If the year 2020 has taught us one thing, it’s that we seek escape & distraction in movies & TV shows.
On one hand, the pandemic & lockdowns have made it necessary to find our sources of recreation inside our homes. On the other hand, the pandemic has also placed large swathes of the population under mental distress. It’s hard to live through such uncertain times.
While we do the responsible thing by staying at home, we find ourselves hooked to our screens. We’re very familiar with the term “binge-watching” because we are also consuming content like crazy. One series after another. Online streaming services have been our saviors.
The pandemic & lockdown have also come with their fair share of nostalgia. Being able to get away from the present and escape into old movies sounds very comforting. People are seeking emotional refuge in movies & shows they watched as a kid, revisiting their teen favorites, or re-watching the first seasons of their current favorites.
If you’re worried that all this is burning a hole in your pocket, here are some free alternatives to help you satiate your appetite for stories on screen.
Popcornflix
Not just another over-the-top service, Popcornflix offers a free ad-supported streaming video infrastructure that hosts feature-length movies & webisodes. It boasts of a library of more than 1500 movies.
On their website, they mention proudly, “Popcornflix was created for people like us who want to watch ‘Great Movies. Free.’ Popcornflix has full-length movies that will make you laugh, make you cry, scare the heck out of you, or inspire you to hug the person you love. We have compelling documentaries, foreign films, unique original web series, and a place that showcases the brightest filmmakers of tomorrow. ”
YouTube
Several corners of YouTube house treasure troves in the form of movies. Some of these movies include Léon, if you fancy watching a young Natalie Portman, The Toxic Avenger, if you’re ever in the mood to watch absolute rabble, Shadow of a Doubt, if you’re craving a masterful suspense plot, or Night of the Living Dead, if cannibalistic zombies catch your eye.
OpenCulture
As per the information on the website, Openculture makes it easier for you to find the nooks or YouTube that house these treasures we’re talking about. OpenCulture has the whereabouts of over 1,150 movies that can be watched online for free.
The directory includes classics, indies, film noir, documentaries, divided into the following categories: Comedy & Drama, Film-Noir, Horror & Hitchcock, Westerns, Martial Arts Movies, Silent Films, Documentaries, and Animation.
Netflix trial
Have you heard of Netflix’s latest marketing antics? They’re calling it an “event” that allows non-subscribers to stream Netflix content, a promotional effort that will launch in select countries, starting with India. Does this mean everyone in India gets a free account?
You’ve to manage your expectations a little here: this event, called the StreamFest will run only for a weekend. Keep your eyes peeled for more announcements and prepare for a treat on the first weekend of December.
This means that even non-subscribers can watch the content available with Netflix. Cancel all your plans as many movies & shows will be available for the ultimate binge-watching session.
MX Player
Asian audiences will find this appealing. MX Player is a video streaming app that offers thousands of hours of premium, exclusive & original content from leading producers & publishers. In their own words, it’s a “one-stop app for some of the best Movies, TV Shows, Web Series, Music Videos and Short Videos.”
You will find a variety of Indian languages content here, ranging from Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali, to Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and Kannada.
Tubi TV
With a user interface that looks like a point-to-point replica of Netflix, Tubi TV offers a great library of content for free, supported on ads, which it claims are fewer than other illegal websites.
Tubi TV is legal, according to the information on their website, “Tubi is a legal (and free) video streaming application. To keep our service legal and free, we include ads, which monetize the content that our partners, such as MGM, Lionsgate, and Paramount, provide to us.”
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