Odyssey Video

Super excited to have found this place. New to LA, and this is only about a mile from my apartment. Awesome deals on rentals, friendly staff, and amazing selection! Will definitely make this a part of my weekly routine!

Love this place! I haven’t really ventured into a video store in the last 10 years because of the convenience of Netflix. A few weeks ago I had a yearning to see a movie that wasn’t available to stream on-​line so I googled video stores near me and found Odyssey. Going to this store was a means-​to-​an-​end move that turned into the re-​kindling of an old love affair with movie stores (pre-​Blockbuster, corporate, sterile, blown-​out BS). I had totally forgotten how much I enjoy the process of looking through movie titles on real shelves and talking with the guy or gal behind the counter about what’s good, what have they been watching recently… bumping into someone who says «oh if you liked _​_​_​_​_​_​then you’ll LOVE _​_​_​_​_​». I’ve been back to Odyssey three times now and have every intention of it being a main stay. Good selection. Good, down to earth, knowledgeable employees. Ridiculously low prices. All sorts of Good!

Great place. Worked with me as a teacher when I needed to keep the video an extra week to show all my classes. Love that we can still rent videos.

I love that there is still a video store close by when you have a specific movie in mind and Redbox doesn’t have it. Very reasonable prices and down to earth employees that’s are very willing to help you find what you are looking for.

Oh my gosh I hate watching movies on the computer & I’m so annoyed at Putlocker! & guess what, 99cent days Sun, Tues, & Thurs (cheaper than freaking Amazon). Rip Blockbuster, but hello to human beings that are extremely nurturing & thorough & will help u find ur video like Michelle!

they don’t have gandhi. how is this possible? the woman that answered the phone was nice enough. but how do they not have one of the most important films (and best-​film oscar winner) ever made?

I love this place. A large selection and great staff that enjoy movies. RedBox has to wait at least 30 days for a lot of new releases after street date and I know I can always find them here.

My bf and I always rent movies from here. They have a variety and def not like Netflix. The guy who always helps us out gives us the heads up on what movie to rent when we don’t know which movie to pick. The only problem is my bf and I always pay late fees Lol but def not an Odyssey problem. more of ours haha

Love Odyssey video. Makes me happy to know that when I need porn asap I have a place to go.

Everyone is really nice here, and I like that they have movies that you can’t find on netflix and you can’t get in a redbox, since all the means for getting these are gone. It’s old, but who really cares? I say go find old classics and new releases and it’s only $ 1

I’ve been going here for over 10 years or so now and I’ve never had any problems that I can remember. I’m glad to see they are still in business especially after Blockbuster went goodbye (YAY). They have every genre of movies you can think of & a wide variety of Adult video’s too. They still have 99cent rental days. If you ever get a chance go stop by.

This place is quirky and awesome!
Keep the independent guy in business. Way bigger and better selection than Red Box and they get movies before the RB.
They’ve been there forever and survived Blockbuster being across the street.
It’s like the last of it’s kind and it is terrific.

don’t come here! better off at redbox! my gf went there to pick hunger games and they didn’t have it (even though i had it on hold). also! my gf was sexually harassed! by one of the employees friends.
and the employee did not correct or appoligise for his friend to my gf. instead gives her a dirty look pushing the guy who sexually assaults her!
do not come here. the employees are rude and your just better off going to redbox or anywhere else!

Odyssey Video is a great place and I admire their tenacity more than anything… I mean, who does that?! Still have a video store when Netflix is so hot and Blockbuster and Hollywood Video have both thrown in the towel?! Porn shops, that’s who, and though Odyssey Video has an impressively large selection of porn (in quite a large, closed off room in the back of the store so as to allow discretion and not offend), it’s so much more than that. Don’t be afraid to go here, gentle reader! Despite appearances this isn’t a skeezy store – it’s actually very normal and inviting inside. Odyssey Video is not actually a porn movie store, nor did it start off this way, but unfortunately, since this is all that people actually rent anymore, I think this is probably the majority of the business they do. Any time of day or night, if you’re waiting at the light at the intersection of Lankershim, there are men sneaking guiltily out the front door with little black bags in hand. Sigh… very Valley-​esque. However, we used to walk over here all the time because I was still rocking a VHS player at the time and this was the only place I could find quality, nostalgic VHS! I mean, who was the only store that carried «Troll 2» on VHS for my Troll 2 party?! ODYSSEY. They get major points for that. They also have tons of other classic titles in many different genres of both VHS and DVD, so if you’re missing your childhood days, you can stop here. Best part is, the staff here actually knows what they’re talking about – you can ask them about any title and they will happily help you find it in the store or know ALL about that movie – this store isn’t staffed by lame high school drones – this store is staffed by true nerds who know every movie on the shelf and who are pleased that you do, too, even when it’s a hard-​to-​find title. Also, CHEAP rentals! All rentals are 99 cents! Again, who does that?! Sadly, Odyssey has shrunk in size recently, I think just to make ends meet (once again, thanks, Netflix – even though I still love you) and they’ve sold part of the store off to a smoke shop? Or something else equally unreputable? I’m not sure. But if the only way Odyssey can survive is to go down the yellow brick porn path, that’s okay with me – as long as they keep being a Valley icon.

