Screen gems

Favorite films or TV shows on tape are the way to a cinephile's heart

by Peg Aloi

With the falling prices of DVD players, VCRs and videotapes just might be poised to go the way of turntables and albums. (Um, you remember those flat, black vinyl discs they used to record music on? Where there was actually room for cover art on the packaging? Oh, never mind.) Then again, laser discs have not necessarily made such a huge dent in the video market, so it's still a safe bet that videos are an excellent choice for a holiday gift. Most people are not gonna dump their videotape collections just because they get a new iMac DV machine. I mean, you still have some records somewhere. Don't you? Well, okay, maybe you don't (all the more Tull and Country Joe and the Fish LPs for me to scrounge for at Second Coming Records). But I'll wager you a Blair Witch Project dossier that most of your friends would love to get a movie or two for Christmas.

Desktop video Ordering online is a snap. Naturally, those corporate giants have everything you need, but there are also some smaller companies that specialize in hard-to-find stuff. Try these sites out for all your obscure video needs. Mystic Fire Video (http://www.mysticfire.com) Specializing in categories such as "Adventures of Consciousness," "Ancient Cultures," "Women of Power," and "Beat Poets," this company caters to those with large, wide-open minds. Anaïs Nin, the Dalai Lama, Terrence McKenna, Joseph Campbell, Maya Deren -- they're all here, along with hard-to-find titles such as Derek Jarman's masterpiece War Requiem and the French-language version of Sorceress. Kino on Video (http://www.kino.com) Rare and hard-to-get foreign films and restored classics, such as Paradjanov's The Color of Pomegranates and the 1957 pre-Pitt version of Seven Years in Tibet. Video Wasteland (http://www.slaughter.net/videowasteland) This site has plenty of tapes and DVDs for sale, as well as cool posters, T-shirts, and memorabilia. Horror and B-movie buffs will find it all, from Suspiria to Satan's Supper to Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama (and that's just under "S"). Video Eyeball Magazine (http://www.tiac.net/users/videoeye) The Boston-based magazine just put out a great "Drive-In" issue, which you can order here, along with other back issues. The site also links you to some other great places to shop, such as Tai Seng Video (http://www.taiseng.com, all Asian, all the time) and Something Weird Video (http://www.somethingweird.com, just like it sounds). -- PA

But what to get? Tongue-in-cheek commercials aside, is anyone going to buy the aforementioned indie horror flick for anyone who didn't specifically ask for it? Daunting as those rental categories at the video store can be, most people have two or three favorite aisles. (Me, I like Horror, Foreign, Animation, and Cult -- unless it's one of those wonderful places where titles are arranged by director or country, in which case look for me by Roeg, Russell, Leigh, Taiwan, and Australia.) Purchasing videotapes is like buying clothes for people -- it doesn't necessarily need to be a perfect fit, but get the wrong color and the recipient might be bummed. A movie choice meant to match the quirky personality of your friend or sister or aunt must show some forethought, some sensitivity, some intuition. Barring that, get what you like, and promise to bring the treats when you sit down to watch it together.

Where to get 'em
I am assuming you actually want to put your grubby little hands on the gifts you are buying. (If you want to shop online, and there are some great places to do that, see "Desktop Video," right.) Most video stores sell tapes, and some sell them both new and "previously viewed." That means used, of course, but since these often come with a one-year guarantee (at least at Videosmith) and cost a fraction of the original price, this is a good deal for those people on your list who understand that your meals often consist of beans and rice washed down with the occasional bottle of Wild Irish Rose. Pawing through the selection of tapes for sale is time consuming, but it's a good way to find an unexpected treat for yourself or the vidheads on your list. And you need not limit your choices to new releases: movies, just like songs, can be a great blast from the past (touching, scary, or otherwise) -- and viewing films more than once is something many people seem to enjoy, especially if it's some cult classic like Freaks or Pink Flamingos.

