Subscription

Regal Cinemas Releases REGAL UNLIMITED Plans (Is This a Good Deal?)

Posted on by Jack Drees

Hey everyone, Jack Drees here! In today’s society, there are lots of things that are going towards the subscription-based model. We have tons of monthly plan streaming services to pick from, there are a lot of specific item boxes that get delivered to your house every month, and the cinema industry has recently popularized this in regards to products relating to themselves. MoviePass was something to buzz about towards the end of 2017 and beginning of 2018, despite its shady business practices and eventual downfall. By the way, it’s somehow still in business! Speaking of downfalls, Sinemia introduced their unlimited model in 2018 despite mocking MoviePass for their similarly laid out model. Unfortunately for them, they shut down in April of this year. Then, sort of taken from an idea done by Europe’s Cineworld, AMC Theatres, which is popular throughout the United States, developed their top-tier plan to their Stubs program called A-List. This also spawned separate programs in chains including Cinemark, Showcase Cinemas, and even though the website still says it is currently in beta, Alamo Drafthouse.

But the question I had for awhile was this. When was Regal Cinemas going to join the party?

Regal Entertainment Group is the second largest cinema chain in terms of the number of theaters they have in the United States. Aside from having the Regal Cinemas name, they also possess the names United Artists Cinemas and Edwards Theatres, and their parent company is one of the early entrants to the subscription-based cinema trend, Cineworld! Guess what? After a number of rumors and bits of supporting evidence, Regal has joined the cinema subscription party! And unlike A-List, which I talked about on here before. Regal has three different tiers for their upcoming plan.

LOW TIER:
REGAL UNLIMITED ($18 per month + tax)

  • Unlimited free 2D movies
  • Usable at over 200 select theaters
  • Surcharges apply to premium formats
  • Surcharge of $1.50 to use at Unlimited Plus theater and $3.00 to use at Unlimited All Access theater

MIDDLE TIER:
REGAL UNLIMITED PLUS ($21 per month + tax)

  • Unlimited free 2D movies
  • Usable at over 400 theaters
  • Surcharges apply to premium formats
  • Surcharge of $1.50 to use at Unlimited All Access theater

HIGH TIER:
REGAL UNLIMITED ALL ACCESS ($23.50 per month + tax)

  • Unlimited free 2D movies
  • Usable at all theaters
  • Surcharges apply to premium formats

As for other benefits, they consist of the following (as suggested on Regal’s website):

  • 10% off all food and non-alcoholic drink purchases
  • No blackout dates
  • Free large popcorn and soft drink on your birthday
  • Earn Regal Crown Club® credits with every dollar spent using your Regal Unlimited™ subscription

Now let’s talk about these tiers in depth.

I mentioned earlier that this service is specifically usable on all regular 2D screenings. You can go to the theater and watch a standard 2D movie for free. That means you cannot get any of Regal’s premium offerings such as IMAX, 3D, ScreenX, or even the company’s own large format experience, RPX. That is unless you are okay with paying a surcharge. Speaking of surcharges, there are a number of theaters that will accept only one or two versions of the program without making you pay extra to get into your desired screening. For example, I live in Massachusetts. The closest Regal Cinemas to where I live is in the city of Boston, specifically the Regal Fenway & RPX. That means if I have Regal Unlimited All Access, I can use it there, pay $23.50 a month, and not be charged any extra money to go see whatever movie I want in 2D. That’s partially due to how such a theater specifically is only going to avoid surcharging people for said screenings if they have the All Access plan. If you have either the cheaper Unlimited Plus or even less expensive Unlimited plan, you will be forced to pay a surcharge for using your plan at a theater like the one I just mentioned. But there are also theaters in the state that will be a bit more friendly to those who have cheaper plans. There are several venues that allow you to use two plans without surcharge consequences in the state and others that permit all three and give no surcharges at all. To view what each theater is doing regarding these plans, click this link!

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Even though this may have already been effectively suggested, I must point out that there is a requirement to pay additional charges when going into premium screenings like IMAX or RPX. So in a way, this is almost like MoviePass where users can only get a free movie if they go see it in 2D. But I’m not holding my horses yet, because if you reserve tickets through the app, guess what? You get charged a $0.50 convenience fee!

But I’m not gonna deny that any of these deals have perks behind them, especially if you live in a state or city where individual movie tickets are expensive! Take New York City for example. Let’s base this on an actual showtime that I found online. This Wednesday, July 31st, I’ll be in New York City and have nothing else to do. I have done a lot of walking this morning and I just need to relax for a bit. I’m in the Times Square area, which has a couple cinemas. I choose to go see “Spider-Man: Far From Home” in the Regal E-Walk at 1:10. Keep in mind, this is in 2D with no premium perks. They still have chairs available, I pick my seat, boom. Then the guy at the register goes “$17.15, please.” So I choose to support corporate America because it gives me the awesome things that I want. But let’s face it, I’m paying a little bit more than $17 to rent a chair for a couple of hours. Then I am instantly reminded of how kick-ass “Spider-Man: Far From Home” was because this happened to be my second time watching it! And because it is so kick-ass, I’m like, “AGAIN!” So I trot downstairs to the register, ask for a ticket for the 4:20 show, pick my seat, get charged yet another $17.15, pay up, go back upstairs, watch the movie again, have a good time, and decide to leave. Simple math indicates that when you multiply 17.15 by 2 you get 34.30. Therefore, if I had ANY of Regal’s new plans, I would have been able to see the same movie twice and pay nothing at the counter both times. I’d just be paying for a monthly subscription, which ends up being cheaper than paying to see the same film twice at similarly priced times in a theater like this one.

And I will say, this does suggest one major benefit of Regal’s plans that I have yet to see anywhere else, because even though you do get additional charges at select theaters depending on what plan you have and which theater you go to, you don’t have a daily limit, you don’t have a weekly limit, nor do you have a monthly limit. You can see one movie a month, four or five a week, you can do a few showtimes in a single day, you have the power. MoviePass had a great idea of letting consumers see one movie a day, but what if that movie sucked? What if you wanted to see another movie that could have been better? Plus, you can’t see the same film twice! I mentioned Showcase Cinemas, which is pretty popular where I live. They have a plan for individuals and groups, which I think is creative. However, once I looked at the individual portion, it looked terrible! Because it gives you a choice between 2 or 3 tickets per month. I imagine it would be good for certain casual moviegoers, but if you review a ton of films like me, that would not be the case. AMC A-List lets people see three movies a week in any format. While the lack of surcharge on the premium formats is pretty cool, having an unlimited option would probably make the consumer feel like they’re the king of the world.

But this isn’t all rainbows and butterflies. Because in order to use this subscription, you must have a digital app. There is no physical card you can obtain, and if you are still in the dark ages and have a flip phone, chances are you can’t get this subscription. Plus, while I don’t imagine a case that involves this problem for every user, you cannot reserve tickets for more than three screenings at a time. Another issue that I think a lot of people can put up with to be honest is that this is not applicable to things like certain double features and Fathom Events screenings. One issue that I would probably think is more concerning, although still somewhat fine, is that if I wanted to use this service and buy a ticket at the box office, it has to be done on the same day that a certain show starts. That means if I wanted to see “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” tomorrow, I’d be required to buy a ticket online and pay a $0.50 convenience fee.

Plus, I will admit, I do not like the idea of having three different plans that can be either be applied at a few theaters, many theaters, or all theaters. This is why I like the simplicity of AMC’s A-List. Granted, they have different prices based on the area where you live, but I still like it better because that price does not restrict you from visiting outside of said area. There are slight restrictions, but it still lets you go from a state that is charging $19.95/month (Ex: Texas) to a state that is charging $21.95/month (Ex: Florida). If you live in either one of those states and for some reason you end up somewhere like California, which charges $23.95/month, you can still go see a movie there, but you have two more chances to see a movie in a state that does not cater to your price zone. Not only that, but if I lived in a certain area of my state that maybe would have been close to a lower tier theater if it were owned by Regal, I wouldn’t have to worry about that if it were owned by AMC. As long as it has the AMC name on it and it is in my state, I can go to it.

I was admittedly worried about this at first, because on paper, it sounded like Regal was going to outright rob consumers who got cheaper plans simply because they don’t work at all locations. And I will admit, the surcharges could be an inconvenience, and if I lived in a certain area, it would keep me away from more expensive Regal locations. But just the fact that surcharges exist as opposed to the concept where a higher tier theater makes you pay full price for a ticket puts a bit of a bigger smile on my face.

