Greencine.com Website Review & Ratings + GreenCine Coupons

GreenCine is an online store, award-winning rental and source for film addicts, a specialist in eclectic, obscure, independent films and hidden gems, boasting more than 50,000 titles of over 250 genres for rent.
Based in Van Nuys and Canoga Park, Calif., and reaching an audience of over 3.5 million monthly, GreenCine offers:

• Rent:  DVDs from over 50,000 titles;
• Sale:  Now people can buy brand-new DVDs with free Priority Shipping on all orders over $50;  
• Explore:  Exclusive interviews with the world's best filmmakers, breaking news, onsite coverage of major film festivals, genre and film movement primers and award-winning blog, GreenCine Daily;
• Share:  Join one of the largest film communities on the Web, create and expand your profile, voice your opinions, share your tastes and connect with other members.

In their rental business, GreenCine features:

• Rent-by-Mail subscription, the best in independent, international and documentary, titles that can't be found anywhere else;
• Free shipping straight to customer’s home with DVDs mailed with cardboard protectors;
• No restriction on the number of disks checked out at any plan level (for example, at 2-out level, no maximum of four movies per month);
• No artificial slowdown ("throttling") after a customer has been a member for several months;
• NC-17 and adult titles where permitted by state regulations at no extra cost. Content filters available too;  
• Processing also on Saturdays;
• Customers may keep DVDs as long as they like;
• No minimum contract;
• No late fees;
• Customers may cancel their subscription anytime -- no extra fee;
• Gift packages available;
• Website includes film reviews and lists to help customers make their choice.

GreenCine offers the best value for customers’ subscription dollar, satisfies customers with top-rated service and delivers where other major services skimp out.

GreenCine offers a choice of six rental plans:
1 DVD at a time for $9.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
2 DVDs at a time for $14.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
3 DVDs at a time for $21.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
4 DVDs at a time for $27.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
5 DVDs at a time for $33.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
8 DVDs at a time for $49.95 per month, no monthly rental limit

People may sign up for an account so that they can purchase DVDs (free Priority Shipping for all orders over $50) or watch Video-on-Demand.   There is no monthly fee.   They will be charged per each individual transaction.   Presently, however, GreenCine does not ship internationally.   People may also sign up for GreenCine's DVD rental membership.

Compared with the major players in the DVD rental business with one running 1700 outlets across the United States and also globally operating in 17 countries, there must be a strong reason why GreenCine, a small rental online operator without any brick-and-mortar outlet, could be acclaimed as the best DVD rental store.

These are the specific characteristics of this DVD rental store GreenCine, which set them apart and as better than their competitors in the marketplace:

• Extracts from two media -- "Greencine’s movies cater for a more selective audience than Netflix, with a large selection of foreign, documentary, anime and indie titles." (Product Reviews).   "GreenCine caters to a different group of film lovers, with large collection of indie, foreign, anime, documentary films, and rare hard-to-find titles. But that doesn't mean you won't find any mainstream movies here. They have all of the Indian Jones and Star Wars movies, and even one of the Harry Potter films." (Business Insider)
• Exclusive interviews with the world's best filmmakers, breaking news, onsite coverage of major film festivals, genre and film movement primers and award-winning blog, GreenCine Daily, as well as a platform for the largest film communities on the Web.
• The best value for customers’ subscription dollar, satisfying customers with top-rated service where other major services skimp out (just an example, GreenCine keeps on processing even on Saturdays, in order to speed up mailing rented DVDs to customers).

Netflix and Blockbuster doubtless are presently occupying top positions in the movie & TV episode streaming and DVD rental business.   This being the case, we’ll pick these two to compare with GreenCine.

Netflix, based in Los Gatos, Calif. 95032, is a leading online subscription service for enjoying movies and TV shows through their streaming service as well as DVD rental business.   This provider serves 25 million streaming members globally, exclusively through the Internet even for their DVD rental, without having any rental store location.    

In July 2011, Netflix announced a price increase, to take effect for charges on or after September 1, 2011.   Their former $9.99 a month membership for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs is split into two distinct plans -- unlimited streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month and unlimited DVDs, 1 out at-a-time (no streaming) for $7.99 a month.   The price for getting both of these plans becomes $15.98 a month ($7.99 + $7.99), instead of the old price of $9.99/month for both (a 60% increase).   Netflix then made public that Netflix.com would remain but only to handle video streaming, while DVD-by-mail service would be completely separated in a new website under the name of “Qwikster”.  

Netflix subscribers were aghast by the steep price hike.   Many dropped out of the service.   Membership plunged to 800,000 fewer subscribers in the United States than in the previous quarter, its first decline in years.   Netflix stock has dropped about 50 percent since the July price hike announcement.   In the latest twist in Netflix business history, Netflix has abandoned their plan to split their DVD rental under the name  Qwikster.com.   Due to customers’ widespread complaint, Netflix has backed off from the plan and is going to keep Netflix for streaming as well as for DVDs, which means no change: one website, one account, one password.   However, the price increase remains unchanged.