At Brookline's Videosmith, for example (where, the manager tells me, they are selling far fewer tapes than they used to but will special order anything you want), I found many great movies at prices ranging from $14.95 (such as Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, Nadja -- a cool indie vampire flick -- and Paradise, Hawaiian Style) to $29.99 (Paul Bowles in Morocco, Errol Morris's Fast, Cheap & Out of Control). You can get Enchanted April or Wings of the Dove (arty chick flicks, the latter far sexier than the former), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's

Just-for-you packages Stoner 1: The Wizard of Oz and an LP (not CD!) version of Dark Side of the Moon. You know what to do. Stoner 2: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Candyland game, any CD by the Lemonheads, 1-pound bag of M&M's. Couch Potato: Rental coupons from your recipient's local video store, box of microwave popcorn, gift certificates for local pizza joint that delivers. Neo-Pagan: The Wicker Man, Sneaker Pimps CD with the song "How Do," used copy of The Golden Bough, bag of apples. Ghouls' Night Out: Night of the Living Dead, Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things, and Cannibal Holocaust. Claymation Playstation: The Nightmare Before Christmas, Svankmajer's Faust, and anything by the Brothers Quay (from Kino on Video). Goth (dark): The Devils or The Reflecting Skin; book of poetry by Baudelaire or Keats; red contact lenses; bottle of absinthe. Goth (perky): The Crow or Edward Scissorhands; collection of Sandman comics; black nail polish; bottle of Jägermeister. -- PA

Nest, or Basquiat (David Bowie plays Andy Warhol -- can't tell them apart at all), for $19.99 each. Or The Manchurian Candidate, High Plains Drifter, or The Commitments. And for the kids: Antz, The Dark Crystal (lotsa grown-ups like this one, too), or the complete episodes of My So-Called Life ($39.99). Yes, television shows on tape are a great gift, especially when they are great shows that got canceled (like Twin Peaks, episodes one through five, for $14.95), or crass stuff that you want to memorize every word of (South Park, three episodes for $29.99). If this multi-pack thing sounds good, how about a complete set of Nightmare on Elm Street (seven-tape set, $89.99)? You can also purchase rental coupons or gift certificates of various denominations.

Mike's Movies in the South End (557 Tremont Street, 617-266-9222) has rental coupons, too, and the shop is known for a quick turnaround on special orders for more esoteric fare. Manager Jeff Bergstrom says the store also tries to make plenty of adult gay videos available. "Basically, they disappear off the shelves as soon as we get something new, but we try to replenish it once a week." And what about that hard-to-find copy of Parting Glances or Desert Hearts? "Even if our usual sources don't have it, they try to help us get it from someone else."

You could give the gift of a new VCR to go with that tape. But consider these cheaper options, available at your local video store.

Film magazines
Okay, these are a guilty pleasure for any cineaste -- especially the glossy, expensive ones or the trashy, obscure ones. Your friend who is a budding Harmony Korine will surely appreciate a couple mags as a stocking stuffer; while you're at it, get him or her a subscription to go with those single issues (the gift that keeps on giving, at least for a year). The Brookline Videosmith has an excellent selection, including mainstream publications such as Entertainment Weekly and American Cinematographer, as well as Cinefantastique, Bikini, and other horror, sci-fi, and indie mags. And don't forget the locally produced Video Eyeball, the "Video Suggestion Rag with Optic Nerve."

Candy
You can get Twizzlers or Altoids or Circus Peanuts and other treats at CVS or whatever pharmacy has put your neighborhood mom-and-pop drugstore out of business. But Videosmith has gone out of its way to bring you some odd but tasty sweets, such as cotton candy in a bag, Scooby-Doo Chocolate Bars, and even Hothead Paisan's Homicidal Lesbian Terrorist Booster Bars (made, naturally, in Northampton). They're all there at the checkout -- what could be more manipulative . . . er, convenient?