And you know what? Part of me even wonders how good this deal is from a business standpoint. I don’t see Regal going bankrupt anytime soon. But one of the things that killed MoviePass is how many movies a consumer can see per month. Because the idea was that MoviePass would start out by giving consumers an opportunity to watch a movie a day. Then more and more limits set in as time passed to the point where you couldn’t see certain movies, the site would crash, and you might not get the time you want either. Depending on how much free time someone has, someone can possibly go check out one movie a day, and that could end up being a lifestyle for many consumers. Granted, Regal has a slight advantage compared to MoviePass because MoviePass worked at several theater chains and operations, whereas Unlimited, Unlimited Plus, and Unlimited All Access are all exclusive to Regal Entertainment Group. I don’t think Regal should have anything to worry about, but depending on how much it affects their ticket sales, it is a thought to keep in the back of their mind. Although at the same time, movie theaters traditionally have a split of money that goes in their pockets and the studios’ pockets, so what they should really be paying attention to is how often people buy food. If this plan causes an uptick in concession purchases at Regal locations, then it’s possible that this new Unlimited concept is a win.

So… Is this a good deal? For me, if I had to compare it to perhaps its top competitor, AMC Stubs A-List, I could do better. But I do think this could work for a lot of people. I know that in a state such as New Hampshire, which has more Regal locations as opposed to Cinemark or AMC locations, it can definitely help. Upon a quick Google Maps search, there is only one AMC in the entire state located in the town of Londonderry. Regal however has a few locations in Concord, Newington, and Hooksett. And if you live in a state like Maine, good luck finding an AMC because there are none in the entire state. There are Regal locations however! This can definitely save you a ton of money and if you go to Regal more than AMC, this might be for you. But as someone who has more AMC locations nearby and overall prefers some of the details behind the AMC A-List deal, I would stick with A-List. You don’t get extra charges for premium formats, it is much more open-minded as to what theater you go to on a locality perspective, and your convenience fees are waived when buying tickets online! But if you go to Regal often, I do recommend giving this a shot and you could potentially save yourself a ton of money.

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Thanks for reading this post! I just want to remind everyone that in a week and a half I am going to be heading down to Connecticut once again to visit Mohegan Sun for Terrificon. I have gone two years in a row, this is going to be my third, and per usual, I’ll be doing a review and haul post. I’m thinking of implementing more video elements this time around because I want to avoid doing the same thing over and over again. Only time will tell, but I cannot wait. I’ll be there all three days (August 9-11) so I’ll have plenty to report. And I’ll soon make a post about what’s in store at this con coming up in a week and a half. I would have done it earlier, but I wanted to make sure I had enough details to share with everybody. Be sure to follow Scene Before either with an email or WordPress account so you can stay tuned for more great content! Speaking of being subscribed to things, be sure to like my Facebook page! I want to know, are you going to be taking advantage of Regal’s new Unlimited concept? Which plan are you going to choose? If you want to know more about this, click the link below to find out more information! Also, I am curious. Have you ever had a cinema subscription service? Like, do you have AMC A-List? Do you have Cinemark Movie Club? Or… MoviePass, maybe? And if you have a MoviePass card at this point, can you tell me whether or not you have a MySpace? Just curious. Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!

Click here to find out more about the new REGAL UNLIMITED Plans!

Atom Tickets Holds Break Up With MoviePass Contest

Posted on by Jack Drees

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Hey everyone, Jack Drees here! If you are a movie buff or just like going to the movies or wanted a way to make your moviegoing experience cheaper, one thing you may have done over the past number of months is get yourself a MoviePass card. Now this is something I personally have never done. But I will say it did sound like a good deal. NOTE: Did. The concept is that you can watch one movie in the theater for free each day. Keep in mind, this concept came in 2017, six years after this company was founded and had a more limited structure when it came to going to the movies with this thing. Nevertheless, the concept was to watch a movie a day for $9.95 a month. So it’s basically the same thing as Hulu or Netflix, only you’re subscribed to the opportunity to go to the movies once a day. If you ask me, it’s not a bad deal. But over the months, MoviePass had changes made to their policies. Certain theaters wouldn’t accept MoviePass, you couldn’t see certain movies such as this year’s “Red Sparrow” with MoviePass, the company quietly at one point removed the opportunity to see one movie a day and brought it down to three movies a month. Not only was it three movies a month, but they also made it mandatory to also get iHeartRadio. The unlimited plan was however reinstated, but only doom was to come. There was a point where MoviePass basically burned through money harder and faster than my brain did during the SAT, they introduced surge pricing, you couldn’t see popular films or films in prime time slots without paying extra. Then in July, it only got worse.

