Summer means movies, but don’t get stuck paying $12 per ticket or $7 for a bag of popcorn. Instead, check out these nine ways to slash your movie budget without missing any summer blockbusters.
Safeway’s “Flicks for Free” promotion offers two free movie passes to shoppers who buy $40 worth of products from participating brands such as Coca-Cola and General Mills in one transaction.
Perfect for that rowdy Soda & Cereal party you’ve been planning!
AMC MovieWatcher Rewards offers coupons for a free small popcorn each week, plus two points per ticket purchased. After you’ve earned 30, you’ll get a free ticket. The Regal Crown Club awards one point per $1 spent. Rack up 120 points and redeem them for a free ticket.
9 Ways to Save on Movie Tickets [Smart Money]
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If you live near a major city (like Los Angeles or whatever, I don’t want to offend anybody’s hometown) you should check out the Free Screenings thread at Fatwallet.com’s Free Stuff board (sorry, no link, as I am typing on my phone). Not only are they free, you get to see major blockbusters before they release!
@balthisar: Woot for Ford Wyoming! (although boo for their poor service…once a movie was messed up with no sound for 20 minutes…people were honking and nobody fixed it. Then they fixed it but didn’t rewind it! Lame)
@Welmoed: Baby bottles full of Maker’s Mark for the win?
Putting aside the issue of price, there are several reasons to wait for a movie on DVD:
1) No assholes smoking in the theatre. Despite the ban, some morons still do it.
2) No talking or cellphones. Whether they’re talking about the movie (MST3K talk or “here’s where they…”) or anything else, I don’t want to hear it. I paid to hear the movie, not them.
3) No kids or babies. I love kids, but why do people take them to movies like Pulp Fiction? They could hire a babysitter for the price of the kid’s ticket. Making other people put up with your noisy kid isn’t right.
[wolfox.werewolves.org]
[wolfox.werewolves.org]
4) I prefer sandwiches or other snacks when I watch, not popcorn. I can keep my eyes on the movie when I’m feeding my face instead of dropping oily popcorn onto my clothes.
5) The pause button. You can’t rewind in the theatre after a bathroom break.
Going back to price, why pay ten bucks when you can rent it for four? Sure, I want to see Iron Man, but it’s not *that* important.
Even a matinee can be pretty expensive. I took a six-year-old to see “Horton Hears a Who,” and matinee tickets were $8.25 each (and all one price — no child price).
There aren’t a lot of movies that I *need* to see on the big screen. Whenever I see a new movie trailer, the first question I ask myself is “big screen or DVD?”
+/- $20 for 2 people to see something at the theater, or $3-5 for a bunch of people to watch a DVD? It’s a no-brainer.
My two tips:
1. considering the general quality of most films, chances are anything you see is going to be a waste of money. So don’t go UNTIL people you know tell you its good.
2. Unless the movie is a visual blockbuster, wait til it comes out on DVD. for the cost of two tickets you can OWN that piece of shit.
I’ve got to agree about the drive ins. I’m lucky enough to live a couple of miles from one. Right now they are showing “Iron Man” and “Drillbit Taylor” on the big screen. There is a playground under the screen for the kids to use before the movies. They don’t care if you bring food and drinks. I load up a cooler with snacks and sodas. We spread blankets out on the grassy playground and watch from there. $26 gets our whole family in. That’s pretty good for a long evening. We show up before dark and let the kids tire themselves out. We’re there from before 8pm till after midnight. URL is below. It’s about an hours drive west of DC.
[www.user.shentel.net]
@LucyInTheSky:
Are you insane? I’ve never had cold popcorn at a theater, and I’ve never had microwave popcorn that was even half as good as what I can get at the theater. The seats are almost always quite comfortable, and AMC theaters have amazingly comfortable seats. And besides, movies are just better in that environment, and on that screen. It’s worth the money.