With store locations across the United States and more than 2,600 stores abroad, Blockbuster is recognized as a world leader in rentable home entertainment.    This rental store also operates online.    Blockbuster online as well as their over-the-counter stores offer more than 100,000 titles, from cinema classics to the hottest new releases.

However, Blockbuster filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sep. 23, 2010, battered by other online and mail-order services and showing about $1 billion in assets and $1.46 billion in debt.    The company was striving to shed their debt and reorganize to survive the rivalry.   The latest news is that DISH Network, a leading provider of America's favorite TV entertainment, has joined with Blockbuster.

Netflix and Blockbuster as the powerhouses in the movie and DVD rental business have more facilities at their disposal and in this, GreenCine compares negatively.   On the other hand, GreenCine caters for a more selective audience, a different group of film lovers, than Netflix or Blockbuster, with a large selection of foreign, documentary, anime and indie titles.   GreenCine is also actively involved in both the filmmaking and movie enthusiasts’ communities, besides being almost fanatically inclined to serving their customers.   These are the characteristics that make GreenCine compare positively in the rivalry.

Can GreenCine stand the rivalry of their formidable competitors Netflix and Blockbuster?   We’ll see now.

GreenCine's DVD rental membership costs:
1 DVD at a time for $9.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
2 DVDs at a time for $14.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
3 DVDs at a time for $21.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
4 DVDs at a time for $27.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
5 DVDs at a time for $33.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
8 DVDs at a time for $49.95 per month, no monthly rental limit
No additional fee is charged for blu-ray discs.
Presently, GreenCine offers no free trial.
Currently, movie or TV episode streaming is still not possible.
NC-17 and adult titles where permitted by state regulations are available at no extra cost.   
Processing is also done on Saturdays, speeding up DVD mailing in customers’ favor.
GreenCine does not practice artificial slowdown ("throttling") after a customer has been a member for several months.
DVDs are mailed with cardboard protectors

Netflix’s DVD rental membership is:
1 DVD at a time for $7.99, no monthly rental limit (no streaming)
2 DVDs at a time for $11.99, no monthly rental limit (no streaming)
while their streaming service costs:
$7.99 a month for unlimited streaming (no DVDs).
Customers can include in their account access to blu-ray discs for an additional $2 a month.
Free 2-week trial is provided.
Customers can download movies and watch them right away (choice of 10,000).

Blockbuster offers DVD rental membership as follows:
$9.99 per month - 1 DVD at a time, no monthly rental limit and unlimited free exchanges*)
$14.99 per month - 2 DVDs at a time, no monthly rental limit and unlimited free exchanges
$19.99 per month - 3 DVDs at a time, no monthly rental limit and unlimited free exchanges
No additional is charged for blu-ray discs.
First month half price promotion is provided.
Free in-store exchanges are available.
Movie download service is available.
*) Subject to certain terms as defined on Blockbuster’s website, a free exchange means a Total Access subscriber may exchange online rentals for free in-store movie rentals at participating Blockbuster stores.

It is apparent from the above extracts, that GreenCine is still competitive, especially considering that this rental store offers films that customers might otherwise not get to see from other stores or allows customers access to titles that Netflix or Blockbuster could never provide.   This is evidenced by many positive reviews received from customers.

There are a lot of reviews about GreenCine on the Web, many comparing this rental with Netflix or Blockbuster, but mostly the feedback is positive.   

Published on MoviesInHouse.com:   
I'm a huge fan of foreign films and this company is perfect for me. They have a ton of movies that are not at Netflix or Blockbuster and they are usually always in stock. Their interface isn't as nice as the others but it still gets the job done. I live in Texas, so the DVDs usually take about 2 days to get to them and 2 days to get returned. Not as fast as Netflix in my area but I'll deal with it to get some rare stuff that would cost a fortune to buy from an overseas vendor.
- Davey J., May 30, 2008    

Published on Yelp.com:            
GreenCine is Netflix's edgier stepsister. A $10-$30 monthly membership fee will buy you unlimited rental access to their dizzyingly massive collection of rare exploitation films, esoteric cult films, independent films, vintage porn, b-movies, art house flicks, anime (the largest collection on the internet- doesn't interest me in the slightest), as well as standard new releases. They ship from Van Nuys, CA, so expect 2-3 days for west coast deliveries and 3-5 days for east coast. Overall, this is an excellent option for any vainglorious self-appointed film connoisseur, or for those sequestered in a town with limited access to NC-17 films.                          - Carly A., Los Angeles, Calif., Feb. 25, 2008

Published on USDVDRentalWebsites.com:                                                                                                                                My favorite part of using GreenCine are the great articles, primers, and interviews they publish. It feels good to support a website that contributes to content to the film community. For example, they recently did a great list "Most Disturbing Movies" and I was able to rent a lot of obscure films from that list that weren't available elsewhere. The site looks dated but it's still easy to get around. Member lists are great. I live in LA and usually get my movies from them in 2-3 days. I have a 2 DVD plan at $15 a month, a little pricier than other services but worth it in the end.                            
- Leticia, Los Angeles, Calif., Feb. 2, 2011