First and foremost, I feel like I should start this post off by stating this is NOT a sponsored post in any way, shape, or form. MoviePass has NEVER contacted me, and I pay for my own subscription. I get a lot of questions about it though and decided to do a quick rundown and review on the blog of my own free will.
Now that that’s out of the way… let’s get down to it!
What is MoviePass and What Does it Cost?
MoviePass is a subscription service that allows you to see unlimited movies in theater for just $9.95 a month. It’s kind of like Netflix, but for theater movies.
How Does it Work?
There are two components you will need: your physical MoviePass card and the MoviePass phone app.
First things first… you sign up on their website and will get billed $9.95 once a month. Once you are signed up, they’ll issue you a MoviePass Debit MasterCard in your name. It looks just like any other credit or debit card, but it can only be used at movie theaters. You will not get ANY bills for the use of this card and simply pay your monthly fee. Mine is auto withdrawn from my PayPal account on the same date each month. The card takes a little bit of time to get in the mail, but is well worth the wait. After you have your card, you’re ready to start going to the movies!
In addition to your card, you need to download the MoviePass app on your phone. From there, you can pull up a list of nearby theaters. Once you get to the theater, select that theater and then locate the movie and showtime that you want. You “check in” to the movie by selecting the showtime, then almost instantly, you get a notification that you are successfully checked in and can now buy your ticket. Note that you cannot check in unless you are within 100 yards of the theater. After you check in, MoviePass works magic on their end and loads up your card with the exact amount you need for your ticket within moments. You go up to the ticket counter, order your ticket, and pay with your MoviePass card, just like you would do with any other credit card. You can also still use your theater loyalty card and earn points as normal (I LOVE the Regal Crown Club).
Nearly all major theaters (91% of them nationwide) take MoviePass, as it functions like a normal MasterCard. You could even travel and use it on vacation! I have personally used it at two different theaters so far with many more to come, I’m sure. When I open up the app up on my phone, it displays all nearby theaters that I can use my MoviePass at, which is at least ten different theaters. If I went out of town, the same thing would happen.
Any Catches?
None that I’ve encountered yet! I pay a straight $9.95 a month with NO additional fees or taxes, regardless of how many movies I do or do not see. You can cancel at any time with no fee. There are no contracts and no commitments and it works on a month-to-month basis.
You can see “unlimited” movies, which means you can see one movie per day (but when will I ever need to see more than 30 movies a month, anyway?). There are also no restrictions on movies — you can see any movie at any showtime, even opening night.
Each account user must use their OWN phone. I suspect this is so people aren’t scamming the system, which is completely fair. If someone wanted to use my account, they would need both my card AND my phone to do it. While it’s possible, it would be very inconvenient and difficult to maneuver. Honestly though, it’s so affordable that I would encourage you NOT to try to scam and just get your own account.
My Thoughts
I would 100% recommend MoviePass to anyone, with zero reservations! I have always loved going to the movies, but Jerry and I were hardly ever able to go anymore because tickets are now $11.00+ per person. That is an expensive hobby! Now that I have a MoviePass, I’ve been back to going monthly. I only need to see one movie a month for my membership to pay for itself (and actually, I’m already saving money with just one movie since I only pay $9.95 for my pass and one ticket costs more than that!).
It is incredibly easy to use and extremely fast. Each time I pull into the theater parking lot, I check in quickly on my phone, and it takes less than a minute each time. I have had ZERO problems paying with my card and no one ever bats an eye. It looks and functions like any normal debit or credit card, except that it can only be used at theaters.
As long as I see at least one movie a month, my card is worthwhile. If I miss some months, that’s okay too because my “heavier” movie months where I see more will make up for it. My goal has been to see as many movies as possible, but at least two a month. Jerry’s been going with me to some (we’re getting him his own card soon), and I’ve also gone with friends and family. I put out a call on Facebook to see if anyone wanted to see anything with me in November, and set up four different movie “dates” as a result. I plan on doing this each month because it worked out so well and Jerry doesn’t want to see everything I want to see. Ha!
Prior to having a MoviePass, we had to REALLY want to see a movie (like IT) to shell out the cash to see it in theaters. Now, I have no reservations about seeing anything at all. Since it’s practically free for me to see any movie after my first one a month, I’m willing to take a chance on just about any movie that looks even halfway decent. Since I’ve been going to the movies so often now, I’ve also been racking up points on my Regal Crown Club card and have started earning free popcorn and sodas. I’m really loving going back to the theater a lot and if it weren’t for working full time and having a child, I’d probably go a few times a week! I have one retired friend who also has a MoviePass, and we have a movie date coming up next week! Even though she’s in a different age bracket than me, she seems to have no difficulty using hers either as it is very user friendly and simple.
I’ve had my MoviePass since September and have seen four movies so far with it: Mother!, Happy Death Day, Flatliners, and Bad Moms Christmas. I have two more movie dates planned for the next week, too! So far, I have paid $19.90 for my two months of having it, but have seen $44.00 worth of movies (based on an average of $11.00 per ticket). After the next two movies, it will have been approximately $66.00 in movie tickets for only $19.90 so far. Worth it? Hell yes.
If you think you’d like to go to the movies more often and would go at least once a month, I highly suggest you sign up for MoviePass. So far, it’s been more than worth it for me. It’s encouraged me to start going to the movies again, which I love doing, and also to have movie dates with friends or family I don’t see often enough. If I ever get to a point where I’m not seeing at least one movie a month, I’ll easily cancel it, but for now… it’s working out great! I don’t foresee canceling my subscription anytime soon.
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