In the heyday of video stores, driving to a brick-and-mortar to rent a movie from a limited selection of titles didn't prompt gaffaws — instead, business was booming. Netflix didn't exist, computers and tablets hadn't made their appearance and "streaming" held no meaning.
Fast-forward to the present: Blockbuster cards are obsolete, and news of an imminent video store is pretty much unheard of — until now. Gorilla Cinema, the group behind The Shining-themed bar Overlook Lodge in Pleasant Ridge, is putting the finishing touches on The Video Archive, a rental store inspired by Quentin Tarantino.
"We've all loved having movies in our life so long that we can't remember a time when we didn't," says Gorilla Cinema co-founder Jacob Treviño. Scheduled to open in October, the shop will offer everything from mainstream hits to cult classics and indie darlings on DVD and VHS in the hope that it will appeal to and be explored by a new generation of users.
The Video Archive is an homage to the video store where Tarantino got his start and wrote modern classics like Reservoir Dogs, True Romance and Pulp Fiction. And like the best Tarantino films, much of the project is shrouded in mystery. The Archive will open at 965 E. McMillan St. in Walnut Hills, and according to the Cincinnati Business Courier, a liquor license is attached to the address.
"For us, it's always been about projecting wonder and hiding secrets within all of our concepts," Treviño says. "This is no different. As with all of our concepts, there's more than meets the eye."
For more information about THE VIDEO ARCHIVE, visit gorillacinemapresents.com.