I never buy snacks or bring snacks into the movies. Don’t really like popcorn… and not a big fan of candy either. I might bring a bottle of water in my purse – but I’m not gonna die from not eating for 1.5 – 3 hours.
I never buy popcorn, but still dish our $2-3 for a soda because theaters make money mostly off concessions. However, in terms of real food, I like to smuggle in some french fries or chicken nuggets. Yummy!
I don’t think I’ve ever gone to the movies without my pockets being inundated with store-bought goodies…
This is true. There was a theater in Riverside, California that sold tickets for all movies for $4 a pop. Food started at $1. I don’t understand either because for those prices you’d think the theater would do great, but they closed a year later.
Don’t forget to wear a jacket or have pockets.
#9 is inappropriate at best and maybe illegal unless otherwise allowed by the theatre management.
Having said that, I did bring a pan of brownies (stuffed into the pockets of my overcoat) into a theatre when I was in college. I also got escorted out of the theatre for violating the code of conduct posted on the door.
These days …. Lazy Boy and my home theatre are quite nice.
@Corporate-Shill: It might be ‘inappropriate’ and/or cheap, but there’s no way it’s illegal. I will freely admit that I do it – carry my jacket in with a can of soda in one pocket and a bag of candy or chips in the other. I spend $1.50 instead of $6, it’s a no-brainer, and when going with my wife it saves us around $10 bucks a visit. If it was to save $1 I wouldn’t do it, but if I can save 75% by bending (breaking) a rule I’m gonna do it. Especially when the worst that can happen is they catch you on the way in and make you toss it away.
Sidenote: I used to work in a movie theater during college and would stop people who were bringing in McDonalds or pizza, because of the smell/mess, but if they do a half decent job of concealing some candy and a soda they’re getting past me, Im not there to be a policeman…
@Corporate-Shill:
Inappropriate? iIlegal??? Are you kidding??
Movie theaters price-gouging us into buying their over priced candy is the inappropriate and illegal thing to do. I know they make the majority of their money on the concession stand, but still. I think it is absolutely ridiculous that you are not allowed to bring your own snacks, especially if you have special health needs. Do they escort diabetics out for snacking on something else than the theater’s candy??
Just sneak in.
I usually wait until things come out on DVD, but this weekend, my friends and I really wanted to go see Sex and the City and get cocktails after. So we went to the theater. We just graduated from college and can still get student tickets which cost 5.75 each. After deciding against the 6.75 nachos, I was happy to go into the theater and (this really fits well with the movie) find my friend pulling enormous amounts of candy out of her fake Prada bag!
You forgot: Buy tickets on eBay – people who buy them in bulk resell them online. I’ve used ‘em several times without a hitch…
I still enjoy going to the movie theater so I just sneak my own snacks an drinks in…
$12 for a ticket near me. for that price, they can keep their popcorn. i eat before i go in, or if i go late nite when the concessions are closed (wait, what?!? closed?), i hit wings over for some afterburner & honey barbeque. YUM!
when i was a kid, we used to theatre hop all day long. that’s back when they showed more than one movie you actually wanted to see in the same theatre. nowadays, i’m lucky if i enjoy the movie i’m paying to see.
when i was in high school, the old fox theatre in town used to showcase foreign movies on wednesday nites. i used to love going to see those w/ a friend – wish there was a place near where i live now that did the same…
#10: Make friends with someone who works at a theater. I haven’t paid to see a movie in years since my little brother works at the AMC theater by us. It’s great, no restrictions or anything like that either. I’ve been to many movies on premiere night.
Yes, illegal.
We had one of those “family theaters” open up. Not first run movies. Had family night specials so the family could bring in a pizza and sodas and see a movie for $20 for everybody in the family. Good deal.
Well the big name (read expensive) theaters hated the competition. There was a law proposed by my stupid city council which was supposedly modeled after several other city’s stupid laws which would allow the city to restrict outside food from being brought into such establishments in the name of “rodent” control or health code regulations.
