Are You Ready For The $35 Movie Ticket?
What recession? A group on investors think Americans are ready to pay $35 for a movie ticket, says Variety:
Village Roadshow Ltd., Act III, Lambert Entertainment and the Retirement Systems of Alabama pension fund have partnered to bring the luxury cinema circuit Village Roadshow Gold Class Cinemas to the U.S.South Barrington, IL? Really? Yeah, that town is full of rich people but did they get rich paying $35 for a movie ticket?The partners will spend $200 million to build 50 theaters nationwide over the next five years, with the first two venues set to open in South Barrington, a suburb of Chicago, and the Seattle suburb of Redmond in October. Others are planned for Fairview, Texas, near Dallas-Fort Worth, and Scottsdale, Ariz.
Each complex will sport theaters featuring 40 reclining armchair seats with footrests, digital projection and the capability to screen 2-D and 3-D movies, as well as a lounge and bar serving cocktails and appetizers, a concierge service and valet parking.
But the circuit will especially push its culinary offerings -- made-to-order meals like sushi and other theater-friendly foods from on-site chefs (a service button at each seat calls a waiter). Moviegoers will have to pay extra for any food they order, however.
Would you pay that much to see a movie?
Filmgoers get a taste of the good life [Variety via BuzzFeed]
(Photo:kozumel)
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Comments:
$35 for a movie is a long term projection on americas spending habits when it comes to treating yourself to luxury goods. i don't think it's a matter of would today, i think it's a matter of really how much $35 will be in 5 years, and if by that time we will go back to our stupendous ways of spending. after all, treating yourself to overpriced luxury goods is a national pass time, and we judge each other by how much we spoil ourselves.
Rich people already have this setup in their house
Um nope. I already won't pay full price, and have now stopped going entirely because the matinees now aren't opening-3pm on weekends but just opening-noon. I'm not getting up that early on a weekend.
I'll just wait for the blu-ray, pay once at Amazon's decent new-release rates, make my own food, pause where and when I want, watch as many times as I want, see subtitles, and have a much comfier place to sit.
Honestly, for the 1 movie a year I'd consider seeing, I'd possibly pay it. As long as they enforce the rules Mastodon introduced in the ATHF movie. Leave the seed outside.
I live in L.A. When I go to the movies, after going to the trouble of finding a babysitter, I'm more that happy to pay the extra $4 ($14 instead of $10) at the Arclight to guarantee pristine picture and great sound. But the day I pay $35 to go to the movies it the day the crappy theater around the corner is charging $28. Does the $35 buy you all you can eat/drink? Or is that just for your seat?
$35 to have two hours ruined by yapping idiots? No thanks.
If they included my meal and made sure of the following...
1) No kids.
2) No cellphones.
3) No speaking, or at least where I/others cannot hear/disrupt while they are engaging in whispered chitchat.
4) No packing me in like a sardine.
5) No late admissions once previews have begun.
I would pay $35 to see a film.
If that is where hollywood is going though, I might just invest in a 7.1 surround sound system and call it a day.
Thats what theater rooms in the basement are for, a nice couch or lazy boy, a fridge pretty close, and a couple of kids that you can yell to get you something to drink j/k
When I lived in a Mexico a couple of years back, Cinepolis, a movie chain, always had VIP theatres that were exactly like this. And they cost 6 canadian dollars to enter.
/Misses sushi and Heineken during movies
//Would not pay 35 bucks plus beverages to do it again.
Don't talk watch! Don't like it walk out! Your money is now are money and we will spend it on drugs!
I don't spend $35 on regular, non-fancy pants movie theaters. So, the answer, is HELL YEAH I'LL BE FIRST IN LINE
I live in Redmond. Between the Microsofties who want to see their action movies, the funded team events of MSFT and other high tech firms in the area - this'll fly.
Me? I stopped seeing concerts after they broke $90 a ticket. Doubtful I'll see a movie for more than $15 anytime soon.
$35 for a movie? I already wince over paying $10 - $11 for a movie ticket. There's no way that I'm going to pay $35!
TEST
My wife is a realtor and I had opportunities to see some very nice homes from 1.5 million to the 400k range that have have superior home theaters with lounges, nice seating, etc . Can't see this being success if it is being targeted to the upscale croud.
