset to the community.
Their collection isn't comprehensive, but I'm always appalled when they don't have something, so yeah, it's damn impressive. The film geeks behind the counter don't make a concerted effort to convince you that your ass doesn't stink but they're extremely knowledgable and happy to help/flex their cinephilic muscle. The hassle the organizational system can some times present nonetheless yields enough humor (e.g., "Shade Tippin'" (which is crowned by an autographed-by-Tom-Cruise copy of the Risky Business LP signed "Keep on tippin"); "Holy Fucking Shit" (a personal fave)) to make it worthwhile. Not really dependable as a new release resource as they only get in a handful of copies at maximum. Netflix-ish three-at-a-time deal is very much worthwhile if you live in the vicinity. Parking can occasionally be a drag. Their porn library is not something I've delved into but it's nice to know it's there.
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This has to be the WORST place in town - after being spoken to in such an acid tone I should apparently apologize for living (if I want aggravation, I can just go to my job), I decided that was a fluke and I'd give the place another chance. Because there's no parking and not much of a spot to even pull over out of the way in heavy traffic, after going around the block a couple of times, my friend let me out of the car so I could return a non-late video through the slot. Simple enough, right? The jerk behind the counter must have jumped over it in order to run out the door about to go postal because the place was still open and I didn't walk in to return it - this nutcase was screaming at me on the sidewalk to the point that one customer at the cafe next door was getting out his camera to record it. I'm told they hire only friends to work there, which results in some odd kind of inbreeding, hostility raised to psychopath level - a living laboratory in how to drive customers away. I got into the car asking myself if this guy was likely to get physical. I'd like to see him try the same thing with a guy 6'10" and 300 pounds - I'd rent a video of that! I like to think Dale Carnegie is serving time by now, but the staff is uniformly caustic - they seem to greatly enjoy having their counter so high you should feel diminished, it's the same psychological trick used in courtrooms, the judge is ten feet up there, you're a worm, all the better to talk down to you. It's worth going out of your way to get to Vidiots or anywhere else!
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