MoviePass is owned by Helios and Matheson Analytics, and they filed to raise $1.2 billion in order to keep MoviePass alive. That was just the beginning of the month, specifically July 2nd, because on the 26th of that very month, MoviePass’s stock was at such a low point that the firm was forced to borrow $5 million just to keep business going. Not only that, but they also did a 250 to 1 reverse stock split earlier that same week! So their very low stock artificially went up, but just a week later, it plummeted like that LEGO project your kid has been working so hard on all because the kid’s “stupid sister” thought it would be fun to tear the project apart. The stock at this point sits at less than ten cents! Wait, no no no, that’s too much. It’s sitting at less than nine cents! That’s not truthful enough either? Well, I do have another truth to tell you! The stock for MoviePass just so happens to be sitting at less than eight cents!

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That thing you see above, THAT is an authentic look at MoviePass’s stock right now! Did I also mention there was a point where MoviePass ran out of money so the service ended up crashing? Did I also mention that you can’t now go see big release movies in their first couple of weeks? Sorry, “The Meg,” a shark might have just chomped on you! That shark by the way, was “MoviePass!” I’m honestly gonna be shocked if MoviePass makes it until the end of the year. If they have some miraculous maneuver I don’t know about, I’d love to hear about it. There’s more to say about this and how MoviePass chooses to deal with this sort of thing, but we’re not gonna get into that, instead, let’s talk about another company that has grown in terms of popularity when it comes to going to the movies, Atom Tickets.

Atom Tickets is a service that sells tickets to screenings at movie theaters. So basically, they do the same thing as Fandango or Movietickets.com. I never used Atom’s service, mainly because I actually have a Fandango VIP account, so I’m just utilizing that whenever I can. Although Atom is doing something that I will give them every inch of credit for, and that is this new sweepstakes which is the main topic of this very post. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I give you… “Atom’s Breakup Sweepstakes!”

There are a number of things to be said about this. Is this going a little overboard about a company dying? Maybe. But there is no denying that this sweepstakes is just plain genius and kind of badass! It almost makes me forgive Atom Tickets for making that over the top and stupid commercial with Anna Faris. I could provide a link to it, but for the sake of the world’s sanity, I’m not going to.

How the contest works is that you have to be a legal resident of the United States, although if you’re in Rhode Island, Puerto Rico, or other US territories, you’re unfortunately not eligible. You must enter by August 31st at 11:59PM PST, either on Twitter or through a handwritten note with some information related to your name, date of birth, etc. If you choose to enter on Twitter, you must use the hashtags #MOVIEPAST and #ATOMSWEEPS. The winner will receive one free movie ticket a day, and the ticket’s value is at $12 per movie. The approximate retail value of this prize overall comes out to $4,380. What you essentially do is take a picture of you cutting or carving up your MoviePass card for others to see! That. IS GENIUS. This almost reminds me of something that Sprint did earlier this decade, where they have you bring in your wireless bill to a Sprint store and they cut your rate plan in half. I specifically recall commercials of people with chainsaws literally slicing paper.

This sounds like a fantastic deal, because I was actually thinking at one point of signing up for one of MoviePass’s competitors, AMC’s A-List, which I have talked about on here. But I have yet to do that, and I ultimately don’t know when I will. Granted, this summer alone, I’ve gone to see nine movies in the theater thus far. Six of them were at AMC locations. In fact, one time I could have actually used AMC’s A-List deal, because their thing is to provide a maximum of three movies a week, and I did go see three movies in one week at an AMC. But considering that one of my favorite theaters is not owned by AMC, I didn’t want to risk losing any sort of opportunity of going to or supporting that theater. In fact, that theater doesn’t even accept MoviePass so that kind of says something. Although they do accept another MoviePass competitor, Sinemia, but that’s somewhat irrelevant.

Now, I must not forget one thing. There’s something I didn’t mention that is very important. The most important thing you need for this contest, is of course, a MoviePass card. And since I never got a MoviePass subscription, I therefore don’t possess a MoviePass card. But some of you reading this might actually have one, in which case, go nuts, do whatever you want with it. But I’m almost thinking of doing something in particular since I don’t have one. I’m thinking of buying MoviePass.

At this point, it’s possible that maybe I could buy the entire company, but since I’m not stupid, I’m not going to do that. What I’m thinking of doing is getting a MoviePass card, that way I can receive it in the mail, open up whatever container it comes in, grab my scissors, and cut it up just so I can enter the contest! I mentioned earlier that MoviePass costs $9.95 per month. That’s for the “movie a day” plan if that’s even a thing anymore. But they also have a cheaper plan worth $7.95 per month, which came about from the recently mentioned “three movies a month” thing MoviePass did at one point! Since MoviePass in terms of value is probably worthless at this point, I might as well go with the worthless price and pay the $7.95 deal! Although then again, it also says I can cancel at anytime, so whaddya know?

One thing to also consider is that this contest already started on July 31st, and it ends on August 31st at 11:59 PM on the Pacific coast. One thing I asked myself was this: How long does it take for a MoviePass card to arrive? According to their website, it should arrive around 7 to 10 business days after you order. So I’ve got plenty of time! Right now it’s August 5th! August 31st is 26 days away! Sorry MoviePass, but your business days are also might help Atom’s business days!

Part of me can’t believe I’m saying this, but IF MoviePass goes under, I might talk about them on here once again. In all seriousness, they had a GREAT idea, but it was poorly executed business-wise. Part of me somewhat regrets not getting them, but at the same time, I also feel proud of myself because of some of the things they’ve done. MoviePass probably has very little time left as a company, so if they’re going to go under, I don’t know when such a thing will exactly happen. It might be in the next couple of days, weeks, maybe even a month from now. But if I were you, if you think MoviePass is not worth having anymore, I wouldn’t PASS up this Atom Tickets opportunity. Thanks for reading this post! If you want the official rules and guidelines regarding this sweepstakes, I’ll provide a link down below for you to read, and in all seriousness, whether or not you like MoviePass, you have to admit, this contest is just absolutely brilliant. Moving away from MoviePass and Atom Tickets, I would like to remind everyone reading this Scene Before post that this site has its own Facebook Page! There’s a link for it below, please click on it, like it, follow it, do whatever you do. Also be sure to follow me here on Scene Before through a WordPress account or an email that way you can stay tuned for more great content! I want to know, are you going to be entering this Atom Tickets contest? Or, if you had MoviePass, tell me what you like or don’t like about it. Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!

ATOM TICKETS SWEEPSTAKES: https://www.atomtickets.com/promotions/moviepass-breakup-sweepsteaks

SCENE BEFORE FACEBOOK PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/REALSceneBefore/

AMC Introduces A-List Program For Stubs Members (Is This A Good Deal?)

Posted on by Jack Drees

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WARNING: The following post is not sponsored by AMC Theatres, they are paying me in no way whatsoever. However, enjoy my usual unpaid sponsorship if you like that sort of thing.

Hey everyone, Jack Drees here! Before we get into some of the latest movie news that has been on my mind for awhile, let’s talk about some other news that may as well be a lot sadder than what I’m going to mainly deliver here. When I go see movies, I’m not a jerk who goes around spoiling things for others. And for my latest promotion, allow me to say that it contains content that shouldn’t be spoiled to anyone, so I’ll keep my lips sealed. One thing that I CAN say however is that this is in a series of videos created by a couple by the name of Paul and Genevieve. The two are expecting a child in the future, but the journey to get to where they are happened to be one of the more frustrating a complicated than a game of chess! This is all explained… in “What the IVF?!”

“What the IVF?” is a YouTube series starring the recently mentioned couple as they experience what it’s like to be in hell. Sure, that can be a use of figurative language some may use for having to deal with kids. The problem for Paul and Genevieve is that they don’t even have kids of their own to experience that possible hell! Their slices of hell include problems having to do with sex, examinations, life issues, downloading crazy apps, and shark bites–err I mean needles! You can find the latest videos in the series on its specifically dedicated YouTube channel (link below)! The latest entry takes place around the holiday season, which is amazing because it was uploaded June when the video was uploaded! Although in the end, that has little to do with quality, because even with the out of place time frame, the video is top notch and one of the best I’ve seen in the series thus far. Be sure to subscribe to the “WTIVF?” YouTube channel, check out their website, follow them on other forms of social media, all the links are provided down below, go crazy! Also, be sure to tell them that Jack Drees sent ya over!

