Where to Get Your DVDs in Austin

Last year (and the year before that) I had the distinct pleasure of accompanying several of FF's international guests to some of the local DVD shoppes. Which store it was doesn't really matter at this point, but there's something really fun about watching Brits drool over cheap Chucky sequels, Aussies ogling the J-horror shelf, and the Finns fondling Freaks.

So as a service to this year's friends (both new and old), I thought it would be a good idea to point you in a few digital directions. Lord knows we'll probably have more than one road trip to some of these locations:

Waterloo (600 N. Lamar) -- Easily the closest option, cool staff, right next to a great ice cream place, and they sell music too!

Vulcan Video (609 W. 29th Street) -- Huge selection, late hours, opinionated employees who KNOW THEIR SHIZ Mostly rentals, but still worth a visit.

I Luv Video (2915 Guadalupe) -- My personal favorite, although all three are great options. All you need to do is pick through their website to see the kind of movie geeks we're dealing with. Plus how many DVD stores do you know that stay open till 3am? Exactly. AND they have a second location right near the airport -- just in case you forgot to do your shopping. Also mostly rentals, but these stores would LOVE to find and order you a copy of Humanoids from the Deep. That's just an example, but I would love a copy of that DVD, actually.

Best Buy (4970 W. Highway 290 -- aka "71 & Mopac") -- Nothing against Big Blue, but in a city like Austin I think it's a bit more appropriate to give your DVD dollars to the "smaller guys" -- though it's tough to ignore BB's new release specials. Either way you will want to visit BB to snag a few vintage Fantastic Fest titles, because that's the only way you can snag a free promo DVD that celebrates FF '08! (More info right here.) Plus, c'mon, Best Buy is like a wo/man-child's favorite toy store. You know you can't afford anything, so you just stare at all the shiny gizmos before dropping 12 bucks on the (excellent) new Child's Play DVD. And then maybe some ice cream on the way home.

And the Quint Special: Located right near the Best Buy is one friend's very favorite place to purchase the platters. It's called Buybacks and I certainly look forward to my first visit. Says AICN's Quint: "I owe at least a quarter of my DVD collection to Buybacks. Obscure, classics, cult, Criterion, they have them all at the best used prices I've ever seen."

So there you go. Nobody should leave Austin without a few good bargains under their arms. Bring an extra suitcase. And let me know when you're going shopping because I still need that new Pumpkinhead special edition.