The Family Theater failed shortly after opening and the proposed law was never submitted for a vote. But somewhere, somebody has had or still has laws on the books to prevent outside food from entering.
Remember city’s are free to write any laws that their constituents so desire. Spitting on the sidewalk is a good example of such laws. It is not enforeced in my city because we don’t have sidewalks, but the law is on the books just in case sidewalks are installed.
@corthepirate:
I have a son who has been diabetic for eight years. We almost always bring in some peanuts or other low-carb snack for him. The few times that theater employees have complained I explained it was due to my sons condition. None have ever pushed the issue any further.
I’ll second that Entertainmet book suggestion.. but with a twist… they have so many coupons for movies in the book that you can easily beg for a few on freecycle… folks will send them to you for the cost of a couple stamps envelops…
I rarely go to movies, for most of the reasons already stated. But when I do I always bring my own food & drink. I may buy popcorn occasionally.
I don’t care if most of the theater’s profit comes from concessions. Screw ‘em. It’s not my job to support their crappy business model.
I go to the matinee, but it is still expensive at $7.00. I will also occassionally moviehop (flame away!). I still spend about 13 bucks on concession food though (I used to bring in my own coke in a thermos during the winter (lol) but I stopped doing that since I cut down on the frequency in which I go to the theater (I go maybe once every 2-3 months or so on average).
IMO the theater experience has gone way down hill since the prices have gone up, the popularity of cellphones & commercials during the previews.
@MrsLopsided:
LoL! Pretty Smart with the “bring your own bag & then get double the popcorn by getting a refill on the popcorn right away” trick!. Those theaters make an obscene amount of profits from popcorn.
I’ve been to two movie theaters in the past two years. Both times I got sick afterwards. Once was just a bad cold, but the other time I got food poisoning.
I’ll stick to DVDs from now on.
I just don’t go. Unless it’s a movie worth seeing or a foreign film that I want to see (like Kung Fu Hustle for example) I just skip it.
99.99% of new movies suck!
Now, if someone was to start a theater that also showed classic films, I’d definitely be there.
@CCS: I’m curious how many of those people refuse to pay for sporting events because of the inflated salaries of athletes?
The difference is most sporting events are entertaining, quite good, suspenseful (unless it’s the Miami Dolphins playing then you already know the outcome) and worth every penny. Movies are terrible nowadays. Most are poorly written with unoriginal or idiotic plots and bad acting. Even the last three Star Wars movies, which should have been an entertainment slam dunk, pretty much sucked caca.
I can’t remember the last time I went to a movie theater. Personally, I’ve no interest to fill the coffers of overpaid Hollywood stars when all they offer is a junk product in return. Producers offer Hollywood elite $20 million per film and expect me as a consumer to pay the bill. Forget it.
Yo stop at that deli, the theater’s overpriced.
You got the backpack? (Gonna pack it up nice.)
Don’t want security to get suspicious.
Mr. Pibb and Red Vines equals Crazy Delicious.
I can think of a lot of people who would pay for a pricey movie theater ticket if there was 3D IMAX porn.
When I go to the movies I don’t buy any food there. Too expensive. I’ll sneak stuff in but fasting for 2 hours shouldn’t be a big deal for most normal people. Then again this is America and the cletii just have to have popcorn, giant sodas and nachos.
We need more price controls on movies.
Cap the price at $3.00. Big entertainment starts are already rich anyways.
@hellinmyeyes: This happenned to me at our local AMC theatre as well, cept instead of a date I was with a group of friends and we all mouthed off at the dude working behind the stand.
As a student that has many alternatives for viewing the exact same movie at a much more reduced cost (DVD rentals) or in even more ways that there would be no cost at all (internet), I’m quite saddenned that prices have gotten so high for what is becoming a quickly depreciating product. I cant remember the last time I’ve actually thoroughly enjoyed a movie I watched at the cinema, and such a practice is quickly becoming more and more disliked, even with excercising the multiple cost saving measures discussed here.
