We buy ours at Costco and save about $3.00 per ticket. I'm not yet a senior, my DH is, but this is cheaper than the senior ticket. We have to pay additional if it's IMAX or 3D.

We bring our own snacks to the movies. We really don't like the popcorn that they sell. Most times though, we don't bother with food.

Yes, you can watch a movie at home. But, it really doesn't compare to the big screen.

When it comes to spending money, I don't look at what I think the price should be. If your budget allows for $22.50, then you go but don't get a snack. So, for $22.50 you got out for the night!

There aren't too many activities one can do for $11. Even a dive music venue that charges admission (the Santa Cruz area has some good dives) will cost $20 or more for ONE person. Nice places go for many multiples of that. Theater (non-movie) tickets, concerts, other types of shows? Many multiples of the price of a movie.

Back in the 50s when movies were a quarter or less (that's the price I remember from the late 50s), most people made less than $100/week.

We paid $7.25 for Senior matinee today.

We go to a luxury theater with reserved seating, comfy recliners, and chair-side waiter service. It's really nice and only a few dollars more than the regular theater, which is something like $14 per person at night, which is when we go.

We hardly ever go to the movies, and it has nothing to do with cost.

For one, on the rare occasions that hubby and I can go on an ACTUAL date without the kids, we would rather do something where we can interact with each other than sit silently for a few hours watching something.

Two- there are very few movies that we feel actually warrant the big screen experience. Rom-coms, comedies and dramas don't need a large screen with deluxe surround sound to get the full experience. Sci-fi, lots of special effects (Star Wars, Harry Potter, LOTR, etc) do in my opinion.

Three- (and this is truly the biggest one) other people in the theater tend to ruin it. I think the last movie that hubby and I attended together in a theater was the LOTR Return of the King.

Hubby is a huge Tolkien fan and we had waited a long time to see this movie. Midnight premiere and the row in front of us had 5 or 6 teenage kids who spent the entire movie talking in a normal (not hushed) voice and browsing/playing on their cell phones.

Several people had tried sushing them, my hubby even left the theater to tell ushers (who did nothing). Finally, at a pivotal moment in the film where the kids were being loud, my hubby stood up and basically yelled at the top of his voice "shut up!!!"

Half the theater errupted in applause for my hubby. Then an usher came to US and told my husband he couldn't do that.

The whole experience was ruined for us. Since then, we have only been to a theater to take each child to their first "big screen" movie. Me with the oldest, him with the second, me with the third and if there is a decent kids movie this spring/summer he will take our youngest for her special date.

Chi- I've heard of theaters like that, sure would love to go to one. I imagine there are far fewer interruptions.

We pay $6 on senior day and the movies are first run in the top theater in the area. Senior day is Thursday afternoon. Its gets pricy if you add a big bucket of popcorn. We skip the popcorn and go eat somewhere afterward.

We too sometimes go to a local luxury theater (probably the same one as Chi83 since she lives near me) and the current price to watch The Martian in 3D is $22 for adults ($18 for seniors). They offer large leather reclining chairs in a stadium setting for better viewing and narrow tables between the chairs for your food. Food and drink (the regular stuff plus beer, wine, cheesecake, ice cream, etc. can be delivered to your seat before and during the movie.

Frankly, I prefer the $2 movies across the street from our home with $1 hotdogs and popcorn, even if it isn't in 3D.

Chair-side waiter service, Chi83?? I can just imagine (or maybe I can't) what those refreshments cost! As it is, regular refreshment prices in our local movie theaters (in PA) are ridiculously high. I usually go to the movies with my daughter and granddaughter. They like movie popcorn, but I don't--and I'm glad to pass it up.

I think we usually pay $7.50 for tickets. It's an IMAX theater with comfy seats. No waiters. :-)

Texas_Gem, we definitely like them. We only go to the movies maybe twice a year at the most so the extra money is worth it. I especially like that we can reserve which seats we want online so we don't have to show up an hour early to the new releases to get a decent seat like in the regular theaters.

Jodi, I've seen that theater before but I've never been in it. Can't beat the prices!

Alisande, there's definitely a bit of a premium on the food but it's not too bad compared to other theaters and restaurants in the area. But we had lunch there and I wasn't impressed at all. The popcorn was probably the best I've had in a theater, with real butter but I had nachos and the cheese was completely cold and they had my order wrong twice and overall we decided just to stick with popcorn and drinks and skip the novelty food.

You'll be jealous about this... I just checked the listings for an old local theater that they're trying to revitalize. Tomorrow night they're doing a FREE showing of 'Night of the Living Dead'. :O)

The nearest theater, older style seats in Frankfort, Ky used to be $5 for the matinee but they were bought out and now are $6 for a matinee and all shows on Tuesday are $5. Regular price also went up to $8, I think they were $7 or $7.50 before. Lexington is more expensive, the highest being Regal theater with reclining seats that are reserved when you buy them for $13.50, matinee is $7.50. Usually don't go there. I don't like the blue lights that are on the seats, they're distracting from the movie and the last two times I reclined in their seats I got leg cramps. My kids love it there, though.

