Movie Mail LLCReviews of moviemail.com

Before Moviemail was taken over, they were an exceptional company. Not always the cheapest, but at least they were a small family-owned and -run business, with exceptional service. Then there was a takeover which smacked of a fire sale, it took place so quickly. Since then, the service is utterly appalling. Items which are shown as being in stock turn out not to be, so sit in your order history without any updates apart from "On order, despatched within 5-7 days". Emails are not responded to, not even auto-acknowledged. How the mighty are fallen. Avoid Moviemail at all costs.

I placed an order for 3 DVDs on 4th September. Over the next few days they sent me several annoying and unnecessary emails; a 'thanks for registering' email, a completely pointless 'order notification' email (which basically said that they hadn't done anything yet but would keep me posted) and then finally the 'order confirmation' to say that they had now processed the order and detailed the 3 items I had bought. As I still hadn't seen hide nor hair of my DVDs by 16th September (12 days later!), I logged in to the website where I could see only 1 of the DVDs in the order history. Emailed Moviemail, who first sent what I think was an automated email saying 'you left something in your basket' (really confusing, I haven't left anything un-purchased in my account!) but shortly after sent another email saying that the other 2 DVDs were now 'discontinued'. Great. Nobody bothered to let me know but at least they didn't charge my card for them. The DVD which WAS in stock has just turned up in the post and looks OK - case is in tact etc. I wouldn't recommend this company and won't be using them again. I really wanted to try a smaller company but these guys just seem like a bit of a shambles. Confusing communication, INCREDIBLY slow delivery and a definite issue with stock - I am not the only reviewer to highlight this.

Ordered two seasons of a series. Was notified twice of despatch of both series but only received series 1. Five days later received another copy of series 1 ! Still awaiting reply to e-mail. Could be a simple error or a structural fault with company. I am not optimistic from long and bitter experience of these smaller companies. May have to write it off and order from Amazon! A few hours later and I've got a reply promising a quick replacement ( and apology ) with request to return the original post free. Its getting better. I'll update when its sorted out. Four days later and series two has arrived ! Apart from the original screw up this seems to me good service. I dont think my original scepticism was entirely justified regarding Moviemail , and I would now consider them a reasonable/good company to buy from. The problem seems to stem from the attempt to merge computer systems after the takeover and an (all too typical) failure to train staff properly - faults found in many companies today . I'm sure this is done in the name of efficiency (the modern kind not the real thing ) and probably inevitable these days , but annoying all the same. Now I would give them four stars and most likely use them again.

There's more old movies (1930s-50s) coming out on DVD than ever these days thanks to the the likes of Network, Odeon etc. I use MovieMail and their reviews to keep my eye on the flow and grab the best ones.

They had some major hiccups last year following a change in ownership, but MovieMail remains the best place to find out about world cinema and vintage films coming to DVD and Blu-ray in the UK. If you only like blockbusters then they're not for you, but if you love foreign films and off-the-beaten-track gems you'll love it.

I ordered a Cinema Paradiso dvd which eventually proved to be unobtainable. It took some time to sort this with Moviemail but they eventually agreed to provide, as an alternative, another dvd I also wanted. This was somewhat more expensive but they absorbed the extra cost. I suggest phoning to make sure your title is available in a reasonable time.

AFTER WAITING OVER 1MONTH FOR DVD'S, I CONTACTED MOVIEMAIL, TO RAISE MY CONCERNS, THEY RESPONDED, SAYING THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY I AM RASING A CONCERN, AND PROCEEDED TO TELL ME DVD'S WOULD BE APPOXIMATELY ANOTHER 2 WEEKS, I THEN CONTACTED THEM AGAIN, THEY THEN SAID ORDER WOULD BE CANCELLED, TWO DAYS LATER, A CHARGE OF £107.88 WAS TAKEN OUT OF MY BANK ACCOUNT FOR THE DVD'S I WOULD NEVER RECEIVE!! I THEN CALLED THEM, AFTER WAITING 15MIN ON PHONE THEY SAID THAT THE DVD'S I HAD ORDERED HAD BEEN DISCONTINUED. I HAVE NOW CONTACTED VISA CARD TO REPPORT THIS, AND CLAIM MY MONEY BACK!!!! THANKS FOR A HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE MOVIEMAIL!!!!

On both occasions I ordered from MoveMail, they cancelled either the whole order or 90% of it. Their excuse is "we are out of stock", despite it still being advertised as available on the website. However, they did not tell me this – they just removed the order from the outstanding orders page – no email, no paypal refund. I shouldn't have to chase up something like this if they cancel the buying contract. They were perfectly happy keeping the money, without sending anything. Last time the paypal refund failed because the funds at their bank did not clear! It was 10 days before I got my money back. My advice would be to shop elsewhere if at all possible – Amazon, Play.com, base.com, etc. If you must use them, use Paypal to give you some protection.