I agree for the most part with the “don’t go” people. To me there are very few movies worth putting up with theater hassles for (obnoxious patrons, disgustingly dirty theaters, bad screens, ridiculously expensive concessions, etc.)
For the rare occasions that I have to see a movie on the big screen, I carry a large purse and take along some snacks from the grocery store. The plus with that is that I can bring something somewhat healthful like nuts or dried fruit that I can’t get at the concession. Interesting story, about a year after 9/11 happened I had a theater in upstate/central New York tell me that they weren’t allowing anyone to carry bags/purses with them into the theater due to “terrorism”. Yeah, terrorists are really going to take out a movie theater that holds about 200 people max. Of course I knew they were just callously using 9/11 as a cover to try and cut down on people taking their own snacks into the theater.
@prmononoke: Wow…I don’t know what magical movie theaters you attend, but I’ve had some awful, cold, disgusting, stale popcorn at movie theaters. This problem happens especially when seeing the discounted movies during a weekday, since the turnover of food is so slow.
We usually stop at a 7/11 next to the theater we frequent and get those taquitos and a Slurpee (they usually don’t care or inspect so much during the week) and I grab some candy and a bottle of water to stash in my purse. IF the popcorn is fresh we’ll buy some.
I remember movie hopping when I was younger, but I’m too chicken shit to do it now that I’m a boring adult
@bohemian: Hey that sounds like my city. Do you live in South Texas too?
@CCS: The actors’ salaries aren’t why I don’t go to the movies any more. Here in NYC, the last price I heard for a Manhattan theater was about $11. It’s probably 12 or 13 by now. Even that’s not the reason. Some of the reasons:
1. Commercial tie-ins whereby the ad might be a car or a cell phone, but half-way in you find out that it’s the ad for the movie and they want me to go see the movie so I can see how great their car or cell phone or fried chicken is. Yeah, that’s not gonna happen. As someone who hates with a passion the corporate naming rights dance, I also don’t like being told to go see a movie just because some corporation decided to pay buku bucks for product placement.
2. Sometimes I just don’t like an actor or actress and I refuse to pay to see the movie. You know, some just rub you the wrong way.
3. As others have said: commercials before the movie and yakity-yak by others in the theater.
4. Sometimes the reviews are so bad, why pay for it?
5. And finally, I’ve gotten spoiled with Netflix. The pause button and the subtitles (you would think the sound people could ensure the dialogue is heard since everything else is done in post-production – see the ‘foley editor’ and ‘sound editor’ credits for the people who synch up the non-dialogue sounds) are really helpful sometimes.
Luckily, I live just two blocks away from a new AMC. For some reason, they are totally cool with outside food. I bring a Jamba Juice in every movie I see there with no problem whatsoever.
@VikingP77: That movie was freakin’ awesome! It’s worth the $6 to $12 (depending on where you live and when you go)
I love seeing action movies in theaters. For comedies and such, I usually wait until they’re out on DVD. A recent exception was Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I’ll see anything that Judd Apatow has worked on in theaters after seeing Superbad, he’s a comedic genius.
On another note, I’ve had good luck with buying children’s or senior tickets at the credit card kiosks at the movie theatre (usually located inside). The people checking tickets don’t typically care (for movies like Spiderman or other similar releases where there will be lines, etc, this is not advisable, as theater managers will be nearby.)
Movie theaters make their money on concessions. Most of the ticket price (not sure what the percentage is, but theaters don’t make much) goes to the producers and distributors of movies, so the theates, especially their workers, don’t give two shits if you pay $6 or $10.
6.50 here for a movie, not too bad. Popcorn is 6 or 7Dollers for a large though and a large soda is 4$ with one free refill. Only time worth goin to the movies is on a date and the everyother time I just watch my movies online. I don’t mind youtube quality and think HD is a ripoff anyway so it all works out for me.
