Movie prices keep rising.  This weekend, we went to Showcase to see "Four
Weddings and a Funeral" (a very good film, btw) and the matinee price
is now $4.25 (!)
 
Even though we went on Mother's Day, and the weather was nice, when we
left the theater, the parking lots were practically empty!  The movie we
saw ended at 2:00 p.m., so most of the other 11 movies should have been
still running their first matinee show.
 
Is it more a reason that the current 12-14 movies at Showcase are just
not very good, or have the higher prices made you reconsider how often
you will go to a first-run movie and, instead, will either wait for
the $1.00 show at Fox Village or for a $3.00 rental from Video Watch?
 
In the case of my wife and I, it's becoming the latter.  We passed up on
things we had marginal interest recently (like "The Paper" and "Serial Mom")
because it didn't feel right to spend $8.50 for matinee tickets.
 
Or is Hollywood just becoming too damn expensive?  Or is Showcase just
too damn expensive?

8 responses total.

Showcase is too expensive, but it might not be their fault.  I have
heard that the Fox Village makes exactly the same amount of profit
from each ticket sold as does Showcase.  That must mean that rental
rates for first run films are horrendously high.  Can anyone confirm
this factoid?

It could be that someone has to pay for the millions of dollars actors and
actresses are paid for each movie and the millions of dollars it cost to film a
movie. 

High production costs contribute significantly, I'm sure.  But why the
huge disparity between first-run prices on the one hand and second-run
and tape-rental prices on the other?

In responding to myself:  According to AP, this weeking was the lowest
total ticket sales since October 1992.  It must be that all the current 
movies suck more so than the outrageous ticket prices.

Re #3: First run movies cost more than second run movies for the same
reason as hard cover books cost more than paperbacks.  Economists call it
"price discrimination."  People who are really interested in any
particular movie or book will be willing to pay a premium to have it as
soon as it is released.  Others are willing to wait for the price to go
down.  The owner of the copyright is just trying to maximize revenue by
discriminating between customers who are willing to pay more and customers
who would be willing to do without at the higher price.

Well, here in Pensacola, FL, matinees are $3.50 and soirees are $5.50 at the 
main theatres. At Gulf Breeze Cinemas it is $3 of matinees and $4.25 for soiree
but they don't have the cool Dolby stuff. I guess ticket prices must be
higher in other parts of the country, possibly due to higher overhead.

I think movies are over-priced, too.  I rarely go to see first-run
movies anymore.  There are only a few that I can't wait for it to show
up at the Fox or on video.

It's interesting to reread this item and see people complain about
tickets that [only!?] cost  $4.25...  Though it IS an ongoing problem. 
The last time I went to an evening show [ages  ago], the cost was just
under $10.00 and matinees not being a whole lot cheaper.  Though  I
sometimes see in the movie section of the paper, places that advertise
discount ticket  prices [like there's one in Canton, I think, where
movies are $5.00].  And a number of  theaters have their cheapest rates
not in the daytime but during the 'twilight' hours  between 4-6 pm.  

Then there's Briarwood where the tickets only cost $1.00 [half price on
Tuesdays, IIRC].   But they don't change the movie options all that
often and thus, its rare that there's  something showing that I'd want
to see.  Unlike the dollar movie theater that was near me  down south
where there were something like 15 auditoriums and thus, a much bigger 
selection of movies and the movies changed on a more regular basis...

Response not possible - You must register and login before posting.

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss