Ryan McNeil
Last week, I got so wrapped up in Academy Award prediction babble, that I neglected to mention a local happening. Here in Toronto, we had a pretty nasty six-alarm fire downtown. It took fire crews hours to get it under control, but by the time they did, a sizable chunk of the 100 year-old structure had been gutted. Amongst the casualties of businesses and residences that were completely destroyed was Suspect Video.
I have the greatest admiration for shops like Suspect. With companies like Blockbuster and Rogers dominating the home entertainment landscape, shops like Suspect that have a true passion for movies truly offer more possibilities. They specialize in more obscure videos…cult films, out-of-print classics, foreign gems, indie darlings and low-budget horror creep fests. Trying to find a copy of THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI? They have it.
Y’know, there are times when I deal with the clerks at the big-business video places, and I get the hunch they don’t know who Dario Argento or Michael Antonioni are…let alone whether or not they have movies by them in stock. I’m not saying a minimum-wage video store worker needs to be a film-lit graduate, but it’s nice to deal with people that have enthusiasm for movies that don’t star Vin Diesel.
The bright side of the story is that Suspect had two locations, so while a good chunk of their vast collection met a sad, melted end, it isn’t the end for this wacky bunch of popcorn rats. Still, it was a pretty sad day for anyone who wanted to rent something not named WILD HOGS. But on the bright side, they seem to be taking it rather well…