A theater in Kansas City ([www.cinemark.com]) has what they call the VIP room, which is a more upscale viewing room with nice couch like seats each with a armrest table for your drinks and snacks all for only 13 dollars a movie. Besides the nicer seating, it has a full bar and alcohol is served. A normal ticket in a normal theater is 9 bucks, so you pay 4 dollars more to get better seating and access to a bar. Not sure how anyone could justify 35 dollars for similar treatment.
@Imakeholesinu: Bingo. Plus I want to see any violators beaten by the on-staff, roided out freak bouncer.
Hell no. I am willing to wait for the damn DVD, which I will watch on the TV I got for free. Netflix forever!
I currently go to see a film at the movie theater maybe once a month, sometimes less. And I typically spend roughly $20 per visit (ticket cost + concession stand food). Because its so expensive.... i download most films I want to see. Only the ones I think I will REALLY like I will go to the theater to see (for the whole movie theater experience). But at $35.... I will stop going to the theater period & just download everything.
This seems bound for failure. I wouldn't watch a movie now even when I had free passes, not sure what they could do to earn 35 bucks a pop.
I go to Gold Class every now and then here in Sydney, Australia, and I love it. It is a really nice date... You get shown to your seats before the meeting, get to order your food and drink, and they are brought to your seats. Wine is on the menu, as is really nice food. There are trailers at the start of the movie, but no advertising.
The personalized service is amazing. Being met at the door, shown to a table whilst waiting for the movie. Shown to your seat. It really does make a date special.
Sure, $35 is not cheap, but it is worth it. It is a luxury date type venue. The major problem I have with Gold Class is that it is hard to hold hands or cuddle during the movie. I think that people will be surprised with how popular Gold Class will be.
@zacwight: Yeah that place is awesome!!! but you can agree that fancy does not describe the place....lol
The technology used must be significantly unique to make a ticket this costly.
3-wall 3D presentation? Well worth the $35. Extremely high resolution, better than film? Ditto.
If a medium popcorn now costs $5, imagine what they will charge for a plate of sushi!
I forgot to add... you can read more about the offering of Gold Class in Australia at [www.greaterunion.com.au]
The prices there are in Australian Dollars, of which the current exchange rate is about 91 cents to US$1. The menu is there, and food is in addition to the price of the Cinema seats...
Fuck going to the cinema anymore.... I'm so sick and tired of those idiots kids yapping and playing with cell phones and doing anything but watch the movie that I said enough's enough. I'd pay $35 if you could guarantee me a decent picture and sound experience, and quality food & beverage service. There are a few boutique cinemas that do this already but I've never tried them.
hahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!
Go for it, but don't wait up for me.
No, I already don't go to the movies now that it's $10 ($20 after you get a couple of overpriced refreshments). I can buy the DVD, stay home and cook a steak for $20 - and invite all of my friends for no additional charge. If I could get into a movie for $5 I'd go back to the theater. Otherwise, forget it.
Umm no, here in Alaska, it's $10 to see a movie, with popcorn and soda just as over-priced. No thank you.
$35?! Ha! I won't even pay the current $12.50.
It's around $13 here already. I'm just going to laugh harder as this means it'll reach about $100 to go to the theaters with a $35 a ticket. The overpriced concession stand products and the gas to get there... man I really hope they are kidding themselves.
This probably doesn't matter to them though, as I haven't been to the theaters in over a year.
Oh, and after the $35, I bet they'll strip search you first and then force you to watch the previews lol!
I don't like seeing people lose their investments. However, I'd enjoy watching this place crash and burn...
They'll probably have 50% discounts within a week to compete with other theaters... lol
Still though, I doubt the business will hold up when people are more likely to buy their own home theater set-ups at that price... Oh man, I gotta stop laughing.
Reference point...
When I was a kid we could see an entire afternoon matinée of 3 full length movies from the balcony of a classic grand theater in the San Francisco Bay Area for only 35 cents with a giant bag of popcorn for 10 cents.
At $35, I figured food and drinks would be complementary.
I have issues paying even $9 for a movie ticket. I don't see many people paying more to see the movie today, than they would for the DVD released 3 months later.....
...unless if seeing it in the theater is "now" worth $35, how much is it "now" going to be to own it on DVD?
Just to put this in perspective: for the price of taking your date to this theater three time, you could buy the 3-DVDs-at-a-time Netflix subscription for the whole year. I'm guessing your cocktails will cost a lot less this way, too.
