By Raquel Stecher
In July of 2002, I signed up for DVD Netflix for the very first time. My friend Amit who had been a member of the service from the very beginning kept telling me how much he loved renting from them and how easy it was to return DVDs in the mail. He kept bugging me about it until I finally caved. I’m so glad I listened to him.
For the first few years, I was a member off and on, depending on whether I was studying in college (both undergrad and grad school years) and had too much on my plate. But after that point, I stuck with the service and it has been my go-to for my unique brand of movie watching. I love to take deep dives into my favorite genres and the work of my favorite actors and actresses. In 2002, I was a huge fan of period pieces and literary adaptations. I would also use DVD Netflix as a way to catch up with the new releases I missed out on in the theater.
When I recently took a look back into my DVD rental history from those early days, I noticed most were 2000 and 2001 films I wanted to catch up on. I always made sure I rated every film I saw and it was interesting to see how many stars I gave each film. In some cases, my opinion has changed; in others, I still feel strongly about the film and stand by my 5-star rating. In a few other cases, I forgot I had even seen the movie.
If you’re curious about your own DVD rental history and want to know how to look through yours, here are the details:
On the desktop site, log into your account and go to the History section of your queue. This will show you your entire history of what you’ve rented from DVD Netflix, from the very beginning to present day. If you’re like me and have been a subscriber to the service for a very long time, it might take a moment to load your ginormous rental history.
On the DVD Netflix app, tap on Queue at the bottom of the screen. Tap on the History section and scroll down as much as you like.
Here is a list of 10 films from 2000 and 2001 that I rented from DVD Netflix during my first year as a member and the star ratings I gave them!
1. Wonder Boys (2000)
Rented July 2002 (This was my first-ever DVD rental!)
Directed by Curtis Hanson, this endearing slice of life centers on unraveling English professor Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas), who's forced to confront his writer's block, fear of aging and irresponsibility as he watches a student (Tobey Maguire) surpass him. Meanwhile, he contends with the consequences of an affair and fends off the advances of a young boarder (Katie Holmes). Steve Kloves earned an Oscar nod for his script.
2. Chocolat (2000)
Rented July 2002
A single mother and her young daughter move into a peaceful French village and open a chocolate shop during the height of Lent. At first, the shop's rich, sensuous desserts scandalize the town. But the villagers soon learn to savor the sweetness.
3. The Great Gatsby (2000)
Rented August 2002
Nick Carraway (Paul Rudd) narrates the calamitous story of his neighbor, the extravagant Jay Gatsby (Toby Stephens), who is single-mindedly attempting to rekindle his lost romance with Nick's now-married cousin, Daisy (Mira Sorvino). But jealousy, revenge and misinformation prove to be a deadly combination in this classic tragedy set amid the volatile 1920s Jazz Age, adapted from the book by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
4. Charlotte Gray (2001)
Rented August 2002
A Scottish woman searching for her missing pilot boyfriend during World War II must choose between finding her lost love and taking a stand when she meets a local farmer and his son, a leader in the resistance who's harboring two Jewish children.
5. The Affair of the Necklace (2001)
Rented August 2002
When she and her family have their royal titles stripped by the crown, 18th-century French countess Jeanne de la Motte Valois (Hilary Swank) schemes with her lover (Simon Baker), her husband (Adrien Brody) and a mysterious Italian count (Christopher Walken) to obtain a diamond necklace worth millions. Joely Richardson co-stars as French queen Marie Antoinette in this period drama that earned an Oscar nod for its lavish costumes.
6. Memento (2000)
Rented August 2002
Suffering short-term memory loss after a head injury, Leonard Shelby embarks on a grim quest to find out who murdered his wife. Shelby snaps Polaroids of people and places, jotting down contextual notes on the backs of photos to aid in his search.
7. Songcatcher (2000)
Rented September 2002
During a visit to her sister in Appalachia, a gifted musicologist stumbles upon a musical treasure trove of dozens of Scots-Irish ballads that have been preserved for generations by the local populace and are unknown to the outside world.
8. Original Sin (2001)
Rented September 2002
Wealthy Cuban landowner Luis Vargas sends away for a plain-Jane bride. But when she arrives and turns out to be stunningly beautiful, Vargas is putty in her hands, which is a bad thing, since his new wife turns out to be a cunning con artist.
9. Amelie (2001)
Rented October 2002
When impish Amélie finds a long-hidden trove of toys behind a baseboard in her apartment, she's inspired to return the items to their original owner, an impulse of generosity that sparks more benevolent acts.
10. Monster’s Ball (2001)
Rented October 2002
Death row in the Louisiana State Penitentiary is the hothouse backdrop for this hard-hitting drama about a racist prison guard who falls in love with the African American wife of a condemned man he helped execute.
Raquel Stecher has been writing about classic films for the past decade on her blog Out of the Past. She attends the TCM Classic Film Festival as well as other events where old movie fanatics get together to geek out. Raquel has been a devoted DVD Netflix member since 2002! Follow her on her blog Out of the Past, or find her on Twitter @RaquelStecher and @ClassicFilmRead, Facebook, and Instagram.