Texas_Gem - I agree with your number 3. The last time I went to an evening show was quite awhile ago in 1999 to see "The Sixth Sense". DH and I were out for dinner and a movie for our anniversary. I couldn't believe how bad some of the people were. There were drunk guys in their 20's doing all kinds of stuff. They were sitting way in the back and rolling their empty beer bottles under the seats, no carpet so rolled quite well. I complained to management and they refused to do anything. In the past ushers would have removed them. That was the last time we went to that theater or out to an evening movie.

I think there is one theater in the area with comfy recliners and you can get all kinds of food. Don't know if they have waiter service. I have never been there. When I go to the movies I go for just the movie. I don't care about the food. I do sneak in some candy in my handbag. DH is the one who must get popcorn with extra butter and a drink. I don't want a drink or I have to run out in the middle of the movie to go to the restroom. Last time I made that mistake was with "Titanic". What was I thinking!?! A 3 hour movie and a large drink, I nearly exploded.

caflowerlover, the last movie my DH and I saw in a theater was Men in Black, the first one! Now, I just wait for them to hit the $5 bins.

About five years ago I answered the phone and got someone doing a survey on our 'movie habits'. He got discouraged when I couldn't remember the last movie we'd seen a theater. I asked him to wait while I asked my DH. He gave up when I came back on the line to say it had been at least five years. (We haven't been to the movies since the call either.)

I agree with all of Texas_Gem's reasons for not going. It's *possible* there will be some epic drama we'd venture out for...but not likely.

We do *see* movies, but at home, via DVD's from our library. We also watch TV series from Canada and the UK -- mostly mystery/drama. We'd rather watch when we want to, where it's quiet, where one can break as desired and can eat/drink something tasty and clean. Instead of a 'movie night', we have a 'Teatime Matinee' many afternoons.

It's $7 (cheap) for senior matinee around here but we're not interested in propping up Hollywood elites so we spend our $7 on a delicious pint of locally crafted beer. Buy local.

Through one of the credit cards I get free movies, but since I got this reward program there have been so few movies that I have wanted to see. We did just see the intern, enjoyed it clean humor and a good story. I agree the manners of movie patrons is lacking in a massive way. I had a teen in front of me continue to recline her seat at the expense of my legs, meanwhile her legs were propped up on the seat in front of her. Really nice for the next person who sits in that seat. The time before parents reserved the center seats for a birthday party and did not enter until the previews were started. The parents stayed standing handing out popcorn and pop while the movie started and then continued talking and getting up to during the movie. As for prices Tuesdays are cheapest 7$ for reg 10 for 3d and 18 for D box 3D reg prices are 11,14 and 21. plus 13% tax. VIP is more. Food is expensive and not very good I just skip it and bring my own. But the part that bugs me the most is the hour of commercials not previews commercials that play on a loop. I remember going to see a movies as kid in a theater not the just the drive in, (drive ins are a completely different time)it was a really exciting treat you waited in line outside there were velvet ropes and the building was more like an actual theater in decor. Most likely because I saw it through the eyes of a kid and it was a treat today's theaters just don't have the same effect.

Our "cheapest" tickets are 8.50 and that is for a senior.

We just paid $35 for two tickets to see "Martian" on Thursday night. It's an adults-only theater (age 21 & up) with recliners, sofas, or reclining sofas. Plus table service with what we call "typical bar food" and adult beverages. We only go to one or two movies a year, so this is the ONLY way we see movies. :)

Our favorite movie theater is the Studio Movie Grill. I used to go to the one in the Dallas area. It was my husbands favorite place to see movies because it was so comfortable and different. It has very comfortable large leather chairs that roll, there are tables between 2 chairs and a long bar that you can roll the chair up to instead of using the table. The food is great, good variety, mixed drinks, beers, juices and cold drinks. They have waiters that come to you when you press a button that tells them they are needed. You can set up a private party in a private viewing room and even set up a special menu and drinks, I went to a few of those it's a great idea for a party. I miss going there. I have heard that there are some in Houston but have not been yet. Check your area there may be something similar around. So much nicer than the normal theaters. Price was very reasonable.
Studio Movie Grill

We haven't been to the movie theater in several years. Usually just wait till it comes to RedBox and then rent it.

I picked what I thought would be a popular movie and checked the ticket prices online. Wednesday nights have always had the cheapest prices at this theater

Pooh Bear

I pay $9.50 at my local movie theater, tho they do have a $4 special price on Tuesdays only. I enjoy the "movie experience' better than watching on TV. I am currently looking forward to seeing two action/adventure/thrill movies:The Walk and Everest.

Lol... people still go to the movies?

Most of the people that I know quit going when the price went over $6.

It's an industry where people are far over-paid for the product they deliver. To give them such exorbitant profits is not a very wise use of one's money.

Businesses that don't have profits go away. If you think there are exorbitant profits in the industry, rather than attack them, you should buy shares in companies that enjoy such excesses and profit from it yourself.