@iliveinyoureyelid: We have something similar called Cinetopia. They're competitively priced with the local Regal Cinemas, offer all movies in HD, and and the "Living Room" theaters have waiter service (up to 10 minutes before it starts). They serve Beer, Wine, and restaurant quality food.
I've never gone, but friends have said it's the equivalent of flying First Class: Wide seats, more room, and once you go you never want to "fly coach" (Regal Cinemas) again.
For $35, the movie better have a happy-ending!
Here's what would get me back to the theater:
1) No advertising in front of the movie. Quiet music that we could talk over. None of this COKE PRESENTS BEHIND THE SCENES OF FAST & FURIOUS 3 and Army recruitment videos. Just a quiet theater where my friends & I can visit before the film starts.
2) Hire bouncers. Kick anyone with cell phones, iphones, pdas, game boys, laser pointers, talkers, seat kickers, back row blowjobbers, or any other annoying thing people do during a film out. No refund, no argument, your ass is gone. Period.
3) Better food, and a beer/wine license. The second-run theaters that serve pizza & beer are great experiences, but they lack things like digital projection and high-end sound systems that draw people who are really into movies and have high-end ht systems out of the house.
If I knew of a theater that met these criteria, I would pay $20 weekly to attend shows there. As it stands, I'll stick to netflix.
The movie theatre I visit has all of these benefits except the valet parking, tickets are $7.50/$8.50 for balcony seats. When they opened the local paper had a field day about how expensive it was.
Hahahahahaha no WAY would I pay that! I already have a really hard time justifying the bloated prices for soda and popcorn, much less the tickets. Add that to my sweet HD home entertainment center, lack of annoying/loud moviegoers, and that spells RIP for movie theaters in my book.
The Paragon theater in Bangkok is the nicest movie theatre I've ever been to. Seriously, red carpet everywhere, big seats, there's even a lounge area to eat and get a massage if you have time before or after your movie. I think it costs all of $5. Well, probably $35 now with the new exchange rates.
Yep, these theaters will be a resounding success. Guaranteed. Recession or not, the income gap has gotten so wide that even in a recession a theater with $35 seats will make a killing. Be on the lookout for $100 cheeseburgers, $200 pizzas and $300 martinis. These have recently started popping up and they won't be so unheard of in a few years. There's nothing the nouveau riche like to do more than flaunt how much money they have in the face of those with less.
In Seattle, I went to the Big Picture regularly. That's a very nice place to see a movie with similar-sized audiences, full bar, etc. Average ticket price was about $10.
In San Francisco, we have many options including the relatively new Sundance Kabuki. They have this weird combination of time-sensitive pricing and an amenities fee that makes the ticket cost vary, but it's not that much more than usual price for a regular cinema.
The $35 price tag is outrageous. Ridiculous. And I doubt they're going to be offering much more than the two examples I cited above, with the exception of valet parking. But I bet they will get a certain percentage of their customer base with outrageous entitlement issues, a la "I paid $35 to get in here, so if I wanna talk loudly on my cell phone while passing gas and working on my laptop, that's what I'm going to do during this movie."
I want to go to Mr. Chip's theater!
I can't even justify paying $8. I only go to a couple movies a year on Saturday at 9AM and sneak in my own refreshments.
They better throw in enough booze to get me falling down drunk for $35. And with recliners, I'd probably fall asleep. So a waste of 35 perfectly good dollars. But if they had a "Take the seed outside, LEAVE IT IN THE STREETS!" policy< i might reconsider. Valet parking is also nice though.
HELLS No.
For $35.00 dollars a ticket, I would need a promise from the theatre that people who yack on the phone or whisper loudly or yell at the screen will be taken out and executed.
Otherwise, no.
this thread runs through it all:[www.aintitcool.com]
basically, people dont go to movies not because it costs 12.50 (which is a good reason) but because there are lame commercial,and loud people.
First make some good movies. I wont even see half the movies out right now for free.
Then hire some security that enforces the quiet, dont let people in late, charge babies full price, get some cell phone jammers (dream of dreams!) and people will come to movie theaters
Please take note of this and thread above, if you have ANY influence with movie theater chains. Otherwise I will be sad to see the local cinema go the way of the dinosaur when they think polishing poop will make it worth 35 dollars (especially going into a recession).
I used to live right near South Barrington, and it is full of rich people with a lot of money. Plus there is not a whole lot else to do around there. Even still, I can't imagine people paying $35 for a movie ticket.