Nostalgic DVD Menus & Bonus Features: Why We Miss Them
DVD Menus and Bonus Features: Why We Miss Them
Welcome to MsMojo, and today well be discussing that nostalgic center in our brain, and how it's connected to that warm, cathode ray glow of menus and bonus features present on our old DVDs.
The history of home video dates all the way back to pre-VHS formats such as home reel-to-reels, while the mighty VCR dominated much of the household viewing habits throughout the late 1970s and into the 80s. The DVD boom occurred primarily during the late 1990s and early millennium. This was a period when many movie fans were updating their old VHS tapes for DVD discs that arrived with something new: menu screens.
The truth is that many Hollywood insiders and A-listers, as recently as 2024, have discussed the continued relevance of home video and physical media, including, of course, DVD and Blu-ray discs. Kevin Costner even commented to Deadline about how no company is going to leave any amount of money on the table. This is despite chain stores like Best Buy removing discs from their shelves, and Disney subcontracting the production of their physical media discs to Sony. Its a crossroads of sorts thats seen the DVD formats popularity decline significantly since the 2010s, while at the same time being embraced by a youth culture thats increasingly attached to the memories of our physical media legacy.
So yeah, the home video market certainly isnt what it used to be, but many of us possess very powerful core memories about those animated DVD menus and how they spoke to us during our youth. Nostalgia can be a very powerful beast, after all. Every generation misses what was around during their formative years. Physical media has consistently evolved, as well, with older viewers remembering the eras of VHS, LaserDisc, and even CEDs, none of which contained animated menus. The DVD was different, however, representing a creative leap forward that allowed some very unique viewing experiences before the films opening credits even hit the screen.
Take the menu screen for Rob Zombies House of 1000 Corpses, for example, which featured Sid Haig performing in character as Captain Spaulding. Haig delivered multiple minutes of dialogue that was unique to this DVD menu, right to the home audience. This immediately sets a mood and vibe, one thats perfectly suited for Zombies world of horror and exploitation ugliness. Meanwhile, the menu for Shrek 2 is designed to mimic that classic opening introduction to The Brady Bunch, featuring tons of animated mayhem. The disc is wholly interactive, with unique voice acting, production trivia, and endless in-jokes to keep even the most diehard Shrek fan busy for hours.
Sometimes, the bonus supplemental materials on a DVD are more interesting than the actual feature. Or, watching an in-depth making of featurette present on a disc can sometimes make the movie-watching experience feel more fulfilling for cinephiles. But what happens to all of that unique content that was present on those menus? If nobody archives them or uploads menu easter eggs to YouTube, many of the stories were sharing here will be forgotten. This all ties into ownership. True movie collectors often buy and rebuy their favorite movies over and over again, upgrading for new, fresh features year after year. It may be an A/V boost, or a new directors commentary track, all included on that shiny disc that, naturally, also ports over those classic extras from that DVD you still have sitting on that shelf.
And why wouldnt we want to keep all of those discs? Space is valuable, sure, but so are memories, particularly whenever art is concerned. The DVD for the cult comedy This is Spinal Tap contained a main menu that featured tons of unique banter from the boys themselves, kicking right off from a screen that was, in their own words, none more black. Some discs even contain full, separate features hidden on their menus. These are usually accessible by pushing a specific series of buttons on the remote to unlock this easter egg. Vinegar Syndromes Blu-ray release of Roger Watkins Corruption, for example, also included a copy of the directors infamous shocker The Last House on Dead End Street, hidden within its code. Knowing about these secrets also makes collecting home video releases fun and even a little obsessive.
Yet, we continue to exist at a crossroads between streaming and physical media, a place where content may be king, but its also owned by an ever-shrinking number of companies. One look at the leaving soon section of any random streaming service feeds into that feeling of FOMO many of us have with regards to our media consumption. Some of those services do offer some behind-the-scenes extras that mimic bonus features present on a disc. But what happens when a film you wanted to check out disappears from your watch list? Or if a cult television show changes hands to a different streaming provider before youve had your chance to binge?
This is where physical media sweeps in to say, Im going to watch what I want, when I want, without any interruptions whatsoever. And theres nothing anybody else can do to stop me. Why rush through that seven-season streaming series when you can take your time, disc after disc, at home? This comparatively leisurely absorption of storytelling may sound like luxury that existed firmly in the past, but the fact that we have subreddits devoted solely to boutique home video companies speaks volumes.
Its here where a clearer picture of home video fandom becomes evident. Its not solely a place for boomers, zoomers, or Generation X. These subreddits instead paint a vibrantly diverse portrait of disc-addicts that support DVD, Blu-ray, 4K all of it. However, the growth of this corner of the market has seen its own fair share of controversies and pushback. This all comes down primarily to rising MSRPs of newer discs that take advantage of FOMO and hypebeast culture in the same way thats not entirely dissimilar to the streaming giants. As the market for boutique home video grows from its niche roots, so too do prices rise to meet the demand of a subculture thats increasingly obsessed with artifacts such as slipcovers for their discs.
That said, the creative partnerships of companies like Vinegar Syndrome and MGM prove that theres a lot of life left in home video. Boutique outfits like Arrow, Indicator, Severin, and Grindhouse Releasing are all children of the DVD and VHS era. They remember, just like we do, those DVD glory days of scouring store shelves for rare discs, taking them home and devouring their contents. These memories make it all the more important to keep physical media alive in the modern day, even if that means firing up our old DVD audio commentaries for Conan the Barbarian or Escape from New York.
Because if we dont, no one else will.
Do you have a DVD menu you constantly come back to, and why is it NOT Prisoner of Azkaban? Let us know in the comments.
