by Jason Daniel Baker

Created on: January 22, 2012

In my neighborhood you'd be hard-pressed to find a convenience store that doesn't have a small box of bootlegged (illegally reproduced copies of first-run feature films) openly for sale. The price is generally five dollars apiece or three for ten bucks. Some kids steal them if they are out in the open (and in some places they are openly sold on sidewalks). The five-finger discount makes it even more cost effective and its not like the vendor is gonna call a cop.

In a big city like the one I live in the cost of seeing a first run feature in the theater is generally about twelve dollars. There are exceptions to this price but in general if you want to see a recent film at a convenient time on a decent sized screen you are looking at twelve bucks if you are going by yourself or just aren't treating somebody else.

Snacks are extra and the mark up on those (difference from the store bought price and snack bar price) is roughly 300%. Parking costs money too and adds to the overall price if you drive there. So does gas if its far. If you're treating a date you could come out of the evening fifty bucks lighter and the movie may even blow.

DVD rental in the city is generally between three and five dollars each depending upon the place you rent from and the flick you're renting. To put it succinctly and in laymen's terms the price of a boot is way less than seeing a flick on the big-screen and roughly the same as renting. To put it bluntly it is a no-brainer for people on budget to buy a booted copy and watch it at home instead of going to the theater then maybe or maybe not share it with a family member or friend or neighbour who shell out nothing or perhaps a fraction of the cost as consideration.

But beyond the illegality there are other drawbacks to buying booted flicks. To begin with the quality varies wildly. You pays yer money and you takes your chances. The range goes from video store rental quality to "dude-shooting-it-from-inside-his-jacket-or-duffle-b ag". The second one is the nightmare scenario but there are varying degrees of boots which are not quite as bad yet still have problems.

The nightmare of a badly bootlegged DVD is worsened when you watch it with somebody especially if you're the one who bought it. The worst experiences of some which are related online in forums and chatrooms provide exemplars of some of the major drawbacks a consumer can expect from a really bad boot.


The "Dude-Shooting-It-From-Inside-His-Jacket-Or-Duffle-B ag" Movie Experience

One film

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