It’s been a rough week for Cambridge. First, longtime music scene staple T.T. the Bear’s Place was forced by rising rents into a July closure. Then, Angela Sawyer, owner and proprietor of the beloved Weirdo Records, abruptly announced that her shop had seen its last day of business. Now, in a sadly inevitable sounding piece of news, Porter Square’s Hollywood Express Video has revealed that it too is shutting its doors. Mass Ave is becoming squarer by the minute.

Hollywood Express (not to be confused with the now-defunct Hollywood Video chain) has been an essential part of local film-lovers’ diets since 1987, at one point operating four stores in the greater Boston area. Unfortunately, like most businesses which rely on making people leave their houses for something other than food or alcohol, the internet has taken a dire toll; its Porter Square flagship store is its final location, and by my count the second-to-last video rental store in the Boston area (after its closure, only Jamaica Plain’s Video Underground will remain). June 29th will be the last day you can pass through its Criterion-wallpapered foyer.

All that said: Hollywood Express will be holding a massive blow-out sale between now and then, and for any true cineaste who has not surrendered their physical collections to Netflix, this is a no-miss event. HE has an incredible selection of classics, oddities, and things which you will literally never see anywhere else, including local experimental films on VHS dating back to the ‘80s. Prices vary from genre to genre, with most movies going for $5 or $10. Either way, it’s worth it. I promise.

Once again: Hollywood Express is closing June 29th. Goddammit.

Hollywood Express
1740 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02138