Denver's favorite 2009 Netflix rental was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button? Really?

Wondering how your friends and neighbors spent their evenings last year -- the ones who close their blinds, anyway? Turns out many of them were watching a dreary, seemingly endless movie in which Brad Pitt spends a long, long time looking like an ancient, quasi-computerized Billy Barty. As evidence, check...

By Michael Roberts

January 14, 2010

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Wondering how your friends and neighbors spent their evenings last year -- the ones who close their blinds, anyway? Turns out many of them were watching a dreary, seemingly endless movie in which Brad Pitt spends a long, long time looking like an ancient, quasi-computerized Billy Barty.

As evidence, check out this New York Times web feature that allows residents of numerous major cities, including Denver, to check out the ten most rented Netflix movies of 2009 by zip code. Click on the Denver thumbnail, then move your cursor over the map, and you'll soon discover that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is atop the overwhelming majority of metro-area lists.

Among the exceptions? 80230, which preferred Slumdog Millionaire; 80203, Westword's zip, which went for Milk; and 80239, which loved, um, Twilight. Two out of three ain't bad.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

Contact: Michael Roberts

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