Shits too expensive when I can have a better experience at home.
Theaters used to be a family outing now they feel like taking your kids to Disney in the early 90s
this post was submitted on 08 May 2025
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Movie theaters, especial AMC, are pricing out their customers. 2 people, discount matinee tickets, purchased online, over $40.
I don't even look at the snack bar, because I didn't think you could buy food that was more upcharge anywhere else if you tried.
When i was a kid, movies were like $4 and even that was considered a bit much.
Movies were supposed to be for the common person, since you probably couldn't afford theater tickets.
If your home experience is better, you go to bad theaters, or are quite well off.
It's crazy now but Disney was really quite expensive in the 90s. The theater is still way cheaper.
I don't go to bad theaters I have one of the best imax theaters in my state.
Theaters just are over expensive garbage and yes my home setup with a 75 inch OLED and Dolby atmos surround is better then then $100+ im gonna spend to watch shitty movies at the box office. Not to mention the traffic, the annoying mother fuckers on their phones instead of watching the film.
Movie theaters act like they are Disney world.
Watching at home in peace and quiet while smoking my weed will be a million times better then a theater.
The last great experience I had in theater was with Infinity War. Nothings hit the same since.
There is exactly zero reasons to spend $100 at the theater for less than 6 people. Maybe 5 people if your in Manhattan
My local AMC in the Midwest for 2 adults and a kid to see thunderbolts this evening, with popcorn and fountain drinks:
Tickets Adult Ticket (2) $32.98 Child Ticket $13.49
Convenience Fee $6.57
Food & Drinks
-
Kids Pack $8.79
Kids Fountain Drink
Skittles
$2.00
1
Large Popcorn + 2 Large Drinks
$26.37
Large Popcorn, Large Drink, Large Drink
1
Fees
-
Service Fee
$1.00
Order Taxes
-
Taxes
$2.29
Total $93.49
Finally someone who gets it now i have 3 kids! Soooo its even more $$$ lmao these people are out of touch.
You can skip the snacks. They aren't required.
Your total could have been $53.04.
And you might have been able to skip the convenience fee if you got the tix at the theater directly. Some times they still have an extra fee.
Or you can stay home and have all the snacks you could want. How much amc stocks have you "invested" to be shilling for them so hard?
No idea. Wherever is part of my index mutual fund.
It's just wrong when people complain about the cost, and roll in all the optional snacks and stuff as though they just automatically have to buy them. It's easily possible to spend half as much or less. Nobody to blame but yourself if you choose to buy all the extras.
And the tickets is optional too.
I've always said, you get a 100% discount on what you don't buy.
Where do you live in a 3rd world country? Fucking π€‘s
Tickets around the US range from $9-16 typically.
A few high end markets or "special thearters", they can be over $20.
Local theater near us has $11 matinees. Go before dinner and have a meal at the grocery store next door ($3.50 for a good sized burger and fries).
Itβs a cheap date on a rainy afternoon, the AMC wants $30+ for the same experience.
Plenty of theaters have discount days. $7 Tuesdays for example. Don't think AMC does it but could by why they're seeing issues
Wanna know what I don't have an extra $50 bucks for lately?
A bj behind the gas station?
That's not really extra. It's like food. Absolute necessity.
You guys need to stop ordering convenience bjs and pack your home cooked bjs
Some of us live in BJ deserts where you can't get good, quality BJs from home.
You do know you don't have to buy all the extras, right?
That just tells me you're single. There's never any scenario in which you spend 0 at the theatre if you have family, even more so if you have kids.
I am single, yes. But that never stopped my parents from saying no. I never had movie theater popcorn until I was an adult. You're the parent. You're in charge.
What sort of parent will say no to popcorn at the movies? Especially if their kids ask and its supposed to be a fun night out?
You don't seem to understand that you can't always say no or you might ruin the day for somebody else and in extension.. yourself
Any parent on a budget, or who knows it's not good for kids to always get what they want.
The problem is your kids have the expectation now.
If you make it abundantly clear before you get to the theater, there won't be any snacks; Then when they complain, take them home. They'll know you're serous next time, and it won't be a problem.
