Netflix Is Releasing a Film About the Last Blockbuster Video Store

Strange but true: Early in Netflix’s history — back when it was still a company that sent people DVDs in the mail in little red envelopes — Blockbuster Video had a chance to buy the entire company. They didn’t, and in a few short years Netflix not only became Blockbuster’s biggest competitor, they essentially put the company out of business, along with almost all of the country’s brick-and-mortar video stores.

Today, just one Blockbuster remains: The outlet in Bend, Oregon. Now that it is literally the last Blockbuster on the planet, the store has become an object of some fascination. It was recently turned into an Airbnb for a special contest, and now it is the subject of a documentary called The Last Blockbuster. And, in a supremely ironic twist, the film is about to premiere on Netflix, the company that essentially pushed Blockbuster out of the industry in the first place.

Directed by Taylor Morden, the doc takes you inside the last Blockbuster and features appearances by numerous comedians and filmmakers. Here’s the movie’s trailer:

The film’s official synopsis:

From 9,000 locations... down to just one. The Last Blockbuster is a fun, nostalgic feature length documentary film about the rise and fall of Blockbuster video and how one small town store managed to outlast a corporate giant.

The Last Blockbuster premieres on Netflix on March 15 — next Monday. When it’s over, you don’t even have to be kind or rewind. That’s the real magic of streaming.

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