WTIVF? WEBSITE: http://www.whattheivf.com/

WTIVF? YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCILXSidkzWgwrQ5Oa1py78w/featured?disable_polymer=1

WTIVF? TWITTER: https://twitter.com/WTivF

WTIVF? INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wtivf/

WTIVF? FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/What-The-IVF-288868031634125/

This news you’re about to hear is perhaps something you may have known already. I was actually alerted of this last week, and as a result, some of you may be thinking I’m a lazy jackass who doesn’t care about delivering you content at the right times. If you have not been spying me, there’s a chance you might not now that I’ve been busy and frustrated. Getting into the specifics is for another time however. Speaking of getting into the specifics of things, let’s get into the specifics of AMC’s new A-List program. For those who care to know, I am an AMC Stubs member. If you are familiar with this program, you’d know that there is more than one group that members can belong to. I belong to the Insider group, which is the group with the least perks. It’s not to say that my perks suck. I’m totally thankful for them. I get a free large popcorn on my birthday, I can get $5 rewards if I spend enough money towards that such thing, and one of the most recent additions is $5 ticket Tuesdays, which I hope to take a serious advantage of in the near future. The other Stubs program is what’s called Premiere, and this program is $15 a month. Why is it $15 a month? On the AMC website, it essentially says that it has superior, not to mention exclusive, perks compared to the Insider package. And as of recently, I’ve been tinkering with the idea of upgrading.

As the post states, we are going to be focusing on the AMC A-List Stubs membership. And holy crap! This is movie heaven (as long as you go to AMC)! This membership is going to cost purchasers $19.95 a month plus tax, and I gotta tell you, as long as you like the AMC cinema chain or go to AMC often, PLEASE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS! Let me just go through these features and see if that hypnotizes you to stop reading this, get off your ass, and head straight to an AMC movie theater!

  • See 3 movies per week at anytime, any day, anywhere, any format. There are no blackout dates, and benefits reset every Friday morning
  • Fill a six-month calendar of upcoming films
  • Free online reservations (hold a maximum three reservations at any time)
  • Complimentary Premiere Stubs benefits

Yes, these are four benefits, and the way I’m stating all of this, might make my statements overall sound underwhelming. Maybe you expected a bit more out of this. Let me just tell you, focus on quality, not quantity. There’s one benefit that I need to point out, and that is the first one, seeing 3 movies per week for free. I’d usually get lucky just to see a free movie in general. Let’s take this into the perspective of a certain area. Let’s talk about New York City, the city that never sleeps, despite having millions of hotel rooms complete with beds for use at a guest’s convenience. There are several movie theaters in New York City, and if you live in a suburban area and go to a suburban theater and look at one of the Big Apple theaters, chances are you’ll think the price range is a little more exorbitant. Let’s take one theater for example, specifically the AMC Kips Bay 15. If you go to that theater in the evening and go see any movie in standard 2D, you would end up paying $16.99. That is one ticket for one movie, and you have this new deal that without taxes, is a monthly payment worth just $2.96 more! With this new deal you can literally go to this exact theater towards the end of the day, go see a double feature by yourself, and have it cost nothing. You would ultimately pay $19.95 that month alone after seeing TWO movies in the same day that would have separate tickets combining together to make a total of $33.98. Let’s also keep this in mind, the benefits reset on Friday mornings. This means, if this program survives to make it to next year, which I’m pretty sure it will, people will be able to go through a month such as March of that year and watch FIFTEEN FREE MOVIES. Why? The first day of the month starts on a Friday, and the last day is on a Sunday. March has 31 days. If you go see 3 free movies by the second Friday of that month, the eighth, the reset kicks in and you can go see 3 more free movies, giving a total of 6. Once the next Friday comes, the fifteenth, you have three more bad boys, giving you 9 chances at free movies. After that comes the following Friday, the twenty-second, giving you 3 extra chances and 12 in total. Then you have another restart on the 29th, giving you a few more days in the month to see 3 more free movies. With that, you can round up all the opportunities of freedom to a total of 15. Just for the concept of seeing movies by itself, this deal is automatically worth it, especially if you go to AMC. Although as suggested, that’s ultimately just a portion of the entire deal!

