I've been a member for years and love the staff! You either "get" this place or you don't. I particularly like renting their bizarre 70s and 80s cartoons and children's films like The 12 Tasks of Asterix or The Great Land of Small. They also have an excellent assortment of genre and subgenre films. Just ask; their knowledge is sometimes scary.

Cinefile isn't the place to go to find the newest Ashton Kutcher movie. It isn't a place for video games at all. But just like you don't go to sushi restaurants for chicken fingers, you don't go to Cinefile for mainstream pop cinema and "Halo 2."

The setup of the store keeps every movie geek in mind with sections by the basic genres like horror and more specific genres like "evil eye movies" as well as sections by country of origin and sections by directors. Most anything a film student could want is here, and many of the rental films are even for sale to those interested. Out of print, VHS-only, and other obscure finds are also here, even the occasional film on a consumer burned DVD.

The prices aren't bad, unless you're renting a new release, and the rentals are for five days, mostly. And for the junkiest of film junky, they offer package deals for habitual renters. But fear not, even if you don't know who Fassbinder is or the original Japanese names of all of Kurosawa's films, you can still find that just-below-Blockbuster's-radar flick that friend of yours kept telling you that you absolutely had to see if you found it.

This place is a little packed but they offer a wide selection of foreign movies, which i like! But well, forget about the big aisles, this is a place where you have to search... The staff is pretty helpful (they can give you real good suggestions) and nice. However, the hours and prices are not the best. Besides, the location is a little problematic because Santa Monica blv tends to be real congested in traffic hours so forget about getting off work and heading to Cinefile!

PROS: wide range of foreign movies
CONS: business hours

Amazing selection and diversity of films. Any genre or type of movie you feel like seeing is here. Go here if you want to find a movie you can't find anywhere else, and chances are they have it, or can dig it up. Prices are good, considering the rarity of some titles, and the staff are true movie buffs that can recommend a little-known gem to satisfy your needs.

Excuse the smell, people sometimes smoke in here sometimes. Maybe even reeffer too. They have a good selection of movies organized into categories like speghetti westerns and horror franchises.

PROS: open till midnight 7 days a week (should be later though)
CONS: Constantly playing bad movies or music