You're not wrong, but you're also ignoring the fact that the whole point of a movie theater is to have an "experience" and the snacks are part of it. Sure, you don't have to get it, yes your strategy can be done and will work, and I have a long and storied history of stopping by the candy aisle in the grocery store before noisily making my way to my seat and enjoying my discount goodies. But buying a ticket to a theater is a matter of spectacle and experience, and that exact experience is becoming rapidly unaffordable even when you just buy the tickets alone anymore.
Do you make the same argument complaining on the expense of a vacation "experience", while insisting on buying first class tickets and staying at 4&5 star hotels?
I get you're being over the top to make a point, but it seems a bit ridiculous to compare overpriced popcorn to a first class plane ticket and staying at an expensive hotel. We're talking about experiences that people used to indulge in on a whim, or which were reasonably affordable for average folks. That is not the case with the examples you provided, and those kind of purchases are large even for some people of means.
The extra popcorn and candy was always overpriced even in the 80s. That's why I never got any as a kid. Nothing has changed. Ticket prices have even pretty flat for a decade now.
Really they've gone up.
It is ridiculous. But the logic is the same. Which shows the flaw in the logic.
k
what your original argument was suggesting was to buy the expensive first class tickets and pitch a tent in the middle of a quarry and hunt squirrels for food at your dream destination. Might as well not book the flight in that case.
That makes sense, when the idea is to spend time unplugged in your dream destination. It sounds nice.
But it doesn't make sense, unless the expensive first class ticket is the only ticket.
that's not nice if you have kids and a wife. Again, you're arguing from a single person's perspective. I agree it might sound like a good time to you.. it sure as hell isn't practical for anybody with any sort of social commitment. you gotta understand that.
If I can't afford popcorn at the movie I'm not going to the movie as they money could obviously be out to better use.
Absolutely agree
As someone who also didn't have movie snacks until I could pay for them myself, I think part of it is that snacks add to the experience. If I'm paying for my family to go to the movies it's supposed to be something nice. We have movie nights at home and buy popcorn in bulk so we can all cuddle up on the couch and snack to our hearts content or pause if someone spills or needs the restroom.
I go to the movies once every few years now and it's always for a big blowout movie where we can dress up and we go to a fancy theater that does food service and has dedicated layzboy style seats. We went and saw Barbie and all wore pink and got themed food/drinks at the theater (pink lemonade and Barbie-q-something). It was fun and imho that's the kind of theater experience worth having. I don't really remember seeing movies as a kid with my family but I'm sure we'll all remember this.
I think the idea of spending $60 for a family of four to sit in silence together and then leave is just not as appealing unless they get the "theater experience" of the addons. I'm also not one complaining though because I generally don't care about seeing things in the theater and I don't really know what it's worth to people who would enjoy it. I do understand that it doesn't feel worth $60 though.
If it's only a few times a year (or once every few years), then the expense shouldn't be worth complaining about. That truly is a special event.
I'm not complaining about the price, but you can definitely complain about the price regardless of how often you go. I don't go to Disney every year but I can still say it's overpriced.
I was just saying that if theaters are hurting for customers I understand why. If people are spending $60 just on tickets for a family of four they are probably not going to be going very often. We don't go very often and we make a whole event out of it and don't spend much more than the $60. People that buy popcorn and snacks for everyone at their local theater end up spending as much as we do and we get dinner and drinks out of it. Unless there's a discount running or the theater is a specialty theater like the one I go to they don't really offer a better experience than you can get at home for the price. The only draw imho is that the movie is new and nowadays things hit streaming pretty shortly after release. Generic theaters just don't offer enough for the price and the evidence is that they are failing. People loved having movie pass so it seems like there's still a desire to go, just not at current prices.
You're missing the point, and I can't tell if it's willfull or incidental, but everyone is saying it has become something we only do a few times a year, as opposed to regularly, because of the expense.
LOL, oh this reads like a PR piece to keep the stock from tanking. What AMC failed to mention was that in 2026, their bank notes come due. Analyst predict the venture capitalist that infused them with said money the first time, likely won't do this again. They also predict if they fail to re-invest in AMC, they will be forced to close around 150+ US theaters to stay afloat, and that is not counting world-wide closures.
The proposal for 100% tariffs on movies is certain to put AMC in immediate bankruptcy, if done.
ITT: People more concerned with the price of snacks than the price of tickets. Classic Americans lol