Let me guess, two questions are probably already crossing your mind: (1) People still rent videos? (2) Did my glorious Unilocaler friend Orsolya just go into a porn shop?
Well, my Unilocaler buddies, let me clear this up. First, Odyssey Video’s title is slightly misleading as it sells/​rents DVDs and not VHS tapes from our childhoods. Second, although I’ve lived within walking distance of Odyssey for years now and ALWAYS assumed it was a dirty porn shop (I even laughed as I saw males walk out alone with an inconspicuous bag); it turns out that Odyssey is NOT a porn shop. Well… not entirely. It DOES have a large adult section which takes up more than the general store portion (I did not venture into it and cannot thus rate its pros and cons).
Overall, I don’t understand how Odyssey stays in business. Why? If you get the balls to venture inside (pun intended), you may be less than enthusiastic at the somewhat cramped quarters, poor lighting, and shelves with dirty DVD cases and old selection. It basically looks like a garage sale of DVDs (there is a better selection for FREE at the library). Odyssey is one of those shops where browsing with your eyes is much preferred to using your hands. Although there is a «New Releases» section which did feature a few newer titles, you still have a better movie fiesta on Netflix. On the plus side, rentals cost only 99 cents 3 days a week. For you porn lovers? The window advertises a «Buy one, get one free» campaign. Odyssey accepts cash or credit/​debit card but you DO have to fill out a membership form (a la the Blockbuster days) so if you are trying to be secretive and hide your video purchases from the wife… this may not be the route to go.
Although I wouldn’t rent from here, the staff was kind. The older gentleman on duty was friendly and more like an awesome uncle or dad versus a creepy child molester. Plus, he has an amazing zen saltwater tank on the counter with fish and real coral. I stared at the coral swaying in the water longer than at the DVD offerings. Who needs movies when I can be transported to an underwater, calming, abyss?
Again, I don’t know how Odyssey stays in business since even Blockbuster has been going under, so they must have a great porn selection which keeps the men of North Hollywood busy (if you know what I mean). As for me? I’ll stick to Netflix and the library.
Note: Odyssey does purchase old DVDs (hence the garage-​sale appearence of their DVDs) so you can make some dough off your no-​longer watched DVDs.

We’ve been renting from Odyssey Video for more than 10 years. It’s close to us (walking distance) and we try to support this local video store and the video business in general. Since lots of stores closed (chains or non-​chains), we’re lucky Odyssey is still around. It’s turning into a local institution. Its space is smaller than it used to be.
They carry lots of New Releases and they have a great catalogue of various, interesting movies. All kinds of genres: Horror, Classics, Drama, Foreign, Indies, TV shows, etc. It’s a little gem for movie lovers where you can find titles that are harder and harder to find. Once, we even saw Quentin Tarantino checking out their Horror section!
You can buy DVD-​s, sell, trade, also.
Why wait forever to get movies from Netflix,
etc? Some of the movies you can find in Odyssey aren’t even in Netflix’s catalogue. They might not EVER be on streaming! If you’re sick and tired of their services, their catalogues and their rate hikes, come by Odyssey! We’re lucky to have an alternative while Netflix turned into a monopoly and pushed Mom and Pop stores out of business.
Prices are reasonable (they offer lower rates for Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays– 99 cents), the owner is nice and helpful, they have a small parking lot behind and there is plenty of metered street parking. Sure, the place could be cleaner, but it’s opened till midnight every day. It does have an Adult section in the back, if it keeps the store afloat, it doesn’t bother me!
If you work in the movie business, come here for your research, if you love movies, you’re a fan, start renting here. If you live near by, stop by, give this place a chance! Let’s all support this place and keep it in business, we need places like it around!!!