I’ve gone in the morning with my own food and drink. I hit all of the movies in one go or maybe two but I pretty much spend an entire day there. Requires some planning and knowledge of employee shifts and the screening times but you can work it out most of the time. Also helps knowing the people that work there.
Three great tips:
1) Drive ins are the best cheap date around
2) Some city’s still have second run theatres around. For people with actual lives these are awesome… movies are out of the theater by the time I get around to watching them. Catch ‘em on the cheap screen for 3 bucks a head.
3) bittorent….
@TheMu:
@TacoDave:
A big purse (or a girlfriend with a big purse) helps.
The Regal Crown Club, at least here in North Carolina, gives you free popcorn on Tuesdays. We generally go to the matinee (yeah, supercheapskates), and the popcorn would be more than the price of the movie. So we’re actually getting more than a 2 for 1 deal. Yay!
@VikingP77: Guess what? If no one ever went to a movie again? Robert Downey Jr. would still have more money than you.
@CCS: I realized after I sent my response you were asking about who doesn’t go to sporting events because of the athletes’ salaries. Well, the only sport I ever followed was baseball.
I used to go to Mets games, but after the strike of ’94, I said forget it. No more agita for me when they lost and no more joy when they won. I just stopped caring about them after the strike. And, now with all the naming rights for stadiums and ‘this call to the bullpen is brought to you by …’ crap, I see I made the right decision back then. And there’s no way I’d be able to easily afford a game next year when the Citibank Mets move into their new corporate home.
I can’t justify paying for movies anymore. I’ve found there are so many free movies showing at libraries, colleges, nonprofits, independent theaters and such in the Boston area that I started an online calendar:
[www.google.com]
It’s a little slow right now because the colleges have left town, but I’ve seen decent films (focus on foreign, classics and documentaries) before they hit theaters, sometimes had the director present and even have been fed as part of the festivities. During the school year, we were averaging 30-40 free films a week on the calendar.
If there’s nothing good on, I go to my local library and check out some DVDs.
@RandomHookup: What a great idea!
Like lots of other posters, I also prefer watching at home. For some reason knowing I *can’t* go pee makes me have to go pee, so I never make it through the movie. I’ll go see big effects-heavy SFF movies (Harry Potter, Star Wars, Narnia) on the big screen to get the full experience, but otherwise I’d just as soon watch them at home. (I’ve read theaters are going in for 3D again now b/c it’s something you CAN’T do at home, whereas home theaters are pretty sophisticated now and you don’t have to put up with other theatergoers. I can see that; I’d pay for 3D.)
We have a small “independent chain” locally that does $4 matinees with $1.50 soda-and-popcorn deal, which isn’t bad. But still with the sitting in the dark with other people. And I HATE going in the summer; at least during the school year I can reliably pick a matinee where there will be no high school students.
I go for the early morning Saturday viewings. Less crowd, $5 tickets where I live. Plus right after breakfast, popcorn doesn’t sound too appetizing, where as if I go in the evening I just crave it.
I don’t go often though. Movie theaters have turned into a horrible experience, and its both the fault of the theater and the patrons. I don’t like being bombarded with so many commercials (the days of elevator music and, if anything, movie trivia on the screen are long gone) at ear-blasting volumes.
But worse are the customers. People talking during the movie. With the cellphone it is much worse. Once had a lady get on her cellphone, go down the stairs and talk loudly on it. She wasn’t sitting in her chair, but the whole theater could hear her yacking. And when someone went down and told her to be quiet, she got all pissy and starting complaining loudly about it to her friend when she sat back down. People also frequently text, letting their bright little phones shine throughout the theater.
People are just plain rude. I don’t know why they pay so much for a movie just to ignore it and play with their phone, but it ruins it for me. I imagine many people avoid the theater for the same reasons, yet the theater companies do nothing about it.