Let’s move away from this however and talk about the concept of familiarity. Some of you movie or cinema geeks would probably know what I’m talking about when I mention the names MoviePass and Sinemia. Both are subscription services that have the same purpose, making the movie-going experience more affordable. Since I’m such a movie buff, and I go see a lot of movies, I’d take advantage of one of these two deals. But I didn’t. I didn’t put a lot of thought into MoviePass, and it took awhile for me to know about Sinemia. And as of now, I can’t say I’m entirely sure about Sinemia’s future, but I think it’s dwindling. Although when it comes to MoviePass, it’s almost every other day that I hear about it when it comes to news, and it’s usually not good news. One of the most common things I hear when it comes to MoviePass is the company losing money. With this new deal from AMC, it’s quite possible that MoviePass might not have much time left to live. In fact, while AMC isn’t a worldwide chain, it’s the biggest chain in the United States. According to Wikipedia, the company operates 11,247 screens and 1,027 sites, which by the way, is almost double the sites operated by America’s second place competitor in the realm of cinema chains, Regal Entertainment Group. It’s quite possible if enough people continue to go to AMC and perhaps take advantage of this offer, they would cause MoviePass to go under.

Interestingly, MoviePass has something to say about this whole scenario.

Let’s take a look at these tweets. Let me just start of by saying that in a number of ways, MoviePass couldn’t have their heads up their asses any higher than they do here. I will say one thing though regarding their second tweet, MoviePass does have a point regarding AMC. Going from MoviePass’s original plan, a movie a day for $9.95 per month to 3 movies a week for $19.95 per month is a bit of a price jump. Although I will say that the extra features and discounts might make this all worth it in the very end. However, despite their cheap price, think of MoviePass as a big TV that gives off very little color, and AMC A List as a smaller TV with tons of color. I do want to get the best deal but the reality is that MoviePass has been nothing but shady lately. MoviePass at one point blocked people from going to see “Red Sparrow,” with the recent tweet I just mentioned along with some of their other Twitter posts, it makes them come off as anti-competitive. You can have the best looking deal, but at the same time, some people will ignore because when you look behind the glass, it’s not all pretty. When was the last time an AMC intentionally blocked a movie? Granted, MoviePass has yet to have its CEO kill a guy, but MoviePass is acting like that one kid on the playground who is complaining he never gets to go on the slide, even though he lost his privileges after going on too many times.

By the way, this is going to be a lot less descriptive, but I read an article from Cinema Blend, and Sinemia recently shared some thoughts on this whole thing as well.

“We are happy to see new entrants in the market who understand that movie ticket subscriptions are the future of moviegoing, and AMC is a great example of this. However, we have concerns over their strategy. We believe that, with three tickets per week at a $20 price point and limited to a single theater chain, AMC’s plan is trying to reach a niche segment of super moviegoers. We have been an advocate of sustainable movie ticket subscription offerings for last 4 years, and when we look at the details of the AMC plan we fear that this will devalue the movie experience and simply is not sustainable. We think that this plan may even result in the cannibalization of AMC’s own customer base. That said, competitors always push us forward, and we welcome AMC into this market. We will continue to develop the Sinemia**service and mobile app to be the best solution for both moviegoers and the movie industry.”

As much as I can disagree with that statement, I’ll give Sinemia for being something that MoviePass isn’t, mature. This kind of makes me want to have a Sinemia card on me now. I probably won’t have one on me soon, but even so, their maturity is a breath of fresh air.

In the end, unless AMC starts acting like a child, this deal is more than worth it. I don’t know if I’ll get it because I go to more theaters than those in the AMC chain, even though they have some of my preferred local sites. These features are not just great for those who want to watch movies in multiple formats, but for anyone looking to buy food at the theater as well! This is especially worth it if you have the Premiere Stubs benefits because this is just a few dollars more a month! Maybe if this turns out to be very successful, maybe other chains like Regal or Cinemark will try to join in with a program of their own! We’ll just have to see what happens! Thanks for reading this post! This week is actually pretty busy for me, and by that I mean that in no way related to work or school, but I’m on vacation. There is a movie theater in my area that I might go to, and if I do, I hope to review whatever it is I see there! Stay tuned for more great content! I want to know, what do you think of this new AMC A-List program? Or have you used services such as MoviePass or Sinemia? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!