Renting Specialty Films

Websites specialize in independent and foreign films

With movie collections in excess of 90,000 titles, Netflix and Blockbuster Online do a good job covering independent and foreign releases, and certainly those that were released in the U.S. market. However, there are a few movie download and online DVD rental options that offer more films that lie off the beaten path.

Jaman offers movie downloads of foreign and independent films for rental (*est. $2.50) or purchase (*est. $4). The library isn't overwhelming, and don't expect to find the latest Blockbusters. Jaman uses peer-to-peer networking, which robs a little bandwidth from users when they are downloading films to help distribute content to others. This relieves strain on Jaman's servers, but slows downloads down considerably. Still, Katherine Boehret, writing in The Wall Street Journal, likes the fact that the service "introduced me to new films that I wouldn't otherwise have found." Jaman recently added the ability to view its content on TiVo DVRs.

GreenCine.com (*est. $10 to $50 monthly) is an online DVD rental service similar to Netflix and Blockbuster Online, but with a concentration on independent, art house and foreign films. Unlike Jaman, subscribers receive a DVD via the mail, and there is a selection of mainstream titles as well. With a library of over 30,000 titles, it dwarfs Jaman, but still trails Blockbuster Online and Netflix by a considerable margin. A subsidiary, BlueCine.com, offers streaming adult content by the minute.