IMDb: More than Just Trivia
IMDb has long been a frequent online destination for me. When you swear you have seen a certain actor in something before, it’s satisfying to quickly go to the movie you’re watching’s IMDB page and find the actor’s credits—you end up clicking through to more and more films, more actors.
While still remaining as a great resource for this kind of fact finding mission, IMDB has also entered the streaming wars. However, unlike Netflix and Hulu, you can access IMDbTV for free. Unfortunately, commercials are included, but with the price tag and available library, this is still a great resource to suggest for patrons looking to supplement their library-aided viewing.
An account with IMDbTV is required, but you can sync your existing account from Amazon, Facebook, Google, or Apple so there would be no additional username and password to remember.
IMDbTV currently includes bingeable TV series like Mad Men, Murder, She Wrote, Lost, and Schitt’s Creek. The movie library includes Oscar winners like The Prince of Tides, cult favorites like Battle Royale, comedies like There’s Something About Mary, and there’s plenty of selections for family movie nights, including Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Monsters vs. Aliens. Obviously, these are not especially new titles, but they can scratch a certain itch for both nostalgia purposes and to watch certain titles for the first time that you’ve always meant to watch but just hadn’t gotten to.
Additionally, I have to mention the IMDb game. I discovered this game through one of my favorite podcasts: This Had Oscar Buzz, which highlights one movie each episode that seemed like an obvious Oscar contender on paper, but it didn’t result in any nominations. The hosts end each episode with what they call the IMDb game. One host selects an actor and the other has to guess the top 4 movies associated with that actor according to IMDb’s algorithm. It’s best to avoid actors that have appeared in Marvel, Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter films as those tend to clog up their top 4. A fun time-waster that can work in a big group or even as a solo practice.
Here’s Sharon Stone’s IMDb “known for” as an example:
Happy viewing/playing!
Jeff, South Park