Ty for your advice Snidely, but I don't invest in companies whose profits are made from immoral practices. Not only shouldn't I buy shares in such companies, but if I believe that they are already over-compensated, then it would be against my own moral interests to financially profit from their supposed successes.

I would rather see that industry 'go away' then to contribute to it's efforts. If demand drives the market, then I choose to not create - nor invest in - demand for it's products.

When a company fits my expectations, then whether for my time, my finances, my energies, or my attention, I will consider them as an option for a worthy investment.

Does Fandango charge extra for tickets? If people complain about ticket prices, why in the world pay more than straight box-office prices?

Sure, rgreen, if you see going to a movie or enjoying other entertainment as presenting a moral dilemma to you, it's understandable that you would choose to do or not do what you find best for yourself. That suggests the "profit element" as you mention above isn't really what you're troubled by.

There's really no part of the entertainment industry whose people would be likely candidates for the priesthood, a ministry, or an order of nuns. Artists and creative people of all kinds tend to live on the fringe of their societies and are more likely to have practices that are outside of what the mainstream does, that's nothing new.

Snidely, perhaps I did not clarify my thoughts well enough. I submit that exorbitant pricing, for an inferior product, is a form of immorality.

The demand for the type of entertainment created by the film industry is a very shallow form of hero worship. It is manufactured and driven by purposefully-perpetrated cultural cues from a powerful Public Relations empire. An entire era of humans shammed into commercialized hype. It is the power of peer pressure used to enrich a few - to the unconscionable cost of many.

If the industry produced entertainment at a reasonable cost, then consumption of the product could be considered a fair exchange. However, aside from the type of mass marketing I described above, and the natural mechanisms relating to assimilation to the group most often felt by overly-trusting and unsophisticated youth who are too immature to have well-developed capacities for good decision making, entertainment offered by 'movies' also includes the expectations of courtship.

The entertainment industry panders to, and plays on, the weaknesses of human nature. Urges meant for the up-building acculturation of a the most vulnerable are funneled into financial profit for the most unscrupulous. You appear to be a very fitting example of this unscrupulousness. Above, you recommended that I financially profit off of activities that I condemn. Sorry, but no thank you sir.

Your pseudo-intellectual tirade gets seriously undone with the vacuous insult at the end. You don't know me, you don't know if I do or don't share all or part of your views, so your conclusion is unfounded. I was trying to understand your point of view, not pontificate.

Only a few people get the huge money from movies: the main actors/actresses and other top directors/producers/studio heads. The vast majority of other people working on movies make normal wages, like caterers, graphic designers, costume design, hair and makeup, etc. Hundreds of people support their families off of each movie.

That's one of the arguments people use for pirating movies and such. They say that the movie people already make millions of dollars and don't need it, but that's not the whole picture.

Snidely... Whether it was the type of immorality you assumed, or the situation I described, you advised me to invest in something I had already said I found immoral. That is exactly the type of exploitation I said I find repugnant. And Mr. Snide, I don't care if you find my assessment of your conduct insulting. Too bad.

chi83... If those people don't like the culture surrounding their chosen profession, then perhaps they should have thought of that beforehand. I surely am not going to support their product with my dollars. If they want more pay, then they need to renegotiate their position with those who do make the big bucks. Those jobs are certainly not on my purse strings. We have to either be the change or don't complain. I choose to be the change. I choose to not support even one of those overly-priced movies.

I would gladly help someone who quit a job that treated them like second class workers long before purchasing a ticket that supported what I find to be an entire immoral industry.

rgreen48 - What? I didn't say anything about the culture of their profession or their unhappiness. My entire point was that buying a movie ticket or pirating a movie is not just supporting or stealing from the already-rich top people. But good for you to sticking with your values. Everyone is free to support or not support whichever causes they want.

Chi, oh... okay, it sounded like I was supposed to feel guilty about the little guys when I didn't go to the cinema lol. Sorry I misunderstood. :-)

Sue.....the last movie I went to was in 1999....my daughter was a freshman in college and she invited me to see Buffalo 66. I haven't rented a movie in about 5 years because I usually get too sleepy to try and watch them, so I don't know how much tickets cost any more, but my husband and I were "movie buffs", prior to 1980 when daughter was born. We saw just about every good movie that came out. Back then you usually had to drive halfway across Houston to see a particular movie.....this before the multiplex cinemas were just getting popular, and for awhile the cinemas were little cracker boxes with sticky floors from spilled sodas. I just gradually got out of the habit, but I have thought about going to the movies again....mentioning to my husband that we ought to go. I am not particularly concerned what the tickets cost, but he is a lot more thrifty and old fashioned than I am, and he may not be crazy about how much they have gone up in price.

We write a generous Christmas gift check to our public library -- which provides us with so much free entertainment via DVD's -- and, of course, books!

We don't go to as many movies as we once did. The tickets are high, but some movies are best seen on the big screen, so that is when we choose to go. We have several theaters that play movies a few weeks after the big theaters and they are only $2 each and Tuesdays are only $1. Regular senior prices for first run is $7:50 here also. Nice we all have a choice, but don't you still have too pay for the subscription services, like Net Flix?