Back in March, we told you about YEAH!, a website that offers interactive movie rentals. In preparation for this weekend’s opening of Kick-Ass 2, I got a chance to try it out on the original 2010 film Kick-Ass. Read my thoughts on the experience after the break.
For only $4.99, you can rent a movie from YEAH! for a period of 48 hours. However, you get much more than the movie. While your film streams, underneath is a treasure cove of content. You’ll get a text commentary that syncs up with the film, giving you lots of cool behind-the-scenes facts. To change things up, there are videos periodically throughout the movie from the filmmakers for even more insight. For Kick-Ass, there’s 20 minutes total with the comic book creator Mark Millar, 15 minutes with actor Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and 14 minutes with Kick-Ass 2 director Jeff Wadlow. There are even quizzes and polls sprinkled throughout to get you even more involved.
Overall, I loved this interactive experience. I already am a fan of Kick-Ass, so learning even more about about the filmmaking process as we see it on screen is a real treat. The personality of the text commentary is fun and humorous, which prevents it from getting dull. It also provides links when appropriate, like to Spotify when a cool song is playing in the movie, or Wikipedia if you want to learn more about a topic being brought up. I was genuinely surprised by how much information was provided. Despite being a cinephile, I feel like I knew nothing about the film.
You can save a dollar or two renting movies online elsewhere, but if you are looking to get the most bang for your buck, YEAH! is the way to go.