These are the nicest people ever. They dont have all the top releases (but those are pretty crappy lately anyway) but have a decent classic film selection (if they havent sold them off, stupid economy). I felt super guilty going to the blockbuster across the street the month they kept sending me free rental coupons … the only downer is you can literally feel the death of the rental business in this store. Also one of the few stores left that carry disney and porn under the same roof :) Im a fan, dollar days 3 times a week.

Ok, so it’s kinda creepy. I always thought it was an adult videostore so I never went in. Well, that and Netflix. But after Netflix recently raised prices I decided to cut my subscription way down and go hit local video stores again. So I found myself at Odyssey with my wife and it turns out to be a great place, albeit a little cramped. I suspect they make most of their money these days on the porno, since the «back room» is as big as the front room and seems to be a lot less cramped. The new release section of the dvd’s is a bit crowded, titles are stacked one on front of the other. But they also have a nice foreign section and back catalog. There’s also some nice conspiracy theory dvd’s there, and I’m not talking about Oliver Stone’s JFK, we’re talking Zeitgeist, David Icke, etc. There’s also a box full of used porno magazines in the back for sale, which gave us a good laugh. I guess times are tough.
But hey, certain days are 99 cents and other days are still cheap. Give them a shop. Let’s not let Netflix kill off the Mom and Pops.

The place is a great find for serious fans of obscure and little known films, and a shrine for horror movie fans who could tell you who the Foley artist was on the Shelley Winters’s horror flick ’”Who Slew Auntie Roo?” Odyssey turned me on to a movie that was the closest thing to a snuff film and a good suspense flick made by the Nazi UFA movie studio during the war. Did I say they have the best gay porn from the 80’s? Two walls full. You’ll find every underground leftist newspaper at the entrance of Odyssey, right next to the Snicker bars with the expiration date of May ’84 and the handmade «Return Here» signs someone drew between bong hits. The place smells like dust and vegan take-​out. All membership takes is a driver’s license, a kind face, and a password. I didn’t go for months and forgot my password, they told me it was «Cambodia,» I’ve never said the word «Cambodia» in my life, and why are they telling me my password without my license anyways? Everyone over the counter is under 18 with skinny arms, sleepy eyes, and play in bands with gigs in Silverlake scrum bars, explains «Cambodia.»
I can’t think of a more appropriate name than «Odyssey Video» for this place, located next to a 3 foot by 3 foot camera store and an occult bookstore filled with bad spirits that go next door and watch 80’s gay porn when Odyssey closes for the night.

Hey all,
I’ve been a member for at least 25 years and before that I used to come in with my dad (he joined when the place still had wet paint on the walls, back in the early 80’s) and I admit the place has seen better days, but that can be said about the brick n’ mortar movie rental business as a whole.
They generally have DVD’s of new releases available, but often times not more than two or three copies of each title, so you may not see what you came for on the shelf. This is especially true on Tuesdays and Thursdays due to their long-​standing One Dollar rental promotion on those days.
Yep, it is true. you can rent any movie, VHS or DVD, Disney to Porn for $ 1.00!
The collection of porn is quite extensive, most fetishes are represented by at least a full shelf of titles. Many will find that their collection of VHS movies and concerts to be a treasure trove of almost forgotten favorites. I highly recommend checking out their staff «Recommended» section, almost every title is worthy of your time (except «Glitter», which I am pretty sure is there as a joke). They also have a number of Animé DVD’s available to rent.
NOTES on PARKING:
There is metered parking in front of the store (along Vineland Blvd) and a small «parking lot» directly behind the store. Be advised that the parking area on the south side of the building belongs to the tiny camera store which is the Odyssey neighbor and is off-​limits before 6pm on any given day. I have seen tow-​trucks haul away cars which I assume belonged to non-​customers of the Camera store. Personally I park across the street in the parking lot of the Golf Shop and never had a problem.
In closing I would encourage those living in the vicinity to patronize this store, if for no other reason than to preserve at least one of the soon to be extinct «video stores», (which it turns out radio didn’t kill… the internet did!)